ASU-Beebe professor establishes endowment to fund scholarships
BEEBE — Hazel Dickey, a retired Arkansas State University-Beebe business professor, this week established the Dr. Hazel Dickey Scholarship endowment.
Dickey, who taught business at ASU-Beebe for 32 years before retiring in 2000, made the commitment to the future for the university and its students.
“One of the best rewards of being an educator is when I meet people at a business or professional meeting and discover a former student,” Dickey said. “I often stop and think I may have had a small part in that person’s success.”
The Dr. Hazel Dickey Scholarship endowment is intended for a student majoring in business who has completed one semester as a full-time student and has at least a 3.0 grade-point average.
“Throughout my career, I saw many, many students pursue their degrees that I am sure would not have been possible without financial assistance in the form of various scholarships,” Dickey said. “And I wanted to be a part of continuing to make that financial support possible.”
She added that she sees investing in student scholarship as an investment in the future of our communities, state and nation.
Dickey has held many leadership positions, in addition to being a classroom instructor of business. She chaired the Division of Applied Arts at ASU-Beebe. She was responsible for the development of the Associate of Applied Science degree in business technology at the school.
She was active in many business and professional associations, including the Beebe Business and Professional Women’s organization, by which she was named Woman of the Year in 1977. She was also active in the Arkansas and National Business Education Associations and was named Post-Secondary Business Educator of the Year in 1994 by the Arkansas association.
She is a member of Delta Kappa Gamma, an honorary society for women educators, and has served as president of the local chapter and on many committees of the state organization. Her impact in teaching was further recognized by twice being named to the Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers, as well as receiving the ASU-Beebe Positive Teacher Award, which she said holds special significance for her because the recipient is nominated by students.
Dickey, who is still very connected to ASU-Beebe and serves on its Board of Visitors, the ASU Beebe Development Council and the ASU System Foundation Board, said today’s students have many more options, and fewer come to college with a firm path in mind for a career. She said scholarships help students explore those options and find where they excel.
To contribute to the Dr. Hazel Dickey Scholarship endowment fund, contact the Advancement Office at ASU-Beebe at (501) 882-8903.