Healey-Driscoll Administration Awards $12.4 Million to Support Behavioral Health Workforce
Funds issued to students pursuing careers treating mental health or substance use disorders
BOSTON – The Healey-Driscoll Administration announced today that they have issued $12.4 million through the Behavioral Health Trust Fund to 37 colleges and universities to financially support behavioral health students completing unpaid internships and field placements. These grants are for undergraduate and graduate-level students pursuing careers treating mental health or substance use disorders and are part of the state’s efforts to grow a culturally and linguistically diverse behavioral health workforce in Massachusetts.
“Massachusetts needs more qualified behavioral health professionals, and our administration is committed to supporting students eager to do this work,” said Governor Maura Healey. “By investing in students looking to treat those experiencing mental health and substance use challenges, we’re investing in the long-term health and wellness of communities across Massachusetts.”
“We want Massachusetts residents to be able to access qualified behavioral health professionals when and where they and their families need them, and that will only happen if we lift barriers for entering this field,” said Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll. “One crucial step to creating a strong behavioral health workforce is making earning a degree financially feasible for students driven to fill the roles.”
Many behavioral health degree and certificate programs require workplace-based internships, apprenticeships, or practicum credit hours as a condition for program completion. Required field placements play a central role in helping students prepare to serve as behavioral health practitioners, but these experiences are often unpaid and often require students to sacrifice paid work. To support students pursing these careers, the funding is going to colleges with behavioral health degrees that require field placements, with a focus on institutions in geographic areas that are priorities for advancing health equity.
“By lifting financial barriers for students pursuing behavioral health degrees, we are encouraging a more diverse student body to enter this field, which helps us create a more diverse workforce to meet the needs of residents from various backgrounds,” said Education Secretary Dr. Patrick Tutwiler. “We’re proud to launch a program that helps those looking to help others.”
“A good internship or field placement can teach a person much-needed skills and help them gain experiences that last long into that individual’s career,” said Health and Human Services Secretary Kate Walsh. “I am grateful this funding gives us the chance to support people financially, which not only helps build a more diverse workforce but also ensures people reach the right behavioral health services when and where they need it. Building a stronger workforce that does not have to worry about financial limitations means we can help every person and community throughout Massachusetts get the care they need and in a way that truly makes a difference.”
The behavioral health internship funds are being issued to campuses as grants to be distributed to qualifying students over a two-year period and can be applied to internships being completed in the 2024-2025 academic year and 2025-2026 academic year. Students at the awarded institutions who may be eligible for the funding should speak with their program advisor and financial aid office.
“Internships help behavioral health graduates prepare to serve community members on day one, and these funds will lessen the financial burden of completing these essential learning experiences,” said Commissioner of Higher Education Noe Ortega. “The more we make entering the behavioral health workforce possible, the more we can create a pipeline of talented professionals prepared to serve residents across the Commonwealth.”
This funding is from the Behavioral Health Trust Fund that was established by the state with American Rescue Plan Act funds and is managed by the Secretary of Health and Human Services. The Behavioral Health Trust Fund was a recommendation of the Behavioral Health Advisory Commission, which was comprised of 22 members from government and the behavioral health sector. Funds are used for addressing barriers to the delivery of an equitable, culturally competent, affordable, and clinically appropriate continuum of behavioral health care and services.
“This program is a strong step to make working in behavioral health more accessible for Massachusetts students,” said Senate President Karen E. Spilka (D-Ashland). “This is an investment in homegrown talent that will help alleviate the workforce shortages in our behavioral health system. I’m grateful to the Healey-Driscoll Administration for dispensing these funds, and look forward to seeing these young people make a difference in our state.”
Massachusetts’ public and private colleges and universities receiving funds include:
American International College: $310,000
Anna Maria College: $130,000
Assumption University: $170,000
Bay Path University: $695,000
Berklee College of Music: $85,000
Boston College: $785,000
Boston Graduate School of Psychoanalysis Inc: $50,000
Boston University: $935,000
Bridgewater State University: $580,000
Cambridge College: $460,000
College of Our Lady of the Elms: $165,000
Emmanuel College: $110,000
Fitchburg State University: $70,000
Framingham State University: $70,000
Gordan College: $50,000
Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary: $105,000
Harvard University: $50,000
Lesley University: $675,000
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts: $50,000
MCPHS University: $150,000
Merrimack College: $80,000
MGH Institute of Health Professions: $55,000
Northeastern University: $180,000
Regis College: $285,000
Salem State University: $930,000
Simmons University: $1,540,000
Smith College: $260,000
Springfield College: $1,045,000
Suffolk University: $65,000
Tufts University: $230,000
University of Massachusetts – Amherst: $50,000
University of Massachusetts – Boston: $370,000
University of Massachusetts – Dartmouth: $140,000
Western New England University: $180,000
Westfield State University: $400,000
WILLIAM JAMES College: $395,000
Worcester State University: $485,000
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