Bebo mia’s Maternal Support Practitioner (aka birth worker training) Scholarship Program

Doula Scholarship Program

Are you getting excited about the upcoming Maternal* Support Practitioner (aka Birth Worker or doula) Training?!  We sure are! And we are extra excited about our Birth Worker Training Scholarship Program! Did you know that we ensure that our whole team reads all of the applications submitted? For the upcoming application process,  we will be keeping an eye out for submissions that match the spirit of the bebo mia community.  Want to know more about how to write a winning application? Read on to learn all about this session’s awards!

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The Intersectional or Bust Award

This award recognizes an applicant whose project idea or business plan works to dismantle the impact of structural oppression in reproductive health in their community.  The recipient will position their unique understanding of the interconnected nature of race, gender, sexual orientation, ability and class to create opportunities that directly challenge these oppressive forces. By working directly with people whose lives are impacted by these destructive forces, the recipient’s contributions will increase access to opportunities for individual empowerment and make steps toward a sense of equity and justice for BIPOC and/or 2SLGBTQA+ individuals within the healthcare system.      

The BIPOC Doula Journey Bursary

The BIPOC Doula Journey Bursary recognizes a Black, Indigenous, Person of Colour applicant who demonstrates an aptitude for birth work, client care, and a genuine desire to start and grow their own doula business.

The Queers for Queer Care Award

The Queers for Queer Care Award recognizes a person who self-identifies as being a part of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community and who also plans to serve 2SLGBTQIA+ clients. The recipient’s business plan will use their intimate understanding of the challenges that 2SLGBTQIA+ individuals face to help them navigate healthcare systems that are commonly cisgender and heteronormative, to ensure that their clients are treated with dignity and respect throughout their journey of reproductive health, birth, and parenting.

The bebo mia Be Brave Award

The bebo mia Be Brave Award recognizes an applicant whose lived experience has afforded them a deeper understanding of their worth and potential. The recipient will demonstrate this connection through their resilience of spirit, positive attitude, and willingness to meet challenges head-on.  Their business plan and personal goals reflects the spirit of bebo mia’s mission: to connect folx to their intrinsic value and power through excellent, evidence-based doula care, prenatal and/or childbirth education.

The Birth Justice Award

 The Birth Justice Award recognizes an applicant whose project idea or business plan works to dismantle structured inequality and challenge the lack of consent and violence that is commonplace in reproductive health and obstetrics.  The recipient understands that the experience of violence and trauma greatly influences early family life and parenting experiences.  The recipient seeks to create change by advocating for choice, informed consent and improving the outcomes for individuals and communities with whom they engage.  

The Philanthropy Award

The Philanthropy Award recognizes an applicant whose project, personal goals, or business plan includes a component of paying it forward. The recipient will demonstrate a spirit of altruism and exhibit a dedication to generosity, and will have a solid plan around how they will use their doula training to give back to their local community or to underserved populations. 

**NOTE: We reserve the right to not award one or more of the scholarship program if the criteria is not met in the applicants.

The #bebobabes couldn’t be more proud and excited to be working alongside the awesome Birth Worker Training Scholarship Program! Our group of committed team members are student-centered and compassionate and are 100% dedicated to the responsibility of reviewing each and every scholarship application our community forwards to us with integrity and respect. We are committed to offering each application the full consideration that the person who wrote it deserves.

Want to learn about some of our past scholarship recipients? You can check out some of the winners on our blog if you search the term ‘scholarship‘.

Want to apply for the doula training scholarship program?
Applications Are Open!

The deadline for application submissions is:
March 1st, 2024 at 11:59pm PDT

Scholarship winners will be announced:
March 19th, 2024 at 1pm EDT

Want a handy dandy guide for the application process?
Click here! 

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*bebo mia believes that language matters. We acknowledge the ongoing debate that the term/word maternal is experienced by some as inherently gendered and thereby oppressive. We hear this and we encourage folks to take up titles, names and words to best align with their values and practices. We have spent time consulting with educators, community, healers and organizers and in service of taking up a spectrum of feminine energy as a means to dismantling the patriarchy and, in turn, toxic masculinity, we want to explore taking up some historically feminine words. We feel that this action is just one of many ways in which we can counterbalance the inherently toxic masculine energy present in online and birth spaces. This is why, after years of surveys and community consultations and mentorship we have arrived at a meaning for the word ‘maternal’. We believe maternal to symbolize ‘protection, nurturance and care’ and we would like to invite anyone who feels connected to this to try this term on and see if it fits. It’s ok if it doesn’t. You get to call yourself whatever you like!