Washington, DC (June 15, 2006) – Today, Congressman Rubén Hinojosa (TX-15) announced that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has awarded the University of Texas – Pan American with a grant of $100,493 for scholarships for disadvantaged students.

The Scholarships for Disadvantaged Students program is administered by the Health Resources and Services Administration under the Department of Health and Human Services.  This program promotes diversity among health professions students and practitioners by making grants to eligible health professions and nursing schools to make scholarships to students from disadvantaged backgrounds, who have financial need for scholarships and are enrolled, or accepted for enrollment, as full-time students at the schools.

“Rural communities face many challenges that urban communities do not,” said Hinojosa.  “In many regions throughout the country, there is a serious shortage of trained allied health professionals, nurses, and doctors.  These scholarships will help encourage students to pursue these types of careers and give them an opportunity to obtain a college degree.”

The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, is the primary Federal agency for improving access to health care services for people who are uninsured, isolated or medically vulnerable.
Comprising five bureaus and 12 offices, HRSA provides leadership and financial support to health care providers in every state and U.S. territory. HRSA grantees provide health care to uninsured people, people living with HIV/AIDS, and pregnant women, mothers and children. They train health professionals and improve systems of care in rural communities.