Scholarships: Stephanie Walther ’22

“I wouldn’t be in college if it wasn’t for financial aid. The Francis Soistman Top Ten Scholars—kind of saved me.”

Junior, Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology major
Theatre Arts minor

Stephanie Walther discovered speech-language pathology in high school, inspired by her mother and sister who were teachers. The junior, speech-language pathology and audiology major and theatre arts minor, says the idea of working one-on-one with people is the perfect combination of medical and social. Some people might think that theatre makes for an odd pairing with speech-language pathology. But Stephanie says, it makes perfect sense for her. “The theatre minor helps me with my confidence and the medical aspects of impediments and delays is really interesting to me.” She also says it’s the camaraderie—”I know everyone in my major.”

Although Stephanie jump-started her journey at TU by earning college credits in high school, she was still concerned about finances. “Money has always been a stressor for me and my family. The Francis Soistman Top Ten Scholars kind of saved me.”  She also holds down a federal work-study job on campus in the economics department. “The financial aid I have makes me very grateful. I wouldn’t be in college if it wasn’t for financial aid.”

Stephanie plans to graduate a semester early (those high school credits really helped!) in fall 2021. She will take a gap year, work on graduate school applications and then begin her pursuit of a master’s degree in fall 2022. “Towson is one of three places in Maryland that offers a speech-language pathology master’s program, so maybe I’ll be back!”