By DeJuan Baskin
The Scene staff
St. Louis Community College invited local funeral directors to Forest Park last month to discuss how to improve Funeral Service Education programs.
The college lost accreditation for its associate’s degree program from the American Board of Funeral Service Education last spring.
“A couple of things stood out (at the meeting),” said H.L. Kriegshauser, president of Kriegshauser Brothers Funeral Service Inc. “For example, the need for funeral service education to respond to changes taking place in our community and culture.”
Other guests included Donald C. Otto, Jr., executive director and general counsel for the Missouri Funeral Directors and Embalmers Association Missouri Funeral Trust; John Hutchens, owner and funeral director at Hutchens Mortuary & Cremation; Roger Richie, president and owner of Ziegenhein Funeral Home & Cremation; and Ozella J. Foster-Robinson, chief executive officer of Ozella J. Foster Funeral Services.
“(The accreditation loss) was a wake-up call to the local funeral service industry,” Foster-Robinson said. “We’ve got a little work to do, but we’ll get it.”
The college’s Funeral Service Education programs, including the associate’s degree and certificate of specialization in funeral directing, are based at Forest Park.
The American Board of Funeral Service Education withdrew accreditation because National Board Examination scores for first-time test takers fell below a 60-percent threshold for three consecutive years, according to the college’s website.
“All remaining students will be taught out and graduate from the accredited program,” the website stated. “However, no new class of students will be accepted to begin the (associate’s degree program) during the fall semester.”
Students interested in Funeral Service Education are being encouraged to apply for admission into the certificate program.
Credits earned through that program can be applied to the associate’s degree in the fall of 2014, if the college makes sufficient changes to regain accreditation.
“We’re moving forward with re-accreditation and the (meeting with funeral home directors and owners) helped us confirm the viability of our program and the structure of the new curriculum,” said Steve Smith, Funeral Education Service director.
A key player is David Coughran, a funeral service education instructor who went through a similar process at Delgrado Community College in Louisiana.
“We are putting curriculum in line with (board) accreditation standards,” he said. “That’s what dictates how our program is set up.”
The meeting with local funeral directors focused on more than how to regain accreditation for the associate’s degree program.
“We brought in managers, supervisors and owners of companies in our local market to get a five-year forecast on what’s needed in our communities,” said Gina Benesh, manager of Career and Technical Education programs for St. Louis Community College.
In the meantime, Funeral Service Education students are going about their daily routines this fall.
“I believe it’s great to get an education (at Forest Park), compared to the rest of the United States,” said student Tony Biesemeyer. “We’re one of the best in the nation.”
Student Shanika Sanford also voiced her support for the program.
“This is a hands-on field of study, and we get to work in different funeral homes weekly,” she said.
Coughran and Smith earned Funeral Service Education degrees in 1994 at Forest Park. They returned to help prepare the next generation of professionals.
“My primary goal is to service the students and have the students focus on servicing the families they work with,” Smith said.
Funeral Service Education teaches students how to direct funerals, manage funeral homes, help families through the grieving process, sell funeral-related products and services and follow laws and regulations. Students also study anatomy, microbiology, pathology, physiology, chemistry, embalming and restorative art.
“What we do can impact someone for the rest of their lives because they have to adjust to going on without their loved ones,” Smith said.