Forever Friends Diana Lain Hughes Scholarship

The primary purpose of the Forever Friend Diana Lain Hughes Scholarship Fund is to provide annual scholarships to one or more graduating high school seniors or former graduates of the Shawnee Mission School District who demonstrate an interest in a career in teaching, nursing, occupational therapy, physical therapy or speech-language pathology.

The students eligible for assistance shall be those:

A) Who are graduating high school seniors from Shawnee Mission North High School who are interested in a career in a) Teaching, b) Nursing, c) Occupational Therapy, d) Physical Therapy, or e) Speech-Language Pathology, OR

B) Who graduated from the Shawnee Mission School District who are in the undergraduate Teachers College of Emporia State University; OR

C) Who graduated from the Shawnee Mission School District who are in the University of Kansas School of Health Sciences and will be entering their last year of their graduate degree program in Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy or Speech-Language Pathology.

For graduating high school seniors: (i) have taken courses in the humanities and/or sciences; (ii) have participated in school and/or community service organizations; and (iii) have been admitted to a public or private college, university or technical school.

If awarded a scholarship, one-half of the scholarship will be awarded upon graduation from high school. The other one-half of the scholarship will only be awarded if the student has proven to the satisfaction of the Advisory Committee of the Fund and the Community Foundation that he or she will complete a post-secondary degree or certificate program in teaching, nursing, occupational therapy, physical therapy or speech-language pathology. Such other one-half of the scholarship will be awarded at the beginning of the student's final year in such degree or certificate program.

For undergraduate students in the Teachers College of Emporia State University and for graduate students in the University of Kansas School of Health Sciences: (i) demonstrate financial need; and (ii) have a minimum cumulative college GPA of 3.5. If awarded a scholarship, one-half of the scholarship will be awarded at the beginning of the undergraduate's sophomore or junior year (depending on when the applicant applied). The other one-half of the scholarship will only be awarded if the student has proven to the satisfaction of the Advisory Committee and the Community Foundation that he or she will complete his or her teaching degree. Such other one-half of the scholarship will be awarded at the beginning of the student's final year in such degree. For students who apply and are first awarded a scholarship in their final year of such degree, the full amount of the scholarship award will be distributed at the beginning of such final year instead of dividing the scholarship payment into two installments.

For graduate students in the University of Kansas School of Health Sciences: The scholarship will be awarded in full at the beginning of the student's final year in the Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy or Speech-Language Pathology degree program.

Each scholarship payment will be sent directly to the student's college or university at the time of fee payment. If for any reason the student does not attend the approved college or university, the money will be returned to the Community Foundation and the student will forfeit the scholarship.

Students beginning their final year of a post-secondary degree or certificate program in teaching or health care must submit to the Community Foundation a current transcript and any other documentation necessary to prove he or she will complete the degree or program within the year.