Donate to a Fund

Patricia Laughlan-Ireland Memorial Scholarship Fund

Fund Number: 097

Fund Purpose
Provides scholarship support to students who have graduated from Harrison County high schools, and are attending Indiana University Southeast and majoring in English.

Fund Story
In 2006, the friends, family and colleagues of Patricia (Trish) Laughlan-Ireland celebrated her life by creating a memorial scholarship at the Harrison County Community Foundation.   The Patricia Laughlan-Ireland Memorial Scholarship Fund provides scholarships for graduating seniors of Harrison County schools who plan to attend Indiana University Southeast and major in English.

Patricia (Trish) Laughlan-Ireland was born February 27, 1969.  She was the daughter of Robert and Dottie Redden Ireland.  Trish graduated from Corydon Central High School in 1987, receiving many honors.

While attending Indiana University Bloomington she did specialized research in Dublin, Ireland, for her thesis on James Joyce.  She graduated B.A. cum laude in 1991.  Trish received her M.A. with honors in 1993 from Texas A & M.    Trish entered the PHD. program of Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, IL in 1993, and completed her PHD. in 1998.  Trish was instrumental in developing the Irish Studies program at Southern Illinois University and was Conference Participant both here and abroad, including Poetry and History Conference, Stirling, Scotland.

Later, she was Visiting Assistant Professor, Department of English, at Grand Valley State University, Allendale, MI from 1998-2001.

Trish married Gerard Laughlan-Ireland, PHD, from Glasgow, Scotland in 1999 at the Leora Brown School in Corydon.   Trish later became an Adjunct Professor, Dept. of English at Indiana University Southeast.  She was a member of the American Conference of Irish Studies, Conference on College Composition and Communication, Midwest Modern Language Assn., Modern Language Assn., and Phi Kappa Phi National Society.

Patricia Laughlan-Ireland died November 10, 2003 at the age of 34 and is buried in Oak Grove Cemetery in Corydon.

"Trish loved the academic life and filled her time on earth with a lifetime of doing things she enjoyed”, said Trish’s mother, Dottie.  “Trish touched many lives and with this scholarship her memory lives on.”

Scholarship Recipients:
2008 - Susan L. Sailings
2009 - Susan L. Sailings
2010 - Carolean Miller, Cory Schunemann
2011 - Rachel Ballard, Holly Sutterland
2012 - DeAnna Collins
2013 - Lydia Lutz
2014 - Lydia Lutz 
2019 - Trinity Skaggs