Cynthia Rowe, Staff Writer
Armstrong students who struggle financially and who are underserved have the benefit of applying for the Scholarships of Disadvantaged Students (SDS) Program Grant available online on the Armstrong website. Armstrong’s Director for Academic Affairs and Graduate Studies Donna Brooks, PhD., is the beneficiary of a four-year U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration’s SDS Program Grant at a value of 5.2 million.
The program provides scholarships to full-time, financially disadvantaged students from low-income backgrounds, enrolled in one of the following health professions: Bachelors of Science in Medical Laboratory Science and Master of Public Health for the year of 2017 through 2018. The recipients of the SDS scholarships are awarded $650,000 per year for four years.
Melanie Simón, Public Relations Manager, quoted Brooks, “The funding is used to attract students from underrepresented minority groups who want to major in health professions. This helps a student complete a degree from start to finish.”
For a student to be eligible, they must come from an economically and educationally disadvantaged background. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services defines an individual from a disadvantaged background as one who comes from an environment that has prevented the individual from obtaining the abilities and knowledge required to enroll in and graduate from a health professions school, or comes from a family with an annual income below a level based on low income thresholds. The following are some examples of environmentally disadvantage: a person who graduated from a high school with a low per capita funding, comes from a family that receives public assistance, and first generation in family to attend college.
Students who are interested in applying for the Grant can do so by sending the application to Burnett Hall room 113 to the SDS Principal Investigator. According to the application documents, “Applications will continue to be reviewed until funds are no longer available.”
Application forms can be found at:
https://www.armstrong.edu/images/uploads/financial-aid/2017-2018/1718_SDS_Application.pdf
If you have any questions or concerns, you can contact the Principal Investigator at (912)344-2896.
