Graduate student wins California Baldwin Scottish Rite Scholarship

Call it a mother’s intuition.

Lisa Bombarda (’16 M.S.) was planning a Ph.D. path into psychology research when her uncle suffered a stroke. Speech therapy sessions were part of his recovery and as Bombarda’s mother watched, she was somehow sure that this career was perfect for her daughter.

Give it a look, her mother said. Bombarda was reluctant, but humored her mother. Soon she was convinced that the profound hands-on work of a speech language therapist was an ideal fit. Now it looks like everyone was right. Bombarda has so excelled during her first year in Chapman University’s
Communication Sciences and Disorders program
that she won the 2015 California Baldwin Scottish Rite Scholarship.

“She is an outstanding student who gives back to her community as a volunteer. She will be a stellar speech language pathologist,” said Judith Montgomery, Ph.D., professor and director of the Communication Sciences and Disorders Program.

Bombarda says her first year experience at Chapman has confirmed her career choice. She particularly values the field placement opportunities. Bombarda worked at the Orange County Childhood Language Center in Santa Ana during her first semester and this semester is serving at an elementary school.

“Chapman just offers everything that other grad programs don’t. For example, you get placed in a practicum site, which is a school or medical site, each semester. Whereas other programs will place you the last semester of your program. So as we’re learning from the textbooks, we learn hands-on experience,” she says. “I’m really looking forward to all the places Chapman is going to put me in during my graduate career.”