Applications are open to Northwestern State University upper level students for the Mildred Hart Bailey Memorial Scholarship. Awarded by the Natchitoches Historic Foundation, the scholarship is awarded to master’s degree candidates or to junior or senior level undergraduate students in disciplines that advance the Foundation’s mission of preservation, education and advocacy.
The recipient will receive a $1,000 ($500 per semester) that was established to provide a stipend for a student undertaking a preservation-related project in cooperation with the Foundation. The scholarship is not need based, but will be awarded based upon the quality and significance of the proposed project as outlined by the applicant, or the plan the applicant outlines of a project identified by the Foundation.
The deadline to apply is Sept. 1. Those applying should have a demonstrated interest in historic preservation and interpretation that may encompass physical restoration of historic properties, written and/or oral recordings, cataloging, research, facilities management of historic preservation standards as established by the U.S. Department of the Interior and the National Register of Historic Places, archaeology and promotion and/or preservation of historic properties for tourism.
The scholarship recipient must complete the agreed upon project within one school year, culminating at the conclusion of the project in a deliverable defined in the initial written Scope of Work. The recipient will also serve as a non-voting student representative on the NHF Board, attending Board meetings and taking part in NHF activities and be mentored by an NHF Board member.
To apply, students should submit a double-spaced, typed essay explaining interest in historic preservation, describing the proposed project (if no project has been specified by the Natchitoches Historic Foundation), including contact information and proof of graduate or undergraduate school admittance for the next two semesters. Applications can be sent to Natchitoches Historic Foundation, P.O. Box 2351, Natchitoches, LA 71457. Stipends will be awarded at the beginning of each semester. The Foundation maintains the right to award stipends at other times during the school year should circumstances necessitate.
The Natchitoches Historic Foundation established the Mildred Hart Bailey Memorial Scholarship in 2004 with a $10,000 endowment to honor the memory of Dr. Bailey, a charter member of NHF who was noted for her interest in and support of preservation in Natchitoches Parish, as a philanthropist, and as both a collector of and advocate for the art of Clementine Hunter.
Students applying for scholarships through the NSU Foundation portal at northwesternstatealumni.com should reference the Natchitoches Historic Foundation in their essay.
More information about the Dr. Mildred Hart Bailey Memorial Scholarship is available by contacting NHF Vice President Karen Townsend at (318) 663-3227.