2008 Woodie Awards
Scholarship helps single parents fund education
Taniah Tudor
Issue date: 4/2/08 Section: News
An Arkansas scholarship fund is giving single parents the opportunity to complete their college educations.
The Arkansas Single Parent Scholarship Fund, from a nonprofit organization, was established in 1990 as a community-based scholarship fund aimed at encouraging and supporting the educational and training aspirations of low-income single parents in Arkansas, according to the ASPSF official Web site.
"We have a motto in our organization that says, 'Bring a single parent out of poverty and you bring her children with her,'" said ASPSF Executive Director Ralph Nesson, in a March 17 press release.
The strategy of ASPSF is to work at the county level by organizing affiliate single parent scholarship funds, according to the Web site.
Each organization is operated independently and is responsible for setting its own scholarship guidelines, award amounts and application deadlines.
Lanie Miller - mother of two boys, ages 11 and 2 - has received a scholarship from the Single Parent Scholarship Fund of Washington County for the last three semesters.
Miller is a full-time student majoring in psychology and also participates in part-time work study.
Miller said the scholarship gave her flexibility in how she spent the money, so a large part of her scholarship goes toward books and child care.
"It gives me a lot of comfort to know my children are taken care of," Miller said.
Figuring out how to attend school full-time, work and still be at home for her children was difficult for Miller, she said.
"I would not have been able to go back to school without the Single Parent Scholarship," Miller said.
"Honestly, it's been incredible."
The SPSFWC is not only a resource for financial need, but it also helps single parents in many other ways, Miller said, adding that she can call Carrie Montgomery, head of the SPSFWC office in Springdale, to ask any questions she has regarding being a single parent in Arkansas.
The Arkansas Single Parent Scholarship Fund, from a nonprofit organization, was established in 1990 as a community-based scholarship fund aimed at encouraging and supporting the educational and training aspirations of low-income single parents in Arkansas, according to the ASPSF official Web site.
"We have a motto in our organization that says, 'Bring a single parent out of poverty and you bring her children with her,'" said ASPSF Executive Director Ralph Nesson, in a March 17 press release.
The strategy of ASPSF is to work at the county level by organizing affiliate single parent scholarship funds, according to the Web site.
Each organization is operated independently and is responsible for setting its own scholarship guidelines, award amounts and application deadlines.
Lanie Miller - mother of two boys, ages 11 and 2 - has received a scholarship from the Single Parent Scholarship Fund of Washington County for the last three semesters.
Miller is a full-time student majoring in psychology and also participates in part-time work study.
Miller said the scholarship gave her flexibility in how she spent the money, so a large part of her scholarship goes toward books and child care.
"It gives me a lot of comfort to know my children are taken care of," Miller said.
Figuring out how to attend school full-time, work and still be at home for her children was difficult for Miller, she said.
"I would not have been able to go back to school without the Single Parent Scholarship," Miller said.
"Honestly, it's been incredible."
The SPSFWC is not only a resource for financial need, but it also helps single parents in many other ways, Miller said, adding that she can call Carrie Montgomery, head of the SPSFWC office in Springdale, to ask any questions she has regarding being a single parent in Arkansas.
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