Rural Mental Health – Funding & Opportunities

Helping Hands Grant Program Inactive
Grants to encourage medical students to participate in community service activities, particularly those focused on underserved populations; raise awareness of mental illness and the importance of early recognition of illness; and build an interest among medical students in psychiatry and working in underserved communities. Projects should focus on mental health and substance use disorder.

Implementing Zero Suicide in Health Systems Inactive
Grants to implement the Zero Suicide framework, a comprehensive, multi-setting approach to suicide prevention in health systems.

NBCC Foundation Rural Scholarships Inactive
Scholarships for students residing in rural areas who are currently enrolled in a master's level counseling program and are committed to practicing in rural communities after graduation.

School-Based Mental Health Services (SBMH) Grant Program Inactive
Grant for state educational agencies, local educational agencies (LEAs), and consortia of LEAs to increase the number of credentialed school-based mental health services providers delivering mental health services to students in high-need LEAs.

Behavioral Health Workforce Education and Training (BHWET) Program for Paraprofessionals Inactive
Grants to develop and expand experiential training opportunities, such as field placements and internships, to increase the supply of students preparing to become peer support specialists and other behavioral health-related paraprofessionals. The program emphasizes relationships with community-based partners to increase access to quality behavioral health services across the lifespan in high-need and high-demand areas. Special focus is placed on demonstrating knowledge and understanding of the specific concerns for children, adolescents, and transitional-aged youth who are at risk for behavioral health disorders.

Behavioral Health Workforce Education and Training (BHWET) Program for Professionals Inactive
Grants to develop and expand experiential training opportunities, such as field placements and internships, to improve the distribution and supply of the behavioral health workforce. The program emphasizes relationships with community-based partners to increase access to quality behavioral health services in high need and high demand areas, such as rural communities.

Graduate Psychology Education Program Inactive
Grants to train doctoral health service psychology students, interns, and post-doctoral residents in integrated, interdisciplinary behavioral health. This includes opioid use and substance use in high-need and rural populations.

American Indians Into Psychology Inactive
Grants to administer programs that will recruit and provide scholarships to qualified individuals who will become clinical psychologists and provide service to American Indian/Alaska Native populations.

Primary Care Training and Enhancement: Physician Assistant Rural Training in Behavioral Health (PCTE-PARB) Program Inactive
Funding to train primary care physician assistants to prevent, identify, diagnose, treat, and refer services for behavioral health conditions. The program goal is to increase the number of trained physician assistants who choose to practice in rural areas after graduation.

Grants for Expansion and Sustainability of the Comprehensive Community Mental Health Services for Children with Serious Emotional Disturbances Inactive
Grants to improve the mental health outcomes for children and youth, birth through age 21, at risk for or with serious emotional disturbances (SED), and their families. Rural and tribal populations are priorities, among others.