Give to the Michael Murphy Memorial Scholarship
Established by family to honor the life of this long-time Seminole State professor, the Michael Murphy Memorial Scholarship provides financial assistance to students with an interest in humanities.
Born in Ireland, Michael was educated at St. Kieran's College and was ordained in 1949 into the Catholic priesthood at St. Mary's Cathedral in Kilkenny. He left Ireland to serve the church in the United States and became an American citizen in 1955. Three years later, in 1958, he decided to serve his newly adopted country by joining the U.S. Navy. Michael was a member of the Chaplain Corps, ultimately achieving the rank of captain. His service included deployment aboard the aircraft carrier, U.S.S. Bon Homme Richard, during the Vietnam War. Michael often remarked that he was honored to be able to use his spiritual gifts to counsel and comfort the servicemen of that era.
In 1980, Michael retired and moved to Central Florida where he began his second career as an instructor at Seminole Community College (now Seminole State), serving as a beloved and admired professor for the next 32 years.
Called "the gem of SCC," Michael was referred to by his students as a brilliant, well-traveled teacher who taught from experience, rather than from a textbook. He was looking forward to picking up his familiar briefcase and returning to classes in world religions, humanities and history when illness struck.
The Michael Murphy Memorial Non-Endowed Scholarship provides financial assistance to students who are enrolled or have completed two courses in social science, with one being humanities. Students must possess a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher. Students will be required to provide a response to the question "How do humanities and history relate to the world today?"
Additional Information
Thank you to our donors who support this scholarship:
- Darby Hold
- Carol Kaufman
- Lori Sweat
- Jan Williams
- Laura Williams
- Michael Williams