Roadway Worker Memorial Scholarships offer a road to a brighter future

Roadway Worker Memorial Scholarships offer a road to a brighter future

Students encouraged to apply by Feb. 15 for up to $11,000 in aid for education

Students who have experienced tragedy can get on the road to a brighter future with help from a Roadway Worker Memorial Scholarship offered by the American Traffic Safety Services (ATSS) Foundation.

Since the program’s inception in 2002, the Foundation has awarded 147 Roadway Worker Memorial Scholarships and 28 Chuck Bailey Memorial Scholarships.

The competitive Roadway Worker Memorial Scholarship offers up to $10,000 annually to dependents of roadway workers who were killed or permanently disabled in work zone incidents. Students who demonstrate a strong commitment to volunteerism may also receive $1,000 given in honor of Chuck Bailey, a roadway safety advocate who died in 2002.

Mary Sollars was 13 when her father, David Sollars, was struck by a vehicle in a work zone. He died from his injuries five days later, on April 2, 2019.

Today, Mary is attending Elon University in North Carolina, where she competes on the school’s NCAA Division I Track & Field Team with a partial athletic scholarship in addition to the Roadway Worker Memorial Scholarship she has received each of her first two years of college.

She is studying finance and accounting with plans to work at a major accounting firm or in wealth management.

“I’m just so grateful that I received the scholarship and I feel so honored because my dad was so big on road safety,” Mary said. “I feel like with this scholarship and the hard work I’m putting in at school and track, I think he’d be proud.”

Megan Pirelli’s father, Mark Pirelli, was killed in a work zone crash on Sept. 9, 2020, about two hours from the family’s Chicago-area home. But, thanks to help from the ATSS Foundation’s Roadway Worker Memorial Scholarships, Megan achieved her dream of becoming a registered nurse last year.

The Foundation awarded nine Roadway Worker Memorial Scholarships to college and university students for the 2025-26 academic year. Students can reapply each year through graduate studies.

“The Foundation’s goal is to support the families whose lives have been impacted by the loss or permanent disability of a loved one while earning a living in a work zone,” ATSS Foundation Director Lori Diaz. “We can never make up for the loss they experienced but we can help them find a promising path forward through education at a community college, a four-year college, graduate school or a trade school.”

Applications for the 2026-27 academic year are due by Feb. 15. One application is used to apply for both scholarships. For questions, contact foundation@atssa.com.

Learn more about the difference Roadway Worker Memorial Scholarships are making as recipients share their stories.