Luke Niedens of Queen City, Texas, is the inaugural recipient of the Richard and Shirley Jennings Scholarship, awarded to a student in NSU’s School of Creative and Performing Arts. The scholarship honors a couple who embodied selfless service, a strong work ethic and a commitment to music education.
Niedens is pursuing a degree in music education/instrumental (K-12). The award presentation took place during the inaugural Spirit of Northwestern Band Awards Banquet earlier this year.
Dr. Kristine Coreil and Dr. Jeff Mathews, retired CAPA faculty and dear friends of the Jennings, created the scholarship through an initial donation, raised additional funds from a network of alumni and then fulfilled the scholarship to its full endowment.
Richard Jennings was a professor and department chair in the music division for many years, teaching French horn, music education courses and class piano. He was inducted into the Louisiana Music Educators Association Hall of Fame for his work as a high school band director in the 1950s, as well as his strong commitment to music education as a college professor and mentor from the 1960s through the 1990s. He passed away 2021.
His wife, Shirley Jennings, served as the NSU harp instructor and a class piano instructor for decades. She also worked in the NSU Registrar’s Office, assisting thousands of students in their matriculation. She is best known in the community as a violin and harp teacher to students of all ages, from the very youngest beginning violinists to older harp enthusiasts throughout the Ark-La-Tex region. She was the conductor of the Natchitoches Harp Ensemble, at one time the largest ongoing harp ensemble in the South. She passed away in 2018.
“Both Richard and Shirley were highly respected and well-loved by students and alumni for their generosity, their dedication to music education, and their commitment to their community,” said Dr. Greg Handel, provost and vice president for Academic Affairs, who began his tenure at NSU on faculty in CAPA.
The scholarship will be awarded to a graduate or undergraduate music education major, with consideration to music performance majors. Students must be a French Horn major or violin or harp major or harp minor. Criteria stipulates that the scholarship will be awarded to a horn play in even-numbered years and a violin or harp player in odd-numbered years. Recipients must maintain a 3.2 or higher GPA, be recommended by their major professor and approved by the CAPA director.
“The studio professors, in naming the awarded student, will consider the values and standards established by the decades of service to the music department that Richard and Shirley Jennings established,” Coreil said. “The awarded student should be of high moral character, focused on a career in music education, and should have an attitude of service. The awarded student should have a high level of participation in the departmental ensembles, and in the music department as a whole. He or she should be a student with a strong work ethic, who emerges as a natural leader within the studio.”
Friends who wish to contribute to the scholarship can do so at
