CEPR Alum., Former FedEx Exec. Starts Scholarship in College of Education

September 27, 2024 – Madan Birla (’82), retired FedEx executive, started a new scholarship for the University of Memphis College of Education (COE), the SSKR Endowed Scholarship. Birla earned his master’s degree from COE’s Department of Counseling, Educational Psychology & Research (CEPR) and is a member of COE’s Dean’s Advisory Council. He attributes his success at FedEx to his alma mater.

“This degree helped me the most in my career in terms of my leadership role,” Birla said. “It provided the people skills that leadership needs aside from the (engineering) background I already had.”

The $30,000 endowed scholarship is designed to support graduate-level counseling students by paying for recipients’ fees associated with certification and licensure exams. Applicants must be in their final stages of coursework in the CEPR department, maintain a 3.8 GPA and demonstrate financial need with exam costs.

“Mental health is a critical concern not only across schools and colleges but across the entire country. Nearly 25% of adults have the need for mental health services, and this generous gift will be pivotal in helping us prepare future counselors to meet some of these needs,” said Dean Mike Miller.

“Education is my passion,” Biral said. “It’s giving back to the school that helped me the most.”

 The scholarship’s name, SSKR represents the initials of Birla’s grandchildren and is intended to give them the motivation to pursue education later in life.