Taylor Hutton
News Writing Student
The Cameron University Alumni Association (CUAA) has recently endowed a scholarship for Cameron students. This past spring they gave the first Alumni Association Endowed Scholarship.
Director of Alumni Relations Jennifer McGrail has been with the office for the last seven years, and the association has given out a small amount of money to junior and senior students for about 15 years.
“Several years ago the board of directors got together and said we need to ensure our scholarship lives in perpetuity,” McGrail said, “and that we are able to impact the greatest number of students.”
The scholarship is open to juniors and seniors who have outstanding achievements in the classroom, as well as the area of service.
“Our requirements are somewhat loose,” McGrail said. “We know junior and senior students often times have heavy academic loads and social loads.”
The CUAA asks the scholarship recipients to maintain a 3.0 GPA and be actively involved on campus specifically by completing 10 hours of community service with the Alumni Association.
Jessica Champagne is serving her fourth year as a member of the CUAA Board of Directors, and she was the Board President when the CUAA Endowed Scholarship was approved.
“Any scholarship is important because it is supporting students in achieving their academic and professional goals,” Champagne said. “ I think what makes this particular scholarship distinctive is that is coming from a group of Cameron Alumni who take great pride in helping current and future Aggies accomplish their goals.”
To apply for this scholarship, students can fill out the general scholarship application located under the financial aid section of the Cameron website. The deadline for scholarship applications is Feb. 1.
McGrail has seen the CUAA grow as they make changes to better serve Cameron students and graduates.
“The Alumni Association Board of Directors has recently undertaken a massive review of our strategic plan,” McGrail said.
The CUAA has been sending out surveys to alumni to see how they can better serve graduates. They will soon ask the faculty and staff, as well as junior and senior students, for their opinions.
“They [juniors and seniors] are the future members of the Alumni Association,” McGrail said.
One of the more recent CUAA programs is Aggie G.O.L.D. (Graduates Of the Last Decade). They work to serve the more recent alumni through various events.
For more information on CUAA go to cameron.edu/alumni.