Lee Edward Travis

Life Travis was born June 23, 1896, on a farm in Chase County, Nebraska,

He attended Graceland College for three years While a student, he became a member of Sigma Pi fraternity and Phi Beta Kappa honor society. He finished his PhD in 1924 and was one of the first people in the world to receive a doctorate based on the new field of speech pathology.

When his studies were completed, he taught at the University of Iowa where he became head of the defective speech clinic. Travis was one of the original 25 charter members for what is now known as the American Speech–Language–Hearing Association. The organization was founded in Travis' home after he held a dinner party for attendees of a University of Iowa sponsored conference on speech in 1925. He would later serve as the organization's president. He went on to teach at the University of Southern California (USC). He took a break from teaching during World War II to serve in the USAAF Medical Corp. As a lieutenant colonel, he was in charge of the psychological services of several hospitals in the European theater.

He retired from USC in 1965. That year he became the first dean of the Psychology Department at Fuller Seminary. He retired from that position in 1975. The Travis Research Institute at Fuller is named for him.

He had many prolific writings and editing, most notably his editorial work for Handbook of Speech Pathology in 1957, which is still referenced. He is most known for his work in the field of stuttering.

He died October 10, 1987, aged 91, at his home in Encino, Los Angeles. His funeral was held at the Bel Air Presbyterian Church, where he was an elder.