Foundation Connections

2024 marks the addition of two new awards offered to master’s-level counseling students for educational support. The Garden State Master’s Counseling Initiative Fellowship and A Dream Decided (ADD) Scholarship aim to increase professional counselors from marginalized communities who are committed to serving underserved and never-served populations.

The Garden State Master’s Counseling Initiative Fellowship of $10,000, funded by Kathryn Fellows, was created to increase the number of Black or African American counselors available to serve underserved populations in New Jersey inner cities. This fellowship provides financial support to a master’s-level student enrolled full time in a Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP)-accredited counseling program who currently lives in New Jersey and identifies as Black or African American. An exciting detail of this award is that it is open to United States citizens, permanent residents, and international students with an F-1 Visa!

The A Dream Decided (ADD) Scholarship is the first award the Foundation has had the honor of administering to undocumented or Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) students enrolled full time in a master’s-level counseling program. The $8,000 scholarship, which seeks to help ease the financial stress of graduate school costs, was funded by the A Dream Decided Giving Circle, a peer-to-peer fundraising effort spearheaded by MFP Alumni Pamela Fullerton and Drs. Diana Gallardo and Kirsis A. Dipre. Though only one award is available, the purpose is to encourage undocumented and DACA students to pursue their decided dream of becoming a counselor and serving underserved populations in the United States.

The objective of fellowships and scholarships offered by the Foundation is to bridge the gap in access to quality mental health services for underserved communities. With the generous support of corporate sponsors, 100% of donor contributions directly fund our programs. If you would like to donate to help fund a scholarship, you can do so online.

To learn more about eligibility requirements for the Garden State Master’s Counseling Initiative Fellowship, A Dream Decided Scholarship, and other awards currently accepting applications, visit our website.

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