Livingston ISD to honor Audrii Cunningham with memorial scholarship: 'For her memory'
LIVINGSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- In the wake of 11-year-old Audrii Cunningham's death, the school district where she attended, Livingston Independent School District, announced a scholarship in her honor.
The video above is from a previous report.
Livingston ISD Superintendent Dr. Brent Hawkins disclosed Thursday the Audrii Cunningham Memorial Scholarship will be included in their Green and White Scholarship Ceremony that will be held on May 7, 2024.
"We will accept any donations to this scholarship fund through the Green and White Program. Audrii loved school, so what better way to honor her memory than to help a student further their education."
Audrii attended Creekside Elementary School, where she was described as a "standout" student. Dr. Hawkins said the bright student's artwork is hanging in the lobby.
RELATED: 11-year-old Audrii Cunningham's cause of death revealed after body found in Trinity River
The 11-year-old was reported missing on Thursday, Feb. 15, 2024, after authorities said that she didn't make it to her school bus stop that morning.
Two days after she was reported missing, a family friend, Don Steven McDougal, was arrested on an unrelated charge and was deemed a person of interest.
On Tuesday, Feb. 20, officials declared an area where they were searching for Audrii a crime scene. The pinpoint location included an area around US-59 and the Trinity River Bridge. It was a short time later that officials discovered the young girl's body tied to a rock in the Trinity River.
An autopsy revealed Audrii died from blunt head force trauma.
McDougal was then named a suspect and looking at capital murder charges. According to officials, he lived in a trailer behind their home in Livingston.
SEE MORE: Previous child victim of man charged in Audrii Cunningham's murder says system failed her and Audrii
Newly obtained criminal records show McDougal was indicted on attempted indecency with a child nearly 17 years ago in Brazoria County, which, according to legal analyst Anthony Osso Jr., would have required him to register as a sex offender. However, McDougal pleaded down to child enticement in 2008. The charge does not require sex offender registration.
Online records also reveal the suspect's criminal history, spanning two decades, and includes dozens of arrests.
According to officials, McDougal admitted to leaving the house with Audrii the morning she disappeared but would not tell investigators what happened next.
