Verlyn L. Heath

Memorial Scholarship Fund

The Arkansas Funeral Directors Association Scholarship Fund is established by the Arkansas Funeral Directors Association and funded by contributions from its members and from others who desire to contribute.  Awards of scholarships will be made based on merit, need, and scholastic achievements.

Any person who has satisfactorily completed the apprenticeship program for either funeral directors or embalmers is eligible to apply for a scholarship grant or loan for use in partially defraying expenses incurred while in attendance at a school or mortuary science or other institution which offers a course of instruction leading to a degree in mortuary science.

Any person who is currently in apprentice training in funeral service is eligible to apply and may be awarded a scholarship upon satisfactory completion of the apprenticeship training.

Merit, financial need and scholastic achievement are the criteria by which applicants will be judged.  Only those apprentices who have demonstrated an appreciation of funeral service and a desire to enter into funeral service as a vocation will be considered.

The scholarship award is normally for one year and the amount will be determined by the Scholarship Committee.  The Scholarship Committee may consider and award subsequent applications for additional awards but each grant will be for one year.

Payments will normally be made to the school attended by the applicant and unexpended credits withdrawn if the conduct of the student is such that it is contrary to the principles of funeral service and/or the school attended.  Unexpended credits may also be withdrawn should the student fail to maintain a passing grade.

Applicants must agree to return to Arkansas and be employed as a funeral director and/or embalmer for a period of two years immediately upon completion of the course of instruction or agree to repay the award.

Applicants will be notified of the time, date, and place of the meeting of the Scholarship Committee.  Applicants must appear in person before the committee, and the expenses incurred as a result of their appearance must be borne by the applicant.

Applicants must submit the following documents with the application form:

1. Transcript of high school grades for grades 9-12, or a General Education Development (GED) certificate
2. A handwritten statement of 200 words or less setting forth the goals the applicant has in relationship to funeral service and how he/she plans to accomplish those goals.  The statement shall become property of the Scholarship Fund, with editorial and publication rights reserved for the Scholarship Fund.  Duplicates will not be made available to the applicant.
3. A letter from the owner/manager of the firm in which the apprenticeship was served.
4. A letter from the licensed embalmer/funeral director who supervised the applicant.  If the owner/manager of the licensed embalmer/funeral director are the same, one letter will suffice.

In addition to the requirements set forth heretofore, applicants must also meet the following prerequisites and agree to the following conditions:

1. Applicants must have satisfactorily completed the funeral service apprenticeship requirements contained in the Arkansas Funeral Service ACT, or its successor.
2. Applicants must have graduated from high school or hold a General Education Development (GED) certificate.
3. Applicants must have been a resident of Arkansas for at least the last two immediately preceding years.
4. A letter of acceptance from a school approved by the American Board of Funeral Service Education must accompany the application.
5. Applicants must agree to return to Arkansas and to work in the funeral service in Arkansas for at least two years, immediately after completion of the course of instruction for which the scholarship was awarded.  Applicants must agree to repay the scholarship award if they fail to do so.
6. Applicants must agree to repay the award in the event they are disenrolled for any reason.