Extended funding for HPOG
The stimulus legislation signed by the president on Friday includes an extension of the Health Profession Opportunity Grants (HPOG) program until November 30. The program was set to expire in May.
The extension will ensure that HPOG grantees can finish their HPOG 2.0 grant cycle with full access to technical assistance and evaluation supports from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The program provides funding to lower-income people, focusing on those receiving benefits from the federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program.
HPOG covers participants’ college expenses and provides individualized assistance and emergency funding to help recipients overcome barriers that could cause them to drop out. Of the 32 HPOG-funded partnerships in the U.S., 11 are headed by community colleges or tribal colleges.
The House Ways and Means Committee in October passed legislation – supported by the American Association of Community Colleges – to reauthorize the program for five years and increase annual funding from $85 million to $425 million.
Free COVID-19-related webinars this week
Several organizations are hosting webinars this week and the coming weeks focused on issues related to COVID-19.
On Tuesday, the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) will run a free webinar to go over details in the just-signed stimulus legislation that will affect community colleges and their students.
On April 2, the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators will host another free webinar pertaining to student aid and COVID-19. (About 6,000 people signed up for the first webinar earlier this month.)
Meanwhile, the National Council for Marketing and Public Relations, an affiliate council of AACC, plans to hold a series of webinars next month, starting with one on April 2 focused on digital strategies for summer and fall enrollment in light of the coronavirus.
