Leanne Togher

Professor Leanne Togher is a speech pathologist who specialises in communication disorders following acquired brain injury. Leanne is the Professor of Communication Disorders following Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), recipient of her 3rd NHMRC Senior Research Fellowship, Principal Research Fellow and Director of Communication Sciences in the School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health. Professor Togher was the Associate Dean Research for the Faculty of Health Sciences in 2016-17.

Professor Togher is a member of the Executive Leadership Committee of the Brain and Mind Centre, The University of Sydney.

Professor Togher was awarded the 2018 NHMRC Elizabeth Blackburn – Clinical Research Fellow for being the highest ranked female research fellow applicant in the NHMRC Fellowships Scheme in the field of Clinical Medicine and Science. She is the first allied health professional in Australia to receive this award.

Professor Togher holds a PhD in the area of speech pathology, and started her career with over 15 years as a clinician working with people with brain injury and their families. She is an internationally recognised and widely published researcher, with more than 150 papers, 4 books and over 20 book chapters. She has attracted a total of more than $31 million in external grant funding and has been awarded several awards for her work by various groups, including Speech Pathology Australia and the Australasian Society of the Study of Brain Impairment.

In recognition of the quality of her supervision, Professor Togher was awarded The University of Sydney’s Vice-Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Research Student Supervision in 2014. Professor Togher was awarded The University of Sydney’s Vice-Chancellor’s Award for Outstanding Research in 2018.Professor Togher is an invited member of the Development Group for the Package of Traumatic Brain Injury Interventions for the World Health Organization.

Professor Togher holds several honorary research appointments, including Honorary Professor at City University, London, UK, and Visiting Professor, Education University of Hong Kong. She is the sole international Board member (2020 – 2025) on the American Speech Language Hearing Association (ASHA) Journals Board, which is responsible for Journal of Speech Language Hearing Research, American Journal of Speech Language Pathology, Language Speech and Hearing Services in Schools, American Journal of Audiology and Perspectives . She is Chair of the Editorial Board for Brain Impairment. She is an editorial board member of several international journals includingBrain Injury, Brain Impairment, Aphasiology and the International Journal of Speech-Language Pathology.

Professor Togher has made sustained contributions to numerous government and professional organisations, including membership of the Board of Governors of the International Brain Injury Association, the Executive Committee of the Australasian Society for the Study of Brain Impairment, and as a Director of Brain Injury Australia. Professor Togher is a Past President of the Australian Society for the Study of Brain Impairment.