Leah Kadlecik is a first year graduate student at Ithaca College in New York, studying Speech Language Pathology. Leah sees language as a bridge that connects the thoughts and the souls of people. With a sister who is hearing impaired, she has learned the significance of communication, and how it impacts our lives on a daily basis. Leah’s goal is to become a speech language pathologist, and earn her Certificate of Clinical Competence (CCC-SLP). She hopes to be able to help people express their needs, wants and desires with clarity confidence and pride. “Most of us take the ability to communicate for granted,” Leah says, “but I have seen many times how difficult life can be when the ability to hear and/or speak is impaired.”

As a young teen, Leah won the governor’s Triple “C “award for commitment, character and courage. She was one of three to be honored with this award out of approximately 1500 students. Leah continue to live a life that reflects those qualities, by working hard, persevering, and striving to make good choices.