The UT Dallas Callier Center for Communication Disorders will hold its biannual Callier Prize Conference on March 5, with a focus on how discoveries in genetics are reshaping the understanding and treatment of children’s language, speech and reading disorders.

The conference, titled “Pediatric Communication Disorders: From Disorder to Gene and Back Again,” will include presentations by four world-renowned researchers in genetics and developmental disorders.

The keynote speaker, Dr. J. Bruce Tomblin, will receive the 2011 Callier Prize for Communication Disorders. Tomblin is a professor in the Departments of Communication Sciences and Disorders and Otolaryngology at the University of Iowa.

Among many other achievements, he led one of the first and largest epidemiological studies of language, speech and reading disorders in school-age children.

Also presenting at the conference will be Dr. Philip Dale, chair of the Department of Speech and Hearing Sciences at the University of New Mexico; Dr. Barbara Lewis, professor in the Department of Communication Sciences at Case Western Reserve University; and Dr. Bruce Pennington, professor of Clinical Child and Cognitive Psychology at the University of Denver.

The Callier Prize for Communication Disorders, which includes a $10,000 award, recognizes leaders who have advanced understanding of the diagnosis and treatment of communication disorders.

“Dr. Bruce Tomblin’s research has led to some of the most important discoveries concerning language and speech disorders in children,” said Dr. Thomas Campbell, executive director of the Callier Center.  “We are delighted to award the Callier Prize to him and to host such a distinguished panel of investigators in the field of children’s communication disorders.”

The Callier Prize Conference starts at 9 a.m. at Callier Center Dallas, 1966 Inwood Road. The all-day conference is free, but participants must register to attend by visiting the Callier Center website.