Another local charity faces as a crisis as its executive director is arrested and charged with embezzlement.
On Sept. 4, Alexandria police arrested Sandra O. Heningburg, 62, of Alexandria, on September 4, and charged her with embezzling $1,300 from the Scholarship Fund of Alexandria. Heningburg has been the executive director of the Scholarship Fund for two years.
Amy Bertsch, a spokesperson for the Alexandria Police Department, said that police arrested Heningburg at police headquarters last week after a month-long investigation. Scholarship Fund Board members became aware of discrepancies in their financial records between March and July of this year and notified police. Heningburg is on administrative leave with pay pending the outcome of the case.
The Scholarship Fund was founded by a group of local citizens in 1986 and has provided hundreds of scholarships for T. C. Williams High School graduates to attend various postsecondary vocational and educational programs.
While the Fund is supported largely by corporate and individual donations, Heningburg’s salary is paid by the Alexandria City Public School system. ACPS also pays for a halftime administrative support person for the Fund and provides the organization with office space at T. C. Williams High School. Heningburg, who is considered to be a school system employee, reports to both John Porter, the principal at T. C. Williams and to the Scholarship Fund Board.
Paul Hartley, chairman of the Scholarship Fund Board, said, “We are continuing to do many good things. This year, we [Scholarship Fund] gave $171,000 in new scholarships to T. C. Williams seniors. Those were sent out in July. Last week, we sent out $119,000 in renewal scholarships. Just this year, two of our scholarship recipients have returned to teach at T. C. Williams.
“We are planning for our annual telethon that will take place in November and we are looking forward to our gala in the spring,” he said.
HARTLEY SAID that the Fund has also made some administrative changes. Until a month ago, charitable contributions to the Fund were administered through the Community Foundation of Washington. In August, The Scholarship Fund obtained 501c3 status from the Internal Revenue Service, making it an independent nonprofit, tax-exempt organization in its own right. This is good because the Community Foundation charges a fee for administrative services. The Fund also receives gifts through United Way, which also charges a percentage of designated funds.
Mayor William D. Euille said he is a long-time supporter of the Scholarship Fund. “I certainly intend to continue my level of financial support to the Scholarship Fund and would encourage other corporate and individual givers to do the same,” Euille said. “I am very pleased that the Scholarship Fund Board and the staff at T. C. Williams moved so quickly to deal with this unfortunate matter.”