A new scholarship that honors a former Missouri State University-West Plains staff member will help single parents pursue their educational goals.

The Rita J. Turpin Memorial Endowed Scholarship has been fully endowed and will be awarded for the first time this fall, university officials said.

“Rita Turpin loved this campus and had a passion for helping students achieve their academic goals,” Assistant Director of Development Amber Carr said. “With this scholarship, her legacy will continue.”

Turpin first joined Missouri State University-West Plains as a secretary on March 16, 1981. She worked for many years in the records and registration office and left the university as an Administrative Specialist II in the financial aid office in October 2008.

“Mom spent decades working for the West Plains campus to not only provide for me, but to help the thousands of students who came through during her career,” Turpin’s son, Lee, said. “This scholarship is in memory of her and her dedication to helping others so that those who find themselves in similar circumstances can hopefully continue their education and be the kind of person that she would encourage them to be.”

Eligibility Requirements

To be eligible for the scholarship, students should be non-traditional single parents who have maintained a 3.0 grade point average (GPA) on a 4.0 scale in all previous educational programs.

Financial need will be considered when awarding the scholarship, according to the scholarship guidelines.

The scholarship may be renewed automatically as long as the recipient maintains satisfactory academic progress and meets all eligibility requirements.

For more information about the about the scholarship and ways to give to Missouri State-West Plains, call the development office at 417-255-7240 or email WPDevelopment@MissouriState.edu.