Houston Global Health Collaborative

Application for Combined Student Travel and Essay Grant

What is the Houston Global Health Collaborative (HGHC)?

The Houston Global Health Collaborative is a student-driven organization created to reflect the mutual global health interests across the medical, educational, and service-oriented institutions in the greater Houston area. Our mission is to unite the member institutions of the Texas Medical Center (TMC) for the furtherance of global health education, research, and service.

What are Student Travel and Essay Grants?

HGHC is collaborating with Caring Friends, Inc. to providestudents up to$1000 grants to support their travel and medical brigades abroad. The trips must be service-driven and preference will be given to brigades with an established history of serving in the area (or strong evidence the brigade will be aiming to continue their service in the future).

The essay portion of the application is intended to better understand the student’s philosophical viewpoint and motivation for serving. The essays will be reviewed in collaboration with the board of the funding body, Caring Friends Inc.

The first round of applications will be reviewed by the Grants Committee and the final selections will be made by the Caring Friends board. We are interested in diverse philosophical, moral and theological traditions that inform sustained and compassionate engagement with the issues of global health, regardless of the faith, or non-faith, perspectives of applicants. Therefore, the rubric to evaluate final award winners includes: (1) clear articulation of the moral, philosophical and/or theological vision of the applicant as it relates to the applicant’s project/travel, and (2) the prospects (if not promise) of the applicant of sustained professional engagement with global health.

Who can qualify for a grant?

Applicants must be part-time or full-time students in the TMC in a healthcare, public health, or a health-related discipline, such as social work.

What are the requirements for submitting an application?

Only applications which fulfill the following requirements will be considered by the committee.

  • Applicant must submit a completed application form, including signed statements of commitment to .
  • Applicant must submit a current curriculum vitae which includes the following information:
  • Education
  • Language skills
  • Cross-cultural experience
  • Leadership experience
  • Service and volunteering experience
  • Research experience (