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Thank you for your interest in the CAMFT Scholarships and Grant Program. Our Scholarship Committee will begin reviewing nominations after the deadline date of November 7, 2025. Recipients will be notified April 1, 2026.
Before filling out your online application, we encourage you to review CAMFT’s Mission Statement, Strategic Plan and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Statement which speaks to the associations’ priority to diversity within the industry and the populations its members are serving.
The California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists Educational Foundation is offering five scholarships and one grant in 2026 to deserving candidates. Each scholarship awarded will be in the amount of $4,000. The grant award is discretionary and will be in the amount of up to $2,500.
Scholarships and Grant Award monies will be distributed in April 2026.
To apply, please select the ONE scholarship/grant that is most appropriate to your work or studies based on the minimal qualifying criteria listed in the application. If you apply to more than one, NONE of your submissions will be considered. Applicants for the CAMFT Educational Foundation scholarships and grant are subject to a lifetime limit of two (2) awards.
It is not mandatory that one be a member of CAMFT to receive one of these scholarships or the grant. However, preference may be given to applicants who have expressed their commitment to the profession through their membership in CAMFT.
DO NOT APPLY FOR THIS AWARD IF YOUR INTERNSHIP OR ADVANCED TRAINING PROGRAM WILL BE COMPLETED BEFORE APRIL 1, 2026
The CAMFT Educational Foundation Scholarship provides financial assistance to a person who exhibits the following:
CLICK TO APPLY ONLINE CLICK HERE
DO NOT APPLY FOR THIS AWARD IF YOU ARE COMPLETING YOUR DEGREE OR CERTIFICATION BEFORE APRIL 1, 2026
This scholarship honors the memory of Frank Galassi Who was Frank Galassi? and his life partner of 30 years, Scott Hamilton by providing financial assistance to a person who exhibits the following:
For more on Frank Galassi CLICK HERE
TO APPLY ONLINE, CLICK HERE.
For questions, please contact scholarships@camft.org.
The Educational Foundation Scholarship commemorating Clinton E. PhillipsWho is Clinton E. Phillips? honors his memory by providing financial assistance to a person who has demonstrated the following:
. For more on Clinton E. Phillips CLICK HERE
This scholarship honors the memory of Ronald D. Lunceford Who was Ronald D. Lunceford? by providing financial assistance to a person who exhibits the following
For more on Ronald D. Lunceford CLICK HERE
DO NOT APPLY FOR THIS AWARD IF THE QUALIFICATIONS FOR THIS AWARD WILL BE COMPLETED BEFORE APRIL 1, 2026
To honor and support the work on MFTs who work with children, Gerry Grossman Who is Gerry Grossman? has set up a Fund for a qualified applicant who meets the following criteria to receive the scholarship:
For more on Gerry Grossman CLICK HERE.
DO NOT APPLY FOR THIS AWARD IF YOUR PROGRAM, PROJECT OR ACTIVITY IS BEFORE APRIL 1, 2026
The Educational Foundation Grant is designed for licensed or pre-licensed individuals in the field of marriage and family therapy who either individually or as a group need financial assistance to engage in a project or activity which will enhance the knowledge, skills and abilities of members of the profession, including but not limited to:
Applicants are encouraged (but not required) to collaborate with other entities and sources of funding, so that the CAMFT Educational Foundation funds are used to leverage other grants, if appropriate. This grant is intended to provide a benefit to the profession and is not intended for personal gain or benefit.
Educational Foundation Scholarship Recipient Heather Taylor (Read More)
Heather is a second-year Master's student at Pacifica Graduate Institute, focusing her thesis research on fear as a religious control mechanism and the impact of fear-based Christianity on childhood development. She has completed a practicum at a detox recovery site and is currently gaining clinical experience at Maple Counseling. Her particular interests lie in Somatic Therapy and Rogerian theory, both of which emphasize empathy, self-acceptance, and internal healing. In addition to her clinical training, Heather has opened a neurofeedback therapy office to help clients enhance cognitive performance and well-being by transforming brain function. She is deeply committed to multicultural counseling and recognizes its significance in addressing religious trauma across diverse cultural backgrounds. The CAMFT scholarship will provide her with the opportunity to further explore multicultural training and integrate depth psychology, somatic techniques, and Rogerian principles into a comprehensive therapeutic approach that fosters a safe, inclusive, and healing environment.
Clinton E. Phillips Scholarship Recipient Hannah Checkwicz-Grosberg (Read More)
Hannah (she, her) is a queer, Caribbean activist and Global Feminist working towards becoming a Marital and Family Therapist and Art Therapist. She was part of WOMANTRA's efforts to pilot the Elma François Legal Clinic for survivors of gender-based violence, connecting two dozen clients to legal counsel and remaining open despite the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. This experience was the main catalyst that led her to pursue Marital and Family Therapy and Art Therapy. She is active in Loyola Marymount University’s Student Art Therapy Association (SATA) and CAMFT. Knowing the shortage of multilingual therapists, she is investing in improving her language skills in Spanish and Sign Language to better serve marginalized communities in Los Angeles. Hannah is engaged in an art-based Participatory Action Research project aimed at investigating how collaborative art-making influences identity, belongingness, and empathy development. This research involves adolescents, a population that is often underserved and under-researched, collaborating with LMU researchers and Dr. Louvenia Jackson. They hope to contribute to the MFT field by publishing their findings, showcasing these innovative methods and the transformative potential of art therapy in community settings.
Ronald D. Lunceford Scholarship Recipient Mullai Sampath (Read More)
Mullai is a South Asian woman pursuing her master's in counseling psychology at California State University, Long Beach. Her foundation in mental health & family wellness education is built on her experience with domestic violence prevention advocacy. Growing up, she witnessed Intimate Partner Violence (IPV), and family violence normalized within her community. As a prevention advocate committed to exploring solutions to end larger cycles of violence, she co-created and co-facilitated culturally responsive healthy relationships psychoeducation workshops for South Asian parents. Her learning is also supplemented by her past experiences working for a social psychology lab, volunteering for a community psychology lab and a parent stress helpline. Currently, she is also a domestic violence advocate providing culturally responsive support services to South Asian survivors of IPV. Looking to her future, she aspires to continue working with the South Asian community whether it is through providing services in languages like Tamil and Hindi or providing culturally responsive mental health literacy. Drawing from a well of community-driven learnings, she hopes to be one of the many agents of change working towards just, equitable mental health care and violence-free futures.
Gerry Grossman Scholarship Recipient Kimberly Hawks (Read More)
Kimberly has devoted her life to supporting the psychological, social, emotional, and academic growth of children. She helped launch a preschool and a K-8 school focused on reducing anxiety in schools. She is a volunteer in early childhood and K-5 programs, and most recently an MFT Trainee School Counselor. After the birth of her first child, Kimberly made the deliberate decision to transition her career in business to working in early childhood programs and preschools. It was following the launch of the K-8 school and working in admissions interviewing parents and children when she noticed the role of anxiety in our community; it was this experience that led her to graduate school in order to support children and their families in managing and harnessing their anxiety in a stressful world. Even with the rigorous graduate school schedule, she has volunteered with children in many capacities, from being a Girls on the Run coach to being a Team Lead for Odyssey of the Mind, to leading support groups for elementary school students experiencing anxiety and grief. It is her ongoing purpose and mission to support young children and their families as she continues her journey to becoming an MFT.
Scott Hamilton and Frank Galassi Scholarship Recipient Scott Self (Read More)
Scott grew up in a deeply religious Pentecostal household as the son of a pastor and learned from an early age that his identity as a gay person was not only unwelcome but was viewed as a sin in the eyes of those he loved most. During his time at an evangelical Christian university, he was subjected to conversion therapy. But it ultimately became a catalyst for his own growth and a defining moment that would later shape his commitment to supporting and empowering others in similar situations. He is using his lived experience as action to facilitate support groups and work directly with LGBTQ+ individuals who are navigating the complexities of their identities and has promoted the CDC's “Let’s Stop HIV Together” campaign. As Scott pursues licensure as a therapist, his goal is to serve the LGBTQ+ community with empathy, insight, and the belief that everyone deserves to live authentically, free from the fear of rejection or judgment. One of his primary intentions upon licensure is to work with The Christian Closet, which provides a vital space for LGBTQ+ individuals navigating the complex intersection of faith and identity.
Educational Foundation Grant Recipient Aarthi Ganapathi (Read More)
Aarthi Ganapathi’s research project will explore the biobehavioral mechanisms underlying how couples provide emotional regulation support to one another, and how both the benefits of emotional support and the mental effort needed to effectively support one’s partner may change across the lifespan. Using a novel interpersonal reappraisal experiment to temporally differentiate upfront cognitive effort from downstream arousal responses across romantic partners when providing emotional regulation support to one another. Aarthi will use EEG hyperscanning, or the simultaneous recording of two people’s brain activity, to explore how age influences cognitive effort and emotional response across romantic partners during interpersonal reappraisal. This research will provide foundational knowledge for future research examining how diminished cognition may broadly impair couples’ ability to provide effective emotional support for one another. Similarly, this work may identify key targets for therapeutic intervention in couples adjusting to major life stressors that may disrupt cognitive capacities, such as systemic stressors, grief, or long-term illness.
Educational Foundation Grant Nicole Haddad Read More
Clinton E. Phillips Scholarship: Richard Fontenot (Read More)
Educational Foundation Scholarship Alyssa Habschmidt (Read More)
Scott Hamilton and Frank Galassi Scholarship Austin Gage (Read More
From a young age, Lauren knew she wanted to work with children. As an undergraduate, she sought jobs that would help make a difference in children’s lives including joining an Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) company, becoming a Registered Behavior Technician (RBT) and helping children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) thrive. While working on her graduate degree in Marriage and Family, Lauren began working part-time as a Family Specialist addressing behavioral challenges and promoting positive development for adoptive children and their families.
One of the defining moments in Isaiah’s decision to pursue therapy came during his undergraduate studies, where he was a lecturer for the course, “The Queer Lens in Contemporary Theater.” Teaching this course allowed him to explore the intersection of identity, culture, and the arts, while creating a safe and affirming space for students to explore their own experiences as queer individuals. This role fueled his desire to incorporate expressive therapies into his future practice. He also has been working with Advot, an organization that provides therapeutic support to youth in juvenile halls. Many of the young people he works with face overlapping challenges related to their gender identity, sexuality, and the lack of support from their families and communities.