University of Chicago Medicine's Suskind Joins Clinton's 'Too Small to Fail' Initiative

Pediatric otolaryngologist and early language development expert will serve on an advisory council for Hillary Rodham Clinton's effort to improve well-being for young children

September 20, 2013

Dana Suskind, MD, professor of surgery and pediatrics and director of the pediatric cochlear implant program at the University of Chicago Medicine, has been named to the Advisory Council for "Too Small to Fail," a joint initiative of Next Generation and The Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation aimed at improving the health and well-being of American children from birth to 5 years old.

Suskind joins a slate of national early childhood development experts, business leaders, community advocates and political leaders who convened Sept. 17 for the inaugural meeting of Too Small to Fail's advisory and leadership council meeting. Council members were tapped to serve as key advisers, spokespeople and leaders for the initiative, lending their expertise to promote dialog and advance understanding of the science of early childhood development among parents, caregivers and communities. The advisers will work to develop a public education campaign offering simple steps to improve learning and health outcomes for young children.

Also serving on the Advisory Council from the University of Chicago: James Heckman, Henry Schultz Distinguished Professor of Economics and director of the Economics Research Center.

Suskind is a leading pediatric otolaryngologist who specializes in hearing loss and cochlea implantation. She is the founder and director of Thirty Million Words, a University of Chicago Medicine-based initiative to drive awareness of the critical role spoken language plays in a child's early development and to encourage parents to promote language in home and childcare settings. The evidence-based intervention, supported by a broad coalition of public and private partnerships, is an extension of Suskind's Project ASPIRE, created to help her young patients from disadvantaged backgrounds reach their full listening and spoken language potentials.