Regional scholarships get boost: J.J. Keller Foundation gives to SHRM Foundation for education.(Inside SHRM)

"This program is a perfect fit for our foundation's focus area of education," said Marne Keller-Krikava, director of strategy and business planning for J.J. Keller & Associates and a member of the J.J. Keller Foundation board of directors. "The scholarship program aligns nicely with our mission, and it's a great way to make a difference in the lives and careers of HR professionals."

The SHRM Foundation awards 100 scholarships a year: 40 academic scholarships at $1,375 each and 60 certification scholarships at $750 each. Eight academic and 12 certification scholarships are given to recipients in each of five geographic regions: the Northeast, Southeast and Caribbean Atlantic, North Central, Southwest Central, and Pacific West and Asia Pacific regions.
National SHRM members working full- or part-time in HR are eligible for an academic scholarship. Scholarship applicants are assessed largely on merit, with judges looking specifically at work experience, involvement in the HR community, volunteer activity, financial needs and letters of reference.
"I would have never even attempted [going back to school] without" the scholarship, said Michelle Land Harris, PHR, who won an academic scholarship in 2007 and is using it to complete her bachelor's degree. "I feel that I not only have to succeed for myself, but that I also have an obligation to all the other HR professionals who have invested in my endeavors by donating to the SHRM Foundation."
SHRM members interested in acquiring PHR, SPHR, GPHR or California certification or chapters and state councils looking for funds to put toward classes for their members can apply for certification scholarships. Individual recipients are chosen based on work experience, volunteer activity and financial need, while chapters and state councils are judged based on plans for use of funds, financial need and matching funds available.
"It's very rewarding to have completed the SPHR certification," said Ruth Ewert, SPHR, recruiting and employee relations manager at Chelan County Public Utility District. "The certification is widely viewed as demonstrating success and expanding functional expertise."
Founded in 1953 by John J. "Jack" Keller, J.J. Keller & Associates started as a one-man consulting business and grew into a publishing, printing and service organization with more than 300,000 customers in North America. The privately held company provides companies with practical help in meeting complex government regulations.
The SHRM Foundation will invest the $100,000 that it originally had allocated to fund the regional scholarships in the Foundation's research program, said Karen Silberman, executive director of the SHRM Foundation. "This is a 700 percent increase in funding over 2006 levels," she added.