PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT Progressive disorders of airway protection, such as swallowing disorders (dysphagia) and cough disorders (dystussia), are highly prevalent in PD and have significant negative implications for health and quality of life. In fact, aspiration pneumonia, commonly associated with dysphagia/dystussia, is a leading cause of death in PD. Despite this, there is currently no established standard of care for the treatment of airway protective disorders in this population. Even more critically, approximately 40% of individuals with PD in the United States do not access rehabilitation services or receive specialized care for these potentially life-threatening airway protective deficits. Expiratory Muscle Strength Training (EMST) and Cough Skill Training (CST) have been found to improve airway protective disorders in PD and be feasible via telehealth. However, a significant clinical- research gap remains in that no one has demonstrated that clinical outcomes are comparable (non-inferior) when these treatments are delivered via telehealth versus in-person – a gap that we are currently working to fill with our ongoing parent R01(R01 NS126319-01). Furthermore, it is important to assess the impact of patient burden on treatment adherence and clinical outcomes in the short- and long-term in both modalities. This gap limits access to these important services with detrimental effects to health, quality of life, and healthcare disparities. An additional significant gap that impacts the advancement of this important work is a major lack in doctoral level scholars with strong training and mentorship in the area of clinical-translational work in airway protection (i.e., swallowing and cough) and its rehabilitation. This challenge is compounded by an especially low number of trainees from underrepresented backgrounds. Our long-term goal is to improve the health outcomes of individuals with PD and other neurodegenerative diseases, specifically as they relate to airway protective dysfunction. This long-term goal will be achieved through validating and improving access to efficacious interventions and through the effective training and mentorship of a diverse workforce of scholars with expertise in airway protection and its rehabilitation. The objective of this Landis Mentorship award supplement is to provide key support to enrich the training experiences of current and future trainees in airway protection. Our current parent R01 will serve as a living classroom from and through which research and enriching training opportunities will be developed.