Henderson State University has received nearly $190,000 from an estate gift to establish a scholarship endowment for students pursuing a master’s degree in the counselor education program.
The Luther and Hazel Brown Memorial Scholarship Endowment was established from a bequest left by Dr. Linda English who earned her bachelor’s degree from Henderson in 1976 and then completed her master’s in counselor education in 1987. English, who passed away in June of 2016, worked in Teacher’s College, Henderson and had achieved the rank of professor of counselor education in 2012.
English established the scholarship to honor the memory of her parents, Luther and Hazel Brown. The couple owned and operated Brown’s Grocery and Gas Station in Prescott while raising their daughter.
“I watched my mother practice the art of counseling under the guise of store keeper and clerk; daddy was the storyteller and entertainer,” English wrote in a tribute when she first sought to establish the scholarship. “I tell my students today, I do my mother’s work in my daddy’s way … I have searched for many years for a way to honor them now and in the future; I trust this memorial scholarship will do just that.”
“We are eternally grateful to Dr. English for recognizing the power of a higher education and for remembering her parents through this legacy gift,” said Jennifer Boyett, vice president for university advancement. “Dr. English loved teaching and was beloved by her students. Her investment in the program where she first learned and later taught counselor education will provide critical support to generations of Reddies who seek to follow in her footsteps.”
The Luther and Hazel Brown Memorial Scholarship will provide $8,000 per year in scholarship support to an Arkansas native with a 3.0 GPA and financial need while pursuing a master’s degree in counselor education. The first scholarship will be awarded this fall. The deadline to apply is March 15.
“If you ever met Dr. English, you never forgot her,” said Dr. Celya Taylor, dean of Teachers College. “She was truly passionate about Henderson, her students, her writing, and the counseling profession; she showed it every day. With this tribute to her parents, she continued their legacy and created a ‘living fountain’ that reflects her own legacy of love and liveliness she exhibited for her alma mater, Henderson.”