Hogg Foundation Awards 28 Bilingual Scholarships to Increase Spanish-Language Mental Health Services in Texas

[Harold Schiffman]

Hogg Foundation Awards 28 Bilingual Scholarships to Increase
Spanish-Language Mental Health Services in Texas
October 1, 2008

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AUSTIN, Texas — In what is believed to be the first statewide program
of its kind, the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health has awarded 28
bilingual scholarships to narrow the gap between the need for
Spanish-language mental health services in Texas and the availability
of trained professionals to meet those needs.The foundation awarded
nearly $300,000 in the first round of scholarships and has committed
up to $1 million for the three-year scholarship program.

Scholarship recipients must attend one of 11 Texas graduate schools of
social work that are accredited or pending accreditation by the
national Council on Social Work Education. The scholarships cover full
tuition and required fees for recipients, who must be fluent in
Spanish and English and agree to work in Texas after graduation
providing mental health services for a period equal to the timeframe
of the scholarship.

"This program was enthusiastically embraced by participating schools
and attracted talented, highly qualified students who will increase
cultural and linguistic diversity in their higher education programs,"
said Dr. Gregory J. Vincent, vice president for diversity and
community engagement at The University of Texas at Austin. The
foundation is part of the Division of Diversity and Community
Engagement.

Spanish is the second-most common language in Texas and was the
primary language spoken at home by 6.2 million people in Texas in
2006, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Texas' Hispanic population
reached 8.6 million, 36 percent of the state's population, and was the
second largest in the U.S. in 2007. The state's Hispanic population
grew at a faster rate than any other state from 2006 to 2007, with an
increase of 308,000 people.

Yet studies have shown populations of color and those who speak a
language other than English are under-represented in social work and
mental health professions in Texas and elsewhere in the United States.
As a result, many people may not have access to mental health services
that adequately meet their cultural and linguistic needs.

"Texas faces a critical shortage of mental health professionals,
especially those who are culturally and linguistically diverse," said
Dr. Octavio N. Martinez Jr., executive director of the foundation.
"The foundation's scholarships are attracting students committed to
working in a mental health career while also expanding access to
Spanish-language mental health services in Texas."

The 2008 bilingual scholarship recipients are:


Abilene Christian University School of Social Work: Marcela Martinez, Abilene.
Baylor University School of Social Work: Esther Castro, Killeen; Abbie
Sumrall, Nashville, Tenn.; Flor Avellaneda and Frances Rodriquez,
McGregor.
Our Lady of the Lake University Worden School of Social Service:
Odette Gonzalez, San Antonio.
Stephen F. Austin State University School of Social Work: Salvador
Luna Jr., Lufkin; Josephine Denman and Benjamin Glade, Nacogdoches.
Texas A&M - Commerce University Department of Social Work: Alma
Ramirez, Cookville.
Texas State University School of Social Work: Elizabeth Castaneda, San
Marcos; Jacqueline Hanson, Del Rio; Melanie Limon, Kingsland; Lizzette
Valles, Hutto.
The University of Houston Graduate College of Social Work: David V.
Flores, Houston; Melanee Orellana, Humble.
The University of Texas at Arlington School of Social Work: Guadalupe
Arvizo, Grand Prairie; Anne R. Rivera, Corpus Christi; Karla Salas,
Dallas.
The University of Texas at Austin School of Social Work: Alda Santana,
Austin; Eva Jean Shaw, Phoenix, Ariz.
The University of Texas - Pan American Department of Social Work:
Raquel Castro, McAllen; Cindy De Leon, Harlingen; Nora Mesa, Weslaco;
Nancy Valles, McAllen.
The University of Texas at San Antonio Department of Social Work:
Diana Molina, Laredo; Debra Colorado and Abel Garcia, San Antonio.
The foundation was founded in 1940 by Ima Hogg, daughter of former
Texas Governor James Stephen Hogg, to promote improved mental health
for the people of Texas. The foundation's grants and programs support
mental health consumer services, research, policy analysis and public
education projects in Texas.

En Español (PDF)
http://www.utexas.edu/news/2008/10/01/hogg_scholarships-2/


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