The Craig Dempsey Memorial Scholarship

Criteria: ($500 Award) The Craig Dempsey Memorial Scholarship will be awarded to a sophomore, junior or senior with financial need and who is majoring in Urban Studies. Preference will be given to students who are working at or volunteering with a community organization. Applicants must submit a short essay about a memorable community service experience and what it taught them.

Craig Dempsey, a member of the Class of 1985, made an impression wherever he went—be it Worcester State University, The Key Program in Massachusetts, or The Choice Program in Maryland. Bonnie Orcutt, a member of the Class of 1984 and now a professor of Economics at WSU, can attest to this. They were good friends, and she remembers him as an excellent debater and a dynamic, caring, and innovative person.

Urban Studies was perfect for Craig. It allowed him to hone his skills as a passionate advocate for troubled adolescents and families. Craig went on to make a name for himself working in a variety positions for The Key Program. He worked in the Cape Cod, Springfield, and Pittsfield areas before he took a job as the director of The Choice Program in Baltimore, Maryland. There, Craig’s innovative spirit continued to thrive. He set up a model for working with troubled youth that was adopted nationally. It was featured in The New York Times in June of 1993.

Sadly, Craig passed away in 1998 at age 36. Bonnie has revived Craig’s legacy at his alma mater with this scholarship for students who follow in his footsteps as Urban Studies scholars and practitioners.