Five years later, $3.25 million HRSA grant has transformational impact on students and the communities they serve

Five years after being awarded a $3.25 million HRSA grant, the MUSC College of Health Professions Division of Occupational Therapy has created transformative impact both on their students and within medically underserved communities they serve.

“The scholarship, as well as the opportunities created by the scholarship, fostered a love of learning in me and a belief and acceptance that we’re not going to know everything; a willingness to learn new things from different people and always having an open mind,” said alumni Jennifer Barnett, OTD, OTR/L.

Following the HRSA grant guidelines, the Division of Occupational Therapy (OT) developed the HRSA-MUSC Occupational Therapy Scholarship program, which aimed to widen the pool of the qualified doctoral students accepted into the program, prioritizing those who were most disadvantaged either economically or geographically. Many recipients are first-generation college students who have first-hand experience witnessing the impacts felt within medically underserved communities.

 

 

Cristina Reyes Smith, OTD, OTR/L, associate professor in the entry-level Occupational Therapy Doctorate (OTD) program helped spearhead the grant in 2020 with Craig Velozo, Ph.D., OT, retired OT division director, and Randal Davis, MBA, director of strategic research initiatives. Today, Roxanna Bendixen, PhD, OTR/L, professor and OT division director, serves as the principal investigator and project director of the grant.

“Students who are from economically disadvantaged communities are the most likely to go back to those communities to help with addressing health care needs at individual group and population levels,” said Smith.

From 2019 to 2024, 10 to 13 students per cohort were awarded scholarships to cover half of their annual tuition for the entry-level doctorate program. Those who have already graduated are serving in communities with the highest needs, becoming leaders in the occupational therapy field, and mentoring current MUSC OTD students. “The support and mentorship provided through this scholarship has enhanced the educational journey of our students and inspired them to serve in communities where their skills are needed the most,” said Bendixen.

With ongoing workforce provider shortages in underserved communities, the HRSA-MUSC Occupational Therapy Scholarship has been powerful in creating educational opportunities that will elevate health care and create a stronger, healthier workforce. Recipients of the scholarship are required to serve the majority of their clinical rotations in medically underserved communities, be it rural communities, high density urban areas, or low-income areas. Recipients are also committed to working in these communities for a minimum of two years within the first five years of graduation.

In addition to receiving the scholarship award, Barnett also received additional learning opportunities and free housing during her fieldwork rotation in Spartanburg through South Carolina Area Health Education Consortium (AHEC). She recently completed her Neurologic Occupational Therapy Fellowship at Brooks Rehabilitation Institute of Higher Learning. “I don’t think I would have done my fellowship had it not been for the scholarship,” said Barnett, citing the financial relief the scholarship provided as the reason. “I felt like my love of learning had been fostered, and that I needed more time to explore what I wanted to specialize in. The AHEC Scholars program and HRSA-MUSC OT scholarship gave me that opportunity.”

Barnett now works at Atrium Health Carolina’s Rehabilitation in Charlotte, North Carolina. In her spare time, she lectures on intimacy for students or occupational therapists, speaking about trauma-informed care. Barnett was recently a speaker at the American Occupational Therapy Association annual conference, AOTA Inspire 2025, where she presented a case study from her fellowship.

“It has been so powerful to see the impact through the students that bring this passion, this desire to help meet the needs of our medically underserved communities. That has been very inspiring, as well as an outcome of this grant,” said Smith.