"Lack of a degree no longer a professional barrier"

"I was taking more classes than could be reimbursed under the Humana program, and I wanted to move up to a position in the company with more responsibility, so I really wanted that degree as soon as possible," Hale explains. However, she was unable to pay for the additional credits she needed on her own.

Through a $2,500 award from the William H. Bennett CPA Accounting Scholarship, Hale was able to finish her degree in December of 1998 and has since been promoted to a new position at Humana.

"There is a great deal of satisfaction in knowing that the lack of a degree is no longer a professional barrier for me," Hale says. "Without the scholarship, I would have had to postpone finishing for another year."

Hale is representative of the kind of student donor Bill Bennett '79B hoped to help when he established the scholarship in honor of his father. Bennett, who owns a local accounting firm, earned his way through college by serving in the U.S. Army. But he watched his wife, Anne Bennett '87ASC, '92B, struggle through several years of working full time and going to school part time to get her degree.

"It is really difficult for working students," Bennett says. "They work so hard and it can still take them many years to finish. I want this scholarship to help someone finish a degree in five years instead of seven."

Hale is appreciative of Bennett's efforts on behalf of working students.

"I met a lot of people at U of L like me who are struggling in every way possible‹with work, classes, homework and family responsibilities," she says. "Non-traditional students are very serious about accomplishing their goals but don't always have the resources. It would be great to have more scholarships geared toward working students."