STUDENT INFORMATION

Iowa Speech Language Hearing Foundation Graduate Student Scholarships:

The Iowa Speech Language Hearing Association Foundation (ISHA Foundation) invites full time graduate

students in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology in the State of Iowa for the academic year 2026-

2027 to apply for scholarships. All students are eligible to apply for scholarships. Awards will be given based

on excellence and not financial need. Scholarship recipients will be recognized in the awards ceremony at

the Annual Meeting of the Association, during the 2026 Convention.

Funding opportunities include:

General Scholarships

The Iowa Speech-Language-Hearing Foundation Scholarship will provide $2,000 awards to Speech-Language

Pathology and Audiology students attending graduate programs in the state of Iowa during the 2026-2027

academic year.

Nancy Huntley-Kraus Scholarship

A $2,000 scholarship in memory of Nancy Huntley-Kraus will be awarded to an audiology student. 

Cheri Maehl Scholarship

A $2,000 scholarship on the generous donation of Cheri Maehl will be awarded in 2026.

Nancy Ritchie Memorial Scholarship

The Nancy Ritchie Memorial Scholarship is awarded to students majoring in communication disorders at a

University in Iowa and will provide a $3,000 award. Preference is given to individuals who have an interest

in neurological disorders. Extracurricular activities including volunteering in various community settings (i.e.

church, nursing homes, scouting) will weigh more heavily in the selection process than GPA.

Neil VerHoef Scholarship

The Neil VerHoef Scholarship, established by Mr. VerHoef’s family provides a $2,000 scholarship annually to

an exemplary student majoring in Speech-Language Pathology or Audiology in a university or college in

Iowa. Preference is given to candidates who are residents of Iowa and who have demonstrated a

commitment to the professions through extracurricular activities such as volunteer work, community

service, special projects, or professional presentations.

To apply:

1. Download and complete the Application Cover Sheet below.

2. Answer all of the following prompts in a Personal Essay of 500 words or less.

a. Preparation

Describe an event in your academic background, training, or clinical experience that shaped

who you are as a future clinician. How did that event shape your professional values or

skills? (Do not share any personally-identifying client information in your answer).

b. Future Clinical Practice

Clinical practice in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology is always evolving. How do

you plan to make a unique or timeless impact in our field, as a future clinician?

c. ISHA Focus

Audiologists and Speech-Language Pathologists are responsible to engage in lifelong

learning. How do you think ISHA could offer meaningful professional development

opportunities for you, and how do you intend to actively engage with ISHA in the future?

All writing submitted by you must have been produced independently by you. Any portion of the

essay written by someone else, including artificial intelligence (AI; AI-generated content), will not

be accepted by the committee.

3. Submit an unofficial Academic Transcript. Students who are going into the first year of graduate

school should provide their undergraduate transcript. Students going into their second year or

beyond should provide a current graduate transcript.

4. Provide one Letter of Recommendation from a faculty member who has taught you in class or

supervised you in clinic. Please request that the letter be sent from the faculty member’s university

email address directly to ISHAfoundation@isha.org no later than September 24, 2026.

IMPORTANT

● Items 1 and 2 above (i.e., the Application Cover Sheet and Personal Essay) must be submitted

together as one document (.docx or .pdf format). The file name should be as follows: “LAST NAME,

FIRST INITIAL - ISHA Foundation Scholarship Application 2026”.

● Items 1-3 above must be submitted as two attachments (1. The Application Cover Sheet and

Personal Essay, and 2. The Academic Transcript) to one email message addressed to

ISHAfoundation@isha.org no later than Thursday, September 24, 2026. The email subject line

should read “LAST NAME, FIRST INITIAL - ISHA Foundation Scholarship Application”.

● If you have any questions about ISHA scholarships or how to apply for them please contact

ISHAfoundation@isha.org

The 2026 Scholarship Application Cover Sheet Link is below. Click the blue button to access the view only document.  NOTE: To edit the PDF document, you will need to download the document or make a copy first.

Past ISHA Scholarship Recipients.

("*" represents Niel VerHoef Scholarship recipient, "^" represents Nancy Ritchie Memorial Scholarship recipient, "+" represents Nancy Huntley-Kraus Scholarship recipient)