BUFFALO, N.Y. — D'Youville announced Saturday morning new scholarships to benefit essential workers and prospective rural healthcare workers who want to further their careers.
“The university wants to honor those individuals who find themselves at home or quarantined after serving on the front lines of the pandemic,” said D’Youville President Dr. Lorrie Clemo.
“They may be interested in using that time to further their education with a certificate or degree that will be useful when they return to work or as they begin to prepare for a career change or promotion," Clemo added.
D'Youville's scholarship to benefit essential workers provides a $1,000 per semester scholarship, up to $2,000 a year, for nurses, frontline retail workers, emergency workers and others who have been deemed essential during the pandemic.
The scholarship can be used for incoming undergraduate majors. In order to be eligible, you have to demonstrate that you were deemed an essential worker, register at D'Youville half-time or more (6 credit hours or above per semester) and fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).
D'Youville also announced their Rural Outreach Initiative (ROI) which will provide a half-tuition scholarship to two current or prospective healthcare employees.
These employees would work in rural healthcare facilities in regions experiencing critical workforce shortages.
Many of the programs for students taking advantage of the scholarship are online and let people advance their careers, such as in pharmaceutical science or nursing.
Participants of the initiative will commit to clinical placements in rural healthcare organizations that provide a designated tuition contribution. The participant will also commit to working within those organizations for an agreed-upon amount of time after graduating.
D'Youville will also begin offering three-low residency programs in fall 2029, including an advanced certificate and master’s in Family Nurse Practitioner and the Doctor of Nursing Practice in Family Nurse Practitioner.
“Rural health providers will benefit from the ROI program in ways that will address immediate and long-term workforce shortages while increasing retention and recruitment,” said Dr. Clemo. “The cost to bring in a trained professional can astronomically high for a rural hospital. D’Youville is here to give some relief as we train the next generation of leaders and advance the skills of critical employees.”
You can click here to learn more about the Rural Outreach Initiative or click here to learn about the Scholarships for Essential Workers.
For more information on either program, you can also contact Matthew R. Metz, AVP Enrollment Management at metzm@dyc.edu or 716-829-7502.
