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FAQ: Public Health Scholarship Program (PHSP)

Funding Opportunity Number: HRSA-22-122

Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) Modification

Why was the HRSA-22-122 NOFO modified?
We modified the HRSA-22-122 NOFO since we’re no longer restricting applicants from receiving funding from multiple NOFOs, as long as projects are not duplicating efforts across NOFOs.

Accreditation

How do I document my accreditation?
Health professions schools and programs must provide documentation of accreditation as an attachment labeled Attachment 10. Documentation must include:
  • A statement that you hold continuing accreditation from the relevant accrediting body and are not under probation
  • The dates of initial accreditation and next accrediting body review
  • The accreditation start and expiration dates
  • A web link to the accreditation status (you’re not required to include the full letter of accreditation)
Are public health schools that are not accredited eligible for this program?
Yes. If the public health schools can provide the university’s institutional accreditation, they are eligible to apply.

Eligibility

Who are the eligible entities for the PHSP?
Eligible entities are:
  • A health professions school, including an accredited school or program of public health, health administration, preventive medicine, or dental public health or a school providing health management programs
  • An academic health center
  • A state or local government
  • Any other appropriate public or private nonprofit entity
Could a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) use this program to create scholarships to train their employees?
Yes. A FQHC could use this program to create scholarships to train their employees.
Is an FQHC an eligible entity?
Yes. FQHCs are an eligible entity if they have a training program that provides public health training in accordance with the program’s purpose, goals, objectives, and requirements as stipulated in the NOFO.
Is an accredited undergraduate Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in Public Health program eligible to apply or is it only for Master of Public Health (M.P.H.) programs?
Yes. Accredited undergraduate B.S. in Public Health programs are eligible entities for the Public Health Scholarship Program.
Would a Certified Nurse Assistant (CNA) scholarship program for hospice care qualify? We provide a free of cost CNA certification program in collaboration with local community colleges.
No.
Would a Master of Social Work program qualify if it meets the eligibility of offering a program of public health, etc.?
Yes. Schools of Social Work are eligible to apply. Your program must provide public health training in accordance with the program’s purpose, goals, objectives, and requirements as stipulated in the NOFO.
If a Master of Public Health program already has a HRSA Scholarships for Disadvantaged Students (SDS) grant award, can it also apply for the PHSP?
Yes. Schools of Public Health are an eligible entity for the Public Health Scholarship Program. However, trainees can’t receive scholarship funds under both programs at the same time.
Are hospitals, health departments, and primary care associations eligible to apply for this funding opportunity?
Yes. Hospitals are eligible entities.
You must have an existing public health training program as well as public health partnerships in place, along with a system for scholarship recipients to maintain or be transitioned into employment in public health once they complete their training.
Are for-profit health care businesses eligible for this funding opportunity?
No.
Are Community Health Worker Programs through a community college eligible?
Yes. Community Health Worker Programs through a community college are eligible.
You must have an existing public health training program as well as public health partnerships in place, along with a system for scholarship recipients to maintain or be transitioned into employment in public health upon completion of their training.
Are Doula/Midwifery Certification Programs eligible?
Yes. Doula and Midwifery Certification Programs are eligible to apply.
Are universities eligible to apply to disperse scholarships?
No. Only a health professions school within a university is an eligible entity. Programs must provide public health training in accordance with the program’s purpose, goals, objectives, and requirements as stipulated in the NOFO.
Are academic health centers eligible?
Yes. In accordance with eligibility requirements listed in the NOFO.
Can a jointly sponsored accredited M.P.H. program by two separate universities provide scholarships to students from either university?
Yes. M.P.H. students of the jointly sponsored program are eligible to receive scholarships.
Would a Master of Public Administration or a Master of Public Policy be an eligible program?
Yes. In accordance with eligibility requirements listed in the NOFO.
Are any of these Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE) accredited programs eligible: Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in Public Health, B.S. in Healthcare Management, and B.S. in Healthcare Data Analytics?
Yes. In accordance with eligibility requirements listed in the NOFO.
Is a Master of Science (M.S.) in Healthcare Management eligible? We have a concentration in Public Health within that M.S. degree.
Yes. In accordance with eligibility requirements listed in the NOFO.
Would a school that provides nursing and allied health programs be eligible?
Yes. Health professions schools are eligible to apply.
Does the Public Health Scholarship Program require the training program to have an official partnership with a practice entity (i.e., local health department)?
You must have public health partnerships in place, along with a system for scholarship recipients to maintain or be transitioned into employment in public health upon completion of their training.
Can a federally funded health center that has a training program in place be the applicant organization and partner with an accredited public health program?
Yes. A federally funded health center is eligible if they have a training program that provides public health training in accordance with the program’s purpose, goals, objectives, and requirements as stipulated in the NOFO.
Is there a required number of hours per week for the practicum?
No.
Are secondary pipeline programs eligible?
No. Secondary pipeline programs are not eligible.

