The following has been released for immediate distribution by the USS Little Rock Association Scholarship Foundation

THE CAPTAIN KENT R. SIEGEL MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP
FOR DESCENDANTS OF MEMBERS
OF THE USS Little Rock ASSOCIATION

* * 2025 CALL FOR APPLICATIONS * *

THE ASSOCIATION: The USS LITTLE ROCK Association is a not-for-profit organization with an IRC 501.C.19 tax exempt status, incorporated in New York State. Its membership is comprised primarily of Navy and Marine Corps veterans of service in USS LITTLE ROCK (CL-92) from 1945 to 1949, or the ship's modernized configuration USS LITTLE ROCK (CLG-4) from 1960 to 1976; and those who served in the crews of LITTLE ROCK (LCS-9) from 2017 to 2023.

THE PROGRAM: The USS LITTLE ROCK Association announces the Captain Kent R. Siegel Memorial Scholarship, which will provide financial assistance to deserving college/university students who are pursuing a bachelor degree, and who are the direct descendants(children / grand-children / great-grandchildren) of those who served on USS LITTLE ROCK as mentioned above, providing that the veteran sponsor is a member of the Association in good standing, or was at the time of death in the case of those now deceased. Awards are based upon academic achievement and motivation as measured in the fourth semester at an accredited four-year institution or completion of an associate degree from and accredited two-year institution with acceptance and enrollment in an accredited four-year institution to obtain a bachelor's degree. In addition, the application shall include an endorsement by a college/university official. Our total scholarship award is $2500. Grants of $1250 will be made to selected recipients entering their third academic year. A follow-on grant of $1250 will be made to a previous award winner who has satisfactorily completed the third year and is advancing into the fourth year, subject to receipt by the Association of certification of continuing qualifying academic performance. The number of annual awards, if any, will be based on the Association's evaluation of candidate merit, the number of applicants, and financial resources available to support the program.

ELIGIBILITY: Full time students (at least 15 credit hours per semester) who are descendants of LITTLE ROCK Association members as noted above, are eligible if they are in good academic standing and have achieved a cumulative grade point average (CUM GPA) of at least 3.0 in all accredited course work, as projected through the fourth semester. They must also possess the character and motivation to complete their bachelor's degree work with continuing high academic achievement.

APPLICATION: Interested, qualified candidates may apply during the spring semester of their second academic year. The application shall be in letter format that addresses each of the eligibility criteria:1) clearly stating the name of the father / grandfather / great grandfather who is a member in good standing of the Association; 2) a text of approximately 500 words shall be included that describes why the candidate considers him/herself worthy of the award; and 3) an academic transcript issued by the college/university must accompany the application. When assembled, the application shall be presented to the academic counselor or academic major department head for an endorsement in writing. Contact information, e.g. email address and or phone number, of the applicant and the academic endorser, must be included in the application. Applications must be received by the USS LITTLE ROCK Association Secretary, Christopher Pirollo at 6834 Shannon Rd Verona PA 15147-3333 not later than June 30, 2025. Applications will be initially screened to ensure they are complete and eligibility requirements are met. Those submitted by candidates found to be eligible will be redacted and sent to the Scholarship Committee, which will be "blinded" to the hereditary relationship to an Association member. Finally, applications will be evaluated by the Committee at the Association's annual reunion in August 2025 to determine the winner(s) of an award. Members with offspring in the competition shall remove themselves from participation in any part of the selection process. Selection results will be announced at the Association's 2025 annual reunion.

AWARD: Award recipients, their member sponsors, and their academic endorsers will be notified by the USS LITTLE ROCK Association as soon as selection is final. Each $1250 award will be made as early as possible in the recipient's third and fourth academic years. Every effort will be made to arrange an appropriate ceremony at the winner's school with an Association member normally on hand to present the first award. The second $1250 award will be sent directly to the winner upon certification by the endorser.

USS LITTLE ROCK Association POC: Mr. Christopher Pirollo: cpirollocg4@gmail.com or (412) 445-6701