Greenville High School administrator Dr. Kathy Murphy has announced the formation of the Ceddrick Mack Memorial Scholarship fund, in memory of the recently deceased former GHS student.

&uot;As soon as we heard about Ceddrick’s death,&uot; Murphy said, &uot;we at GHS wanted to make sure we did something special to remember him. We weren’t sure what, but we wanted to do something that would have a lasting impact.&uot;

Murphy said that several ideas were put on the table, including a donation to the Sickle-Cell Anemia Foundation, a contribution to the fund Auburn University is considering setting up or create a scholarship at GHS for students who plan to attend Auburn as freshmen.

&uot;We opted not to participate with the AU fund,&uot; said Ashley Catrett, GHS Administrative Assistant-Special Services. &uot;They would need at least $90,000 to establish a new scholarship at the university, so they weren’t sure if that would happen or if they would take the donations collected and contribute them to an existing scholarship. That’s not what we wanted to do.&uot;

Catrett said the problem with the AU fund, if it came about, was that it would go to any incoming freshman, not just students from GHS.

Murphy said the school’s staff would be in contact with Mack’s family to set up the criteria that will be used to award the scholarship, but that all involved so far felt that it needed to reflect the humanitarian side of Mack’s achievements.

&uot;We think the criteria should be more than grade- or need based,&uot; said Todd Henderson, Mack’s close friend and former teacher while he attended GHS. &uot;We want this scholarship to go to someone who is involved in student affairs and clubs – someone who shows the type of incentive that Mack showed in his years here. Ced has set the bar by which we will judge these other students.&uot;

&uot;Those who are interested in the scholarship will have to fill out an application,&uot; Murphy said. &uot;Then the committee will review the applications and the students credentials and make a selection.&uot;

Henderson has been selected to chair the new scholarship’s oversight committee.

&uot;Todd was well-respected by Ceddrick,&uot; Murphy said. &uot;I think it is a real tribute for Todd to fill that role for us.&uot;

Henderson said that the scholarship’s goal will be to remember Ceddrick and award

and recognize quality students that may not always be the ones to get awards.

&uot;There are always those students who may work hard,&uot; he said. &uot;But they sometimes get lost in the mix. This scholarship may inspire them and give them to opportunity to go to college.&uot;

Henderson hopes the scholarship will remind students of how Ceddrick constantly strived to achieve success, not only at GHS but at Auburn and in New York on the set of the NBC Today Show.

&uot;Ced also had a life at Auburn for four years,&uot; Henderson said. &uot;We are aware of the impact he had. If we want to make our students realize that they can have the impact that Ced did – that will be the goal of this scholarship.&uot;

Murphy and Henderson hope to raise enough money to offer the scholarship to a student at the end of this academic year, so they have decided to ask the GHS student body to make the first donations.

&uot;We really want to tie the students into this as much as possible,&uot; Murphy said. &uot;We have asked each of them to make a $1 donation to get the fund started. IF each student does this, that will be $750 for the fund. If we can get students and faculty to make the contribution, that would give us more than $800 to get started with. One dollar is not a sacrificial giving. We feel everyone should be able to give $1.&uot;

Murphy said the school may not be able to award more than $350 to $500 this year, but hope the fund will grow to the point that they can award at least $1,000 each year for a GHS freshman entering Auburn.

&uot;This would be a one-time scholarship for their first year at Auburn,&uot; she said. &uot;It would be nice to be able to give them something each year they were at the university, but right now, I don’t think that will be possible.&uot;

The school is accepting donations for the scholarship now. Those who would like to make a donation can send a check or money order to Ceddrick Mack Memorial Scholarship Fund, 100 Tiger Drive, Greenville, AL 36037.