HOUSTON, Aug. 16, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Service Corporation International (NYSE:SCI), North America’s largest provider of funeral and cemetery services, and its brand, Dignity Memorial, awarded over $53,000 in scholarships to 30 mortuary students across the country as part of the 2016 Service Corporation International Scholarship Program. The goal of the program is to promote excellence in funeral service by recognizing and supporting those students with exceptional leadership potential.
This year’s program received 209 applications and SCI selected and awarded student scholarships based on the criteria of academic performance, community involvement, a personal video submission, and one-on-one interviews with SCI leadership.
Out of many outstanding candidates, the top scoring recipient was Sheila Butler, winner of the Brenda Renee Horn Memorial Scholarship. In addition, David Groff was named recipient of the inaugural Steve Mack Memorial Scholarship, named in honor of Steve Mack, a 42-year veteran of SCI and former Senior Vice President of Operations who lost his battle with cancer in 2015.
“SCI is honored to support the next generation of funeral service professionals,” said Phil Sprick, Senior Managing Director of Human Resources at SCI. “Their compassion, dedication and enthusiasm for serving families are the skills needed to lead and be successful in our industry.”
Since the program’s inception in 2011, SCI has awarded over $300,000 in mortuary scholarships. In addition, several past winners have secured positions as funeral directors, funeral attendants and apprentices at SCI’s Dignity Memorial locations across the country.
For more information and to apply for the 2017 SCI Scholarship Program, visit www.scischolarships.com.
About Service Corporation International
Service Corporation International (NYSE:SCI), headquartered in Houston, Texas, is North America’s leading provider of deathcare products and services. As of June 30, 2016, SCI operates 1,525 funeral service locations and 469 cemeteries (including 262 combination locations), which are geographically diversified across 45 states, eight Canadian provinces, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. Through its businesses, SCI markets the Dignity Memorial® brand which offers assurance of quality, value, caring service and exceptional customer satisfaction. In January 2016, SCI was presented with the J.D. Power President’s Award in recognition of an ongoing dedication to service excellence including quality improvement, customer satisfaction and the development of enduring client relationships. For more information about Service Corporation International, please visit www.sci-corp.com. For more information about Dignity Memorial, please visit www.dignitymemorial.com. As used herein, “SCI” or the “Company” refers to Service Corporation International and all of its affiliated companies.