Washington Correctional Association

Member Scholarship Program

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Scholarship Program

In 1995, WCA established its scholarship program to provide financial aid to WCA members pursuing educational goals. Applications for scholarship for the Fall term will be accepted until February 15th each calendar year. Applications for the Winter/Spring term will be accepted until August 15th each calendar year.
One of the scholarships has been established in honor of Chase Riveland, who served as Secretary of the Washington Department of Corrections for over a decade before his retirement in January, 1997. The scholarship recognizes Secretary Riveland's commitment to staff development and building corrections as a profession.
The scholarships are funded from WCA's general fund and from the proceeds of the association's annual charity auction. Individual contributions to the fund are also welcome. Contributions to the scholarship fund can be made to:

Scholarship Program Fund
Washington Correctional Association
P. O. Box 5853
Lacey, WA 98509-5853

The following are the conditions and process for applying for a scholarship:

Application Process --

Eligible Recipient:

Only Washington Correctional Association members in good standing are eligible to apply.

Scholarship Criteria:

The educational/vocational institute the applicant proposes to attend must be recognized by a regional, professional accreditation organization, such as the N.W. Association of Schools & Colleges located in Seattle. There are similar organizations nationwide which address accreditation for out of state institutions. In addition, the institution must be recognized by the state in which it is located as meeting established standards. These standards at a minimum must include:

1. Academically directed
2. Educational courses in post high school curriculum
3. A library and training faculty.
4. Certified instructors.

The foregoing applies to all state vocational schools, colleges. universities, and community colleges.

Scholarship Limitations:

Scholarship funds may not be used to duplicate funding from other sources (such as scholarships, grants, student loans, or tuition waivers), but may be used to supplement them. For instance, other funding for tuition may be supplemented by WCA scholarship funds for books, fees, etc. In any case, the amount of all scholarships, loans, grants, and/or tuition waivers may not exceed the total educational costs incurred by the recipient. The intended use of the scholarship funds must be specified in the scholarship application. Scholarship recipients will be required to certify that expenses covered by the scholarship are not also being paid by other sources of funding.

Selection Process:

Advertisement of the scholarship program will be done in the Connections with applications for the succeeding Fall semester/quarter being announced in the December issue. An advertisement for the Winter/Spring semester/quarter will be published in the June issue of the Connections. An application form is provided in the Connections or can be downloaded here. The application process will begin when the applicant submits the application to the:

Following review of all applications, the Nomination and Election Committee will submit the name of the recommended recipient and the reasons for the selection to the Executive Committee for approval. All applications will be acknowledged by return mail.