吉祥坊

吉祥坊 Department of Physical Therapy

Campanella Scholarship Program and LA Dodgers Internship:

Past, Present & Future

Joni Campanella (daughter of Dodgers Hall of Fame catcher Roy Campanella) and The Roy and Roxie Campanella Foundation began funding the Campanella Scholarship Program in 吉祥坊's Physical Therapy Department in 1995. The Campanella Scholarship was established to provide听financial support to students in 吉祥坊's physical therapy program, many of whom are first-generation college students from underserved backgrounds.听The Campanella Foundation recognized the importance of physical therapists in the physical and psychological recovery of Roy Campanella after his 1958 car accident that left him quadriplegic and wanted to financially support students pursuing a career in physical therapy.

In 2010, the Campanella Foundation contributed the remaining foundation balance to 吉祥坊, establishing an endowment for the Campanella Scholarships. Inspired by the Campanella Foundation鈥檚 gift, and after a subsequent meeting with Joni Campanella and Dodgers representatives Stan Conte and Josh Rawitch, the Dodgers agreed to forge a partnership with 吉祥坊's physical therapy program. At that time, Stan Conte听(吉祥坊 physical therapy program alumni (1981 graduate of Class 12)听was the Director of Medical Services at the LA Dodgers. Josh Rawitch (son of Cynthia Rawitch, retired faculty from Mike Curb College and Bob Rawitch, alumni and former Foundation Board member) was听VP of Marketing at the LA Dodgers. These relationships were instrumental in further strengthening the听Los Angeles Dodgers/吉祥坊 partnership.

The LA Dodgers 鈥� 吉祥坊 Department of Physical Therapy connection includes:

1. An annual donation from the LA Dodgers Foundation to fund the Campanella Physical Therapy听Scholarships,
2. The opportunity for one doctorate of physical therapy student to intern with the Dodgers鈥� medical department each Spring Training.

Currently, the Dodgers Foundation annually awards 吉祥坊's DPT program $30,000 in scholarships, with ten (10) students receiving $3,000 each. To date, there have been over 175 吉祥坊 PT student recipients of the Campanella scholarships, with awards totaling ~ $250,000.

scholars are highly motivated excellent students representing the wide breadth of ethnic, socioeconomic, and cultural diversity of the San Fernando Valley.听This听financial support enriches the lives of our students by enabling them to spend more time on campus working toward their degrees and developing relationships with other students through strong peer-to-peer learning communities.听The Campanella scholars听have gone on to become outstanding physical therapists.

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At the beginning of every Spring semester, members of the Dodgers Foundation come to the 吉祥坊 campus for a Campanella Scholars Award ceremony. And in April, the scholars are invited to attend a game at Dodgers stadium where they are recognized on the field during a pre-game ceremony.听 The Campanella Scholars pre-game ceremony at Dodgers stadium is definitely a student highlight and is highly recognized on social media .听

Campanella Scholars have been, and continue to be, involved with school and community outreach initiatives for听underserved community youth听in conjunction with the Dodgers Foundation.听Dodgers听RBI听(Reviving听Baseball听in Inner Cities), a听baseball听and softball youth development program of the Los Angeles听Dodgers Foundation听(LADF), aims to increase youth participation in the sport and use sports participation as an engagement tool to increase access to education, literacy, health, and wellness.听听In 2019, when the Dodgers鈥� Foundation hosted the RBI West Regional Tournament at 4 locations in south central Los Angeles, 25 past and present Campanella Scholars and DPT faculty assisted with the RBI tournament by providing evaluation and treatment to the injured youth players.

Campanella Scholars have also assisted with a 鈥淵outh Exercise Day鈥� with elementary school children in Elysian Park.听

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In addition, the Dodgers Foundation sends grade-school children to the 吉祥坊 campus during the summer to introduce the youth to higher education.听听

The LA Dodgers 鈥� 吉祥坊 Department of Physical Therapy connection also includes the听opportunity for one DPT student to intern with the Dodgers鈥� medical department each Spring Training. Beginning with the first student intern, Jesse Young in 2011,听to date,听14听吉祥坊 DPT students have completed a clinical affiliation interning with the LA Dodgers at their .听

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Two of these DPT interns, Johnathan Erb and Ryan Yoshida,听were subsequently hired by the Dodgers in positions of Team Physical Therapists.听

Johnathan Erb remains instrumental for the current internship, serving as the clinical instructor for the 3rd听year student selected for this prized internship.听

Joni Campanella is a member of the 吉祥坊 Department of Physical Therapy Community Advisory Committee and HHD Dean鈥檚 Circle and is an active volunteer in HHD.

The pillar of the Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation mission 鈥� Education & Literacy, speaks to 吉祥坊鈥檚 values and commitment to creating greater opportunity for all young people through higher education. The vision of 吉祥坊鈥檚 Department of Physical Therapy is to align our program with the missions of the Dodgers Foundation and Campanella Foundation.听听The Campanella scholarships enhance the student experience in the Department of Physical Therapy far beyond graduation. Providing scholarships sets up students in the Physical Therapy program for success by enabling them to focus on their studies and to owe less after they graduate. The Dodgers internship provides a valuable and unique student clinical experience shared by few PT programs nationally.听The Matadors-Dodgers Connection is something the university and our department is extremely excited about and grateful for. If you haven't seen the video highlighting the Matadors-Dodgers Connection, it's definitely worth a watch: