HOUSTON – Service Corporation International (SCI), North America’s largest single provider of funeral, cremation and cemetery services, has awarded a $10,000 grant to a mortuary program that is working to enhance the mortuary sciences for tomorrow’s funeral service professionals. The goal of the SCI Advancing Mortuary Science Education Grant is to promote the development of innovative programs that provide opportunities to shape the future generations of funeral service professionals.
This year’s SCI Advancing Mortuary Science Education Grant has been awarded to the University of Central Oklahoma’s Department of Funeral Service. The University plans on using the grant monies to enhance its arrangement conference room with technological and aesthetic improvements to better prepare students to serve families in the creation of unique and personalized services.
“This grant will allow our students to train in a real-world atmosphere and further develop the skills required to serve families,” said John Fritch, chair of the Department of Funeral Service at the University of Central Oklahoma. “It is the continual service of families that defines not only each individual as a professional but our industry as a whole.”
“Service Corporation International is proud to invest in the future of this exemplary program which works to prepare men and women for a rewarding career in funeral service,” said Steve Tidwell, vice president of Main Street Market Operations. “This grant will help the University of Central Oklahoma to improve its program by equipping the students with a skill set that ensures they acquire an intimate awareness of the care they must possess when meeting with families, while in a realistic arrangement conference setting.”
SCI received a number of grant applications with proposals ranging from online embalming modules to workshops on “green” funeral practices. All applications were thoroughly reviewed by members of SCI’s Leadership Council.
Service Corporation International is North America’s leading provider of deathcare products and services. SCI has more than 20,000 dedicated employees who provide the finest funeral, cremation and cemetery services to hundreds of thousands of families each year. Operating from a network of more than 1,800 funeral homes and cemeteries, the people of SCI assist families with compassion and guidance at difficult times, helping them celebrate the significance of lives that have been lived and preserving memories that transcend generations with dignity and honor. For more information, please visit http://www.sci-corp.com.
