Meet the Hedges Staff

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Carmen Ball, Executive Director

Carmen Ball is proud to have been the Executive Director of Hedges Speech & Hearing since 2006. From a background in nonprofits and finance, Carmen jokes that the only thing that has changed from her days dealing with construction lending for home builders to Hedges with focus on school age children is the height of her customers. Carmen has been a long-time supporter of the United Way and is glad that Hedges is a partner agency. She and her husband Frank Baker, are strong Enid supporters and her golden retriever, Steve McQueen, makes more appearances on Facebook than she does.  

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Barbara Swart, Administrative Assistant

​​Barbara assists Hedges with scheduling, billing, insurance inquiries, and general office administrative tasks. She has been working at Hedges since 2005. Barbara graduated from OSU Institute of Technology with an Associate in Applied Science degree and took additional courses at Autry Technology Center and Northern Oklahoma College in the areas of business, human resource management, and accounting. Barbara was highly recommended by Autry when we were looking to hire for this position, and she was a perfect fit! She is passionate about serving clients and their families. Barbara is such a hard worker, and we are very thankful to have her on our team!    

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Kim Tinius, Au.D., CCC-A
Audiologist

Kim graduated with a doctoral degree from Wichita State University.  Vitally concerned with hearing conservation as well as remediation, Kim is a great fit for Hedges. 

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Emily Buller, M.S., CCC-SLP
Speech-Language Pathologist

​​Emily Buller graduated from Oklahoma Bible Academy in Enid, Oklahoma in 1998. She attended Northern Oklahoma College and received her Associates of Science degree in December 2000. Emily then attended and graduated from the University of Central Oklahoma with her Bachelor’s of Science degree in May 2003 and her Master’s of Science degree in May 2005. She has been working at Hedges since May 2005. Emily has experience working with both children and adults.  She is always excited to see a client or student make progress towards their speech and language goals, and finds it rewarding to watch her clients communicate their wants and needs with family and friends.

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​Kathy Chambers, M.S., CCC-SLP
Speech-Language Pathologist

Kathy is a graduate of Enid High School and received her Bachelor’s of the Arts and Master’s of Science degrees from Phillips University. Kathy has been working at Hedges since 1974. She strongly believes that communication is a vital part of life no matter a person's age or diagnosis. Kathy implements a person-centered approach with each of her clients, as she believes this truly facilitates opportunities for clients to work towards their communication goals in the most meaningful, engaging, and functional way possible!

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Darci Dennis, M.Ed., CCC-SLP
​Speech-Language Pathologist

Darci attended Northeastern State University where she earned her Master of Education in Speech-Language Pathology degree.  She has been working at Hedges since June of 1998.  Darci enjoys working with children in order to make a positive impact in their lives and the lives of their families.

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​Nikki Fogtman, M.S., CCC-SLP
Speech-Language Pathologist

Nikki is originally from New Orleans, LA and grew up in Pittsburgh, PA. She attended Duquesne University in Pittsburgh where she received a Bachelor of Science in Health Sciences (May 2015) and Master of Science in Speech-Language Pathology (August 2016). After receiving her Master’s degree, Nikki worked for a private, pediatric therapy company in Knoxville, TN until moving to Oklahoma in May 2021. Nikki has been working at Hedges since August of 2021. She has experience working in a variety of settings, including schools, daycares, outpatient clinics, and early intervention in homes. Nikki is an advocate for early intervention and is passionate about working with children and their families to provide holistic, child-centered treatment. She believes great therapy is functional, well researched, and fun!

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Charlene Wichert, M.A., CCC-SLP
Speech-Language Pathologist

Charlene graduated from Enid High School in 1988 and attended Oklahoma State University where she received her Bachelor’s degree in 1993 and her Master’s degree in Speech-Language Pathology in 1995. She has been working at Hedges since August of 1995 and is the lead speech-language pathologist. Charlene has provided speech and language services to children in several Oklahoma school districts and has a passion for working with children and their families. She is highly collaborative and compassionate, and truly cares about the progress of her clients and the treatment they receive.​

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Hedges Audiologist and Speech-Language Pathologists are licensed to practice in the state of Oklahoma and hold their Certificate of Clinical Competence from the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association.