PANYING RONG

Panying Rong
  • Ph.D.
  • Associate Professor
  • Director of Undergraduate Studies
  • Honors & Research Coordinator

Contact Info

Dole Human Development Center, 3001
1000 Sunnyside Ave
Lawrence, KS 66045
Office DHDC 3046
Lab HAW 4106

Biography —

Dr. Rong is an Associate Professor in the Department of Speech-Language-Hearing, an affiliated faculty member in the Department of Bioengineering, and an associate member of the Landon Center on Aging at the University of Kansas Medical Center. With interdisciplinary training spanning speech-language pathology, neurophysiology, biomechanics, acoustics, and electrical engineering, her research focuses on motor speech disorders, neurodegenerative diseases, speech-based biomarkers, and explainable clinical speech AI. As Director of the Speech Science and Disorders Laboratory, she integrates multimodal technologies with data-driven methods, such as machine learning, to develop objective communication assessment tools and speech-based biomarkers for neurodegenerative diseases, including amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and Parkinson’s disease (PD). The long-term goal of her research is to advance personalized, measurement-based care for individuals with progressive communication disorders. Her research has been supported by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Foundation and the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, and her work has been published in journals across multiple disciplines, including the Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, Speech Communication, Clinical Neurophysiology, Frontiers in Neuroscience, Frontiers in Digital Health, and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Frontotemporal Degeneration.

Research —

Research interests:

  • Motor speech disorders
  • Speech physiology
  • Acoustics
  • Neurodegenerative diseases
  • Objective assessment
  • Speech-based biomarker development
  • Explainable clinical speech AI

Teaching —

Teaching interests:

  • SPLH 161: Survey of Communication Disorders
  • SPLH 620: The Communicating Brain

Selected Publications —

 (*Student author)

  1. Rong, P., & Heidrick, L. (2026). Developing a speech-based surface electromyography paradigm for automated objective assessment of bulbar involvement in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: Considerations of task effects on motor and cognitive-linguistic functions. Speech Communication, 103461. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.specom.2026.103461. 
  2. *Marx, K., Heidrick, L., & Rong, P. (2026). Application of Automated Data Analytics and Machine Learning to Develop Explainable Objective Markers for Differential Assessment of Progressive Motor Speech Disorders in Neurodegenerative Diseases. AI in Neurology, 1(3), 1. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.64187/ain.2026.v1.i3.001. 
  3. Rong, P., & Heidrick, L. (2026). An interpretable, clinically grounded framework for digital speech biomarker development in neurodegenerative diseases. Frontiers in Digital Health, Volume 8 - 2026. https://doi.org/10.3389/fdgth.2026.1794169. 
  4. Rong, P., & *Liston, E. (2025). An Explanatory Model of Speech Communication Centered on Multiscale Rhythmic Modulation: Implications for Motor Speech Assessment and Intervention for Individuals With Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 68(7s), 3678-3702. https://doi.org/10.1044/2025_jslhr-24-00286. 
  5. Rong, P., Heidrick, L., & Pattee, G. (2025). A novel muscle network approach for objective assessment and profiling of bulbar involvement in ALS. Frontiers in Neuroscience, 18. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2024.1491997. 
  6. Rong, P., Heidrick, L., & Pattee, G. L. (2024). A multimodal approach to automated hierarchical assessment of bulbar involvement in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Frontiers in Neurology, 15. https://doi.org/10.3389/fneur.2024.1396002. 
  7. Rong, P., & Heidrick, L. (2024). Hierarchical Temporal Structuring of Speech: A Multiscale, Multimodal Framework to Inform the Assessment and Management of Neuromotor Speech Disorder. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 67(1), 92-115. https://doi.org/10.1044/2023_jslhr-23-00219. 
  8. Rong, P., & *Rasmussen, L. (2024). A Fine-Grained Temporal Analysis of Multimodal Oral Diadochokinetic Performance to Assess Speech Impairment in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, 33(1), 307-332. https://doi.org/10.1044/2023_ajslp-23-00177.  
  9. *Moore, S., & Rong, P. (2022). Articulatory Underpinnings of Reduced Acoustic-Phonetic Contrasts in Individuals With Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, 31(5), 2022-2044. http://doi.org/10.1044/2022_ajslp-22-00046.  
  10. Rong, P., & Pattee, G. L. (2022). A multidimensional facial surface EMG analysis for objective assessment of bulbar involvement in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Clinical Neurophysiology, 135, 74-84. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clinph.2021.11.074. 
  11. Rong, P. (2021). A Novel Hierarchical Framework for Measuring the Complexity and Irregularity of Multimodal Speech Signals and Its Application in the Assessment of Speech Impairment in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 64(8), 2996-3014. http://doi.org/10.1044/2021_JSLHR-20-00743. 
  12. Rong, P., & Pattee, G. (2021). A potential upper motor neuron measure of bulbar involvement in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis using jaw muscle coherence. Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Frontotemporal Degeneration, 22(5-6), 368-379. http://doi.org/10.1080/21678421.2021.1874993. 
  13. Rong, P., & Jawdat, O. (2021). A novel physiologic marker of bulbar motor involvement in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: Jaw muscle synergy. Clinical Neurophysiology, 132(1), 94-103. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clinph.2020.09.030. 
  14. Rong, P., & Heidrick, L. (2021). Spatiotemporal control of articulation during speech and speechlike tasks in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, 30(3s), 1382-1399. http://doi.org/10.1044/2020_AJSLP-20-00136. 
  15. Rong, P. (2020). Automated acoustic analysis of oral diadochokinesis to assess bulbar motor involvement in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 63(1), 59-73. http://doi.org/10.1044/2019_jslhr-19-00178. 