Application Guidance

How do I download the HRSA-22-122 notice of funding opportunity application guidance?
Access the PHSP NOFO. You may also access the PHSP NOFO on grants.gov by:
  • Selecting the “Package” Tab
  • Select “Preview”
  • Select the “Download Instructions” button
What is the application due date?
Submit applications by June 1, 2022, 11:59 p.m. ET.
What is the performance period?
The period of performance or project period is September 30, 2022 to September 29, 2025.
Where do I need to register before I can apply?
Will you accept joint/partner applications from eligible entities?
No. Only one entity can apply per application. Applicants must have public health partnerships in place, along with a system for scholarship recipients to maintain or be transitioned into employment in public health upon completion of their training.
Which attachments do NOT count towards the 80-page limit?
Attachment 13 Indirect Cost Rate Agreement does not count towards the 80-page limit. Review pages 41-45 of the SF-424 Application Guide (PDF - 640 KB) for information about what is counted in the page limit.
Where should we include biographical sketches or resumes of key personnel?
Upload a biographical sketch onto each SF-414 R &R Senior/Key Person Profile form, one per each senior/key person.
The Project Director/ Principal Investigator biographical sketch should be the first biographical sketch. Review page 41 of the SF-424 Application Guide (PDF - 640 KB) for information about uploading biographical sketches.

Funding and Scholarships

What is the maximum amount of scholarship per trainee?
The maximum amount of scholarship per trainee is $45,000 per year for full-time and $22,500 per year for a part-time training program.
Can employees from an applicant organization participate as trainees in this program?
Yes. Employees from an applicant organization receiving the proposed public health training can be trainees. Scholarship funds can’t be used to pay salaries for trainees who are employed nor can they be used for release time for trainees to attend training.
Can funding be used to obtain a professional license - for example, a Dental License or a Social Work License?
No.
Can we use training funds to support international students coming from developing nations?
No. A student/trainee receiving support from grant funds must be a citizen, national, or permanent resident of the United States.
Does a Community Health Worker "Certification" meet the definition of a qualified in public health worker?
Yes. Community Health Worker programs are eligible to apply.

Use of Funds

Can 10% of administrative funds cover costs of the project director?
Yes.
Is 10% of the budget supposed to cover staffing, supplies, equipment, and curriculum development?
Yes.
What is the indirect cost rate for the Public Health Scholarship Program?
Indirect costs under training awards to organizations other than state or local governments, or federally recognized Indian tribes, will be budgeted and reimbursed at 8% of modified total direct costs rather than on the basis of a negotiated rate agreement, and are not subject to upward or downward adjustment.
Direct cost amounts for equipment, tuition and fees, and subawards and subcontracts in excess of $25,000 are excluded from the direct cost base for purposes of this calculation.
Are we correct in using 90% of the direct costs towards scholarships and research assistantships, 10% of the direct costs going towards administrative items and then 8% indirect costs on top of that?
A minimum amount of 90% of the total requested budget per year must be provided for trainee scholarships, and not for research assistantships. Ten percent (10%) or less of the total requested budget per year may be provided for administrative costs. (This is inclusive of the 8% indirect costs.)
Do the 8% indirect costs only apply to the administrative costs portion of the budget?
Yes.
In the 10% administrative cost allowance, would curricular development for a didactic course be considered an eligible expense, particularly if subject matter expertise is a budgeted line item?
Yes. Organizations may also use part of the 10% administrative funding to augment the public health field experience (practicum) by developing a companion public health curriculum that addresses COVID-19, other public health emergencies, and public health inequities and health disparities.
Do staffing and curriculum development combined have to comprise only 10% of the budget?
Ten percent (10%) or less of the total requested budget per year may be provided for administrative costs. If needed, organizations may also use part of the 10% administrative funding to augment the public health field experience (practicum) by developing a companion public health curriculum that addresses COVID-19, other public health emergencies, and public health inequities and health disparities.
If an accredited university with a public health program partners with a local health department to provide the three months of practical training, can fees for practica training be included in the application?
Yes. Fees can come from the 10% administrative costs.

Funding Preference

Could you clarify if applicants must meet the criteria for BOTH areas (1) Serving individuals who are from disadvantaged backgrounds (including underrepresented racial and ethnic minorities) AND (2) Graduating large proportions of individuals who serve in underserved communities to be eligible for funding preference?
Yes. You must meet both qualifications to receive the funding preference.
In order to be included in "Number of Graduates in AY 20-21 employed in Medically Underserved Areas (MUAs), must the graduate's employment address be located in the MUA?
The graduate employment address must be located in an MUA.
Can Qualification 1 for the funding preference be met by a collective 20% across the categories of economically, educationally/environmentally, and/or underrepresented racial and ethnic minorities? Or must it be 20% from 1 of those subcategories only?
No. The qualification can’t be met collectively across the three categories.

Other

How can interested scholarship applicants find institutions who have received these awards and can provide the scholarship?
We’ll post awards for the Public Health Scholarship Program on HPSA Find.
Can you define an academic health center?
Per the Bureau of Health Workforce Glossary in the NOFO, an academic health center is an institution that includes a school of medicine, a teaching hospital, and at least one additional health education school (e.g., nursing), and that is owned or affiliated with clinical agencies providing for the delivery of patient services. Each entity generally maintains a separate identity and autonomy.
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