MORTUARY SCIENCE

Graduated in 2018
Kemp Funeral Home and Cremation Services

Q: Why did you choose WSU?

A: I decided to go to Wayne State because it was close to home. Additionally, I knew many alumni from the Mortuary Science program, so attending Wayne State would facilitate more opportunities to network with them as my career progressed.

Q: What inspired you to pursue this field?

A: I wanted to help my family build a funeral home through legacy and serve the community where I grew up. I worked in funeral service when I was in high school, under my father and other funeral directors. I learned to love the career. 

Q: Who was your most memorable instructor?

A: John Desmond — I liked learning from his real-time experience working with many different families. He took a realistic approach to funeral service and held us accountable for our actions during group exercises. We would often role-play a funeral arrangement and if you said the wrong thing or made a conversation awkward, he would play the role of a disgruntled family member so we could truly feel how our words could affect grieving families.

Q: What was your most challenging class?

A: Restorative Arts — I was not always the best when it came to art class. I found it to be quite a challenge when we needed to build a head working from proportions of a picture.

Q: In your opinion, what is one of the biggest changes that has occurred in your profession since graduating?

A: The use of technology has been one of the biggest changes. During the start of the pandemic, our communities had to adapt to not traveling for services because the law changed to limit the number of people attending. We have introduced livestreaming funerals as well as Zoom interactions with those families during visitations and wakes so that they can feel at home with their loved one even though they are many miles away. Technology has also changed the way we use software for customer service management as well as memorializing our loved ones.

Q: Tell us a bit more about your career.

A: It is rewarding when I can help a family going through some of the worst moments of their lives. I have served families whose loved ones have passed from violence, and I have helped celebrate the life of 108-year-old woman. I never know who is going to call and for what purpose, I just know that I must be a resource to grieving families.

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Since 1939, the Wayne State University Mortuary Science Program has been dedicated to educating and developing funeral service professionals who serve their communities with care and distinction. Through traditional, online and hybrid programs, students benefit from high quality instruction and practical experiences that lay the foundation for their funeral service careers. Learn more about the application process and make plans to attend a college information meeting, held for prospective students at 6 p.m. on the first Tuesday of each month.

An anchor in urban health care

The Eugene Applebaum College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences is built on more than 100 years of tradition and innovation in the heart of Detroit. We have grown deep roots in our city, harnessing its powerhouse hospital systems and community service organizations as vibrant, real-world training grounds for students, with an ongoing focus on social justice in health care. And our research at all levels – from undergraduates to veteran faculty members – translates into creative solutions for healthier communities.

Wayne State University is a premier urban research institution offering approximately 350 academic programs through 13 schools and colleges to nearly 24,000 students.