Selected Presentations —

Invited

  1. Rong, P. (2025). From mechanisms to clinical applications: Leveraging computational techniques to improve the understanding, phenotyping, and tailored care of progressive communication disorders, 5th Biennial Boston Speech Motor Control Symposium, Boston, MA. 
  2. Berisha, V., Ramanarayanan, V., Lammert, A., & Rong, P. (2022). Digital footprints: Use digital biomarkers to support clinical decision making in motor speech disorders, Annual meeting of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, New Orleans, LA. 
  3. Rong, P., Kuehn, D., & Shosted, R. (2017). Using oropharyngeal articulation to compensate for nasalization – Acoustic and perceptual evidence, 174th Meeting of the Acoustical Society of America, New Orleans, LA. 
  4. Yunusova, Y., Rong, P., Allison, K., & Green, J.R. (2017). Quantitative speech motor markers of bulbar involvement in ALS, Annual meeting of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, Los Angeles, CA. 
  5. Rong, P. (2017). Toward better understanding and assessment of motor speech disorders: The application of speech kinematic tracking. University of Kansas Linguistic Colloquy, Lawrence, KS.

  6. Rong, P. (2017). Toward better understanding and assessment of motor speech disorders: The application of biobehavioral and quantitative approaches. University of Kansas Medical Center Seminar for Molecular and Integrative Physiology, Kansas City, KS. 

     

Contributed

  1. Rong, P., Heidrick, L., & Pattee, G. (2026). Translation of craniofacial surface electromyography into a clinically applicable objective tool for assessing bulbar involvement in ALS. 2026 Motor Speech Conference, Tempe, AZ. 
  2. Rong, P. & Heidrick, L. (2026). An interpretable, clinically grounded acoustic framework for objective assessment and phenotyping of progressive communication disorders in neurodegenerative diseases. 2026 Motor Speech Conference, Tempe, AZ. 
  3. Marx, K. & Rong, P. (2026). Temporal analysis of multimodal oral diadochokinetic performance for differential assessment of motor speech impairments in neurodegenerative diseases. 2026 Motor Speech Conference, Tempe, AZ. 
  4. Rong, P. (2024). A multiplex jaw functional muscle network to assess speech impairment in ALS. 2024 Motor Speech Conference, San Diego, CA. 
  5. Rong, P. & Liston, E. (2024). A temporal modulation approach for detecting speech impairment and evaluating intervention-related changes in speakers with ALS. 2024 Motor Speech Conference, San Diego, CA. 
  6. Rong, P. & Pattee, G. (2021). A multifactorial facial surface EMG framework as an objective assessment tool for detecting and measuring bulbar involvement in ALS. 32nd International Symposium on ALS/MND, virtual. 
  7. Rong, P. & Pattee, G. (2021). A multifactorial facial surface EMG analysis as an objective assessment tool for detecting and measuring bulbar involvement in ALS. 20th Annual meeting of the Northeast Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Consortium, virtual. 

 

Awards & Honors —

Fellow, Senior Administrative Fellow Program, University of Kansas (2025 – 2026)

Mentor, Courtwright Award (mentee: Kaley Bruning), University of Kansas (2025)

Fellow, Best Practice Institute Program, Center for Teaching Excellence, University of Kansas (2019)

Meritorious Poster, 2019 ASHA Convention (2019)

Meritorious Poster, 2018 ASHA Convention (2018)

Selected Attendee of Lessons for Success, American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (2018)

Best Poster Award, 7th International Conference on Speech Motor Control (2017)