How does the Native Hawaiian Health Scholarship Program work? Papa Ola Lōkahi screens, interviews, counsels, mentors, places into the workforce and monitors throughout. The Health Resources & Services Administration (HRSA) accepts our recommendations, usually, and awards the scholars. HRSA pays the tuitions directly to their respective schools and to the students.

The federal Native Hawaiian Health Care program is a three-legged stool that includes the five Native Hawaiian Health Care Systems, Papa Ola Lōkahi, and the Native Hawaiian Health Scholarship Program.

The Native Hawaiian Health Care Scholarship Program (NHHSP) is a generous, merit-based scholarship modeled after the National Health Service Corps and other similar programs administered by Health Resources and Services Administration within the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services.

Since 1991, we’ve screened and interviewed thousands of applicants, and recommended 330 awards. We’ve counseled, mentored and monitored the awardees throughout their training, and prepared them and their jobsites for placement into rural and medically underserved communities in Hawai‘i. The primary and mental health care, social welfare, and public health workforce on six islands have benefited from the service of NHHSP scholars. More than 50% have continued working in underserved communities beyond the tenure of their service obligations.

Additionally, Papa Ola Lōkahi annually assesses the Hawaiian health workforce to forecast the workforce needs across the islands.

What we don’t do, however, is pay out the money. We never have. The Health Resources & Services Administration (HRSA) accepts our recommendations, usually, and awards the scholars. HRSA pays the tuitions directly to their respective schools, and to the students directly pays the monthly living stipends and other related school expenses.

We take pride in the program and the number of quality health care providers that have successfully emerged from the NHHSP, some of whom have become leaders in the medical, health care industry and Hawaiian community.

Leaders among our Native Hawaiian Health Scholarship awardees

We share the students’ frustration when payments are delayed due to turnover of federal project managers. It is especially disconcerting during a change in administration.

That is what has happened this year. Payments for 2024-2025 students have been delayed.

But our communication with both students and their schools has not. It has multiplied. Exponentially. We have kept them apprised of changes and our ongoing advocacy efforts at every step along the way.

While we are committed to protecting the privacy of our scholar awardees and alumni alike, we can tell you that the our NHHSP staff has never stopped advocating in the students’ behalf.

We are committed to continuing this program, starting with the announcement later this year of the 2025-2026 cohort of Native Hawaiian Health Scholarship awardees.

Kōkua Na‘auao ~ Learn through Service