$41M in behavioral health workforce grants

Nineteen recent grants seek to strengthen the behavioral health workforce by bolstering expanded training programs, student support and increased access to care in underserved communities. 

1. Two faculty members for the University of Alabama at Birmingham have received two grants totaling nearly $2.7 million from HSS’ Health Resources and Services Administration to train students for behavioral health roles in underserved communities. The grants will expand training for psychology doctoral and undergraduate students through new programs focused on substance use, trauma and telehealth. 
2. Tallahassee-based Florida State University’s Stoops Center for Communities, Families and Children has secured a $2 million multiyear federal grant to expand early intervention services and behavioral health workforce development in Florida’s panhandle. The initiative will train and place 200 paraprofessionals through a paid apprenticeship program targeting high school graduates and early-career professionals. 
3. The University of Connecticut in Mansfield received a four-year, $2.4 million HRSA grant to launch the Behavioral Health Scholars Program. The program will train 17 master of social work students annually to deliver integrated behavioral healthcare to underserved youths in Connecticut, according to a Sept. 29 news release.
4. Central Oregon Community College in Bend received a four-year, over $1.3 million HRSA grant fund scholarships and stipends for up to 18 behavioral health students annually. The program prepares students for state certification as mental health associates and substance use counselors through field placements and workforce-focused training, according to a Sept. 26 news release.
5. Atlanta-based Emory University’s Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing was awarded a four-year, $2 million HRSA grant to launch the Georgia: Understanding Risk Reduction to Optimize Childhood, Adolescence and Young Adulthood Program. The initiative will train behavioral health paraprofessionals to support youths in high-need communities through a combination of classroom learning and field placements with community partners, according to a Sept. 22 news release. 
6. The North Carolina Clinician and Physician Retention and Well-being Consortium was awarded a $1.3 million grant from the Centene Foundation and Charlotte, N.C.-based Carolina Complete Health. The multiyear investment will support a statewide initiative to improve the mental health and well-being of physicians, nurses and other healthcare professionals, according to a Sept. 16 news release.
7. Richmond-based Virginia Commonwealth University’s department of psychology received two federal grants totaling $3.6 million to grow the behavioral health workforce and expand access to free mental healthcare. The funding will support more than 50 graduate students training in behavioral health across 12 clinics in Central Virginia, according to a Sept. 16 VCU News report.
8. Greenville, N.C.-based East Carolina University’s Thomas Harriot College of Arts and Sciences and the Brody School of Medicine received a $1.3 million grant to train psychology doctoral students and expand free mental and behavioral health services in high-need areas, according to a Sept. 15 news release. 
9. New York City has launched the CUNY Social Work Fellows program to address its behavioral health workforce shortage. The initiative, funded with $3 million through fiscal year 2026, provides scholarships to 95 students pursuing a Master of Social Work degree at CUNY institutions. The program aims to improve access to care in high-need areas.
10. The Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services has relaunched a scholarship program with more than $6.4 million in state and opioid settlement funding. The Pathways Behavioral Health Scholarship program offers up to $30,000 over two years for students pursuing a master’s degree in behavioral health fields and requires graduates to work at a state-contracted agency for the same duration.
11. The University of Bridgeport in Bridgeport, Conn. was awarded a $2.4 million grant from the HHS’ Health and Human Services Administration to expand its Clinical Mental Health Counseling master’s program. The grant will fund the UB Multicultural Alliance aimed at strengthening Connecticut’s mental health workforce and will support graduate students in delivering trauma-informed, evidence-based care in underserved communities. 
12. Eastern Mennonite University in Harrisonburg, Va. has received a $2.37 million grant from the HHS’ Health Resources and Services Administration to support its Master of Arts in Counseling program. The grant will fund the Interdisciplinary Education in Action: Valley Counseling Expansion Project aimed at expanding behavioral health access in underserved areas across Virginia and West Virginia. 
13. The University of Montana in Missoula has received a $2.4 million grant from the HHS’ Health Resources and Services Administration. The grant will fund the university’s Behavioral Health Workforce Education and Training program, which supports graduate students who will enter the behavioral health workforce. The program allows students to gain experience through practical hours and clinical hours in integrated care settings. This is the program’s third consecutive grant from the HRSA. 
14. AdvanceEDU in Denver has been awarded nearly $1 million in grants from the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade to launch the Thrive in Mind program. The behavioral health program provides opportunities such as a debt-free education, stackable credentials — which can be completed in as little as six months — and paid, hands-on apprenticeships. 
15. Webster University in Webster Groves, Mo., has been awarded $2.4 million from the HRSA to support the Webster Institute for Clinical Scholarship. The scholarship provides professional counseling students access to serve a diverse client population across the St. Louis region. In 2021, the university received $1 million from HRSA for its Behavioral Health Workforce Education and Training program, which led to the establishment of the scholarship. 
16. Gardner-Webb University in Boiling Springs, N.C., is set to receive $2.16 million from the HRSA to fund the university’s Advancing Collaborative Care, Integration, and Interprofessional Education in Rural North Carolina project. This initiative provides behavioral health students the opportunity to serve at integrated care sites in rural and underserved parts of North Carolina. 
17. A professor at Milwaukee-based Marquette University has been awarded a $2.4 million grant from HHS to expand the university’s behavioral health training program. This program supports clinical mental health counselors to serve children, adolescents and transitional-age youths. 
18. The University of Texas at Tyler is set to receive $1.5 million from the HRSA to expand its psychology internship program. The funding will add 24 internship opportunities, placing interns in East Texas clinics to increase access to mental health services in underserved communities.
19. University of the Pacific’s School of Health Sciences in Stockton, Calif., has been awarded $2.4 million from the HRSA to support Pacific’s Master of Social Work and Doctor of Occupational Therapy programs. The programs aim to support students committed to working with underserved communities.