Your child doesn’t have to work out friendship on their own.

Jennifer Hodges, M.S., CCC-SLP, is a licensed speech-language pathologist who was born and raised in Orange, California, and has called the San Francisco Bay Area home for the past 21 years. She founded Citrus Speech after working across hospital-based acute care, acute neurological rehabilitation, private practice, public and private schools, and home-based care.

Jennifer earned her master’s degree in Speech-Language Pathology from the University of the Pacific and her bachelor’s degree in Child Development, with an emphasis in Youth and Family Services, from San Francisco State University. She holds the Certificate of Clinical Competence from the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, is a PEERS® Certified Provider, and is PROMPT Bridging trained. Her clinical experience includes social communication, receptive and expressive language, speech sound disorders, executive functioning, auditory processing, and cognitive communication.

Across each of these settings, Jennifer has seen how meaningful relationships affect a person’s confidence, well-being, and sense of belonging. She loves building community wherever she goes and believes genuine social connection has only become more important as it has become increasingly easy to live without it. At a time when connection can almost feel optional, often to the detriment of our health and happiness, Jennifer believes we must be intentional about strengthening our social intelligence, investing in relationships, and rediscovering the joy of connecting with others. Her work is grounded in helping young people develop practical skills for navigating the social world while remaining fully and authentically themselves.

Jennifer is also deeply involved in San Francisco’s Italian American community, where much of her work has centered on bringing people together and preserving shared history. Outside of work, she is the mother of two daughters, both five and under, and time with her family is what fuels her. She loves walks through Golden Gate Park, summers in Italy, a themed party, and the perfect cappuccino.

Dr. Gregory Lyons, PhD, BCBA-D, is a doctoral-level Board Certified Behavior Analyst specializing in Naturalistic Developmental Behavioral Interventions, function-based positive behavior support, and interventions that promote social connection and meaningful inclusion. For more than 26 years, he has worked alongside children, families, educators, and interdisciplinary teams to develop supports that are evidence-based, practical, and responsive to the individuality of each child.

Much of Dr. Lyons’s career has been based within university clinical-research centers. He trained intensively for six years with Drs. Robert and Lynn Koegel at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and is a Level 6 certified provider of Pivotal Response Treatment. At the Waisman Center at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, he conducted and published research on positive behavior support and spent five years researching and implementing socialization interventions and school-based inclusion programs. He later provided clinical services and implemented research at the UCSF Center for Autism Spectrum Disorder and Neurodevelopmental Disorders for nearly six years.

In 2021, Dr. Lyons founded Lyons Developmental Behavior Consulting, a small practice centered on caregiver coaching, professional training, school and program consultation, and collaborative problem-solving for complex challenges. He also serves as an embedded school-based consultant, conducting comprehensive functional behavior assessments and developing individualized supports that recognize behavior as a form of communication, regulation, and participation.

Across these roles, Dr. Lyons integrates behavioral, developmental, and educational research rather than relying on a single standard protocol. He believes effective support should expand opportunities for connection and participation while honoring strengths, autonomy, and individuality. Through In Tandem Groups, he brings this approach to friendship-focused programs, working alongside children, caregivers, peers, and practitioners from different disciplines. Dr. Lyons often joins families in their most challenging moments while also recognizing and celebrating the connection, growth, and joy that emerge along the way.

Outside of work, Greg enjoys spending time with close friends and family — often over games, long conversations, and plenty of laughter — and shares his home with his adopted cat, Charlotte. An enthusiastic traveler and lifelong learner, he also enjoys writing, hiking, good food, live music, theater, and exploring San Francisco on foot. He is usually planning his next trip, trying a new restaurant, seeking out a good view of the Bay, decorating his home, or tending to his one Calathea plant.