Brookfield, Wis. – After a successful launch of its Arranger Training program in 2016, the National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA) is expanding the program by introducing a student version of the training program specifically designed to equip aspiring funeral service professionals with the skills needed to help families plan meaningful life tribute events. To celebrate the program’s debut, the Funeral Service Foundation is fully funding four NFDA Student Arranger Training workshops in 2017.
The NFDA Student Arranger Training Program is a four-hour digest version of the eight-hour professional workshop. Lacy Robinson, CFSP, NFDA director of member development, who developed and presents Arranger Training workshops, will cover topics ranging from customer service skills to overcoming objections. Each student receives a workbook that contains individual assignments, suggested dialogue and valuable resources for planning memorable life tribute events.
“The Student Arranger Training Program will not only enhance students’ communication skills with client families but prepare them for the challenges they may encounter in the real world of funeral service,” said Robinson. “I am thrilled to share this exceptional program with students and am confident they will find tremendous value in the content presented.”
To help launch the NFDA Student Arranger Training Program, the Funeral Service Foundation generously agreed to underwrite the costs of hosting the program for four ABFSE-accredited institutions as part of its new Foundation ’45 Awards. The awards are designed to transform the careers of funeral service professionals through scholarships, awards, resources and mission-focused outreach.
Twenty-three schools entered for a chance to host the complimentary Arranger Training Program. NFDA and Foundation leadership drew the winners: Amarillo College of Mortuary Science, Amarillo, Texas; Mid-America College of Funeral Service, Jeffersonville, In.; St. Louis Community College at Forest Park, St. Louis, Mo.; and St. Petersburg College, St. Petersburg, Fla.
“The Foundation is honored to offer an expanded slate of scholarships and awards to funeral service students and professionals,” said Stephanie Kann, scholarship sub-committee chair and vice president of Worsham College in Wheeling, Ill.. “Access to solid education and resources is central to our mission, and offering the Arranger Training Program to students through the Foundation ’45 Awards is a natural fit.”
Any American Board of Funeral Service Education (ABFSE)-accredited school may host the NFDA Student Arranger Training Program; the cost is $80 per student, with no additional costs to the school.
ABFSE-accredited schools that are interested in bringing the NFDA Student Arranger Training Program to their school should contact Robinson at 800-228-6332 or lrobinson@nfda.org.
Additional information about the Arranger Training Program for funeral professionals is available on the NFDA website, www.nfda.org/arrangertraining, and additional information about the Foundation ’45 Awards is available on the Foundation’s website: http://www.funeralservicefoundation.org/your-gift-at-work/foundation-45-awards/.
About the Funeral Service Foundation – FuneralServiceFoundation.org
Since 1945, the Funeral Service Foundation has served as the profession’s philanthropic voice. As the charitable arm of the National Funeral Directors Association since 1997, the Foundation receives operational support from NFDA and donors across the profession to help advance its mission support funeral service in building meaningful relationships with the families and the communities it serves.
About NFDA – www.nfda.org
NFDA is the world’s leading and largest funeral service association, serving 18,500 individual members who represent nearly 10,000 funeral homes in the United States and countries around the world. NFDA is the trusted leader, beacon for ethics and the strongest advocate for the profession. NFDA is the association of choice because it offers funeral professionals comprehensive educational resources, tools to manage successful businesses, guidance to become pillars in their communities and the expertise to foster future generations of funeral professionals. NFDA is headquartered in Brookfield, Wis., and has an office in Washington, D.C.
