A University of Montana program that trains students for careers in behavioral health care recently received a $2.4 million grant to continue growing the program and produce more providers serving Montana’s children, young adults and those in rural and underserved areas of the state.
UM’s Behavioral Health Workforce Education and Training program was awarded the grant earlier this month from the Federal Health Resources Services Administration.
“Our interprofessional BHWET program has been impacting mental and behavioral health care in Montana for the past eight years and we are honored to once again be recipients of this award,” said Dr. Mary-Ann Sontag, associate professor at the School of Social Work and member of the BHWET team. “The funding means that we can continue supporting graduate students as they prepare to join Montana’s behavioral health workforce.”
Sontag said BHWET graduates are employed across Montana in a variety of settings, and the advanced training and support they received through the program directly benefits Montana communities.
“The continuation of this funding allows our BHWET team to keep serving both our graduate students, and the citizens of Montana, especially our youth,” Sontag said.
This is the BHWET program’s third consecutive grant award from the Federal Health Resources Services Administration. The program was initially awarded funding to administer, train and fund BHWET students for a four-year grant cycle in 2017. The second grant was awarded in 2021. The current grant will allow BHWET to continue growing Montana’s behavioral health care workforce for at least another four years.
The BHWET team is an interdisciplinary faculty group representing four departments from UM and Montana State University. Its UM members include Sontag, Dr. Jayna Mumbauer from the Department of Counseling, Dr. Greg Machek and Dr. Bryan Cochran from the Department of Psychology and BHWET consulting faculty Dr. Holly Schleicher.
Last year’s BHWET cohort included 21 graduate students representing the disciplines of counseling, psychology, nursing practice and social work. Once accepted into the program, students receive enhanced and ongoing experiential training.
BHWET students additionally earn training stipends to help them concentrate more of their time and energy on their education and clinical internships. The students become well-prepared for professional roles upon graduation within behavioral health sites across Montana.
By Kyle Spurr, UM News Service