Meet Our Speech-Language Pathologists and Occupational Therapists
Melanie Krevitz Bellissima, M.S., CCC-SLP
Melanie has been active in the speech therapy world since the young age of 14 when she began to observe speech therapists in different environments. She graduated Summa Cum Laude from West Chester University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Communicative Disorders. During her years at WCU, Melanie served as President of NSSLHA (National Student Speech-Language-Hearing Association), earning her the” NSSLHA Members Honor Award”, national recognition awarded on the basis of scholastic achievement, service to the academic unit, and professional conduct. Melanie was also awarded the “Who’s Who Among Students in American Universities and Colleges” award and was nominated for the Omicron Delta Kappa National Leadership Honor Society.
Continuing her education towards her goal of becoming a Speech-Language Pathologist, Melanie studied at Towson University where she earned a Master’s of Science Degree in Speech-Language Pathology. She served as President of NSSLHA at the graduate level as well.
Melanie has extensive experience in the field, working at several pediatric outpatient facilities where she treated a variety of clients with a range of disorders and diagnoses. She also spent several years working at a camp for children on the Autism Spectrum, where she developed and implemented the camp’s drama program.
She also created individualized positive behavior plans and activities to enhance social skills such as non-verbal communication, conversation building, friendship making, and problem solving.
Melanie wanted to create a therapeutic environment that was unlike any other. A place where every child is seen as special with a unique therapy plan created just for them. A place where the therapist is handpicked for a child’s specific needs. A place where kindness, respect, and love are at the forefront of all therapy. Thus, Great Start Therapy was created. Melanie is a licensed speech-language pathologist in the state of Pennsylvania and certified by the American Speech Hearing Association (ASHA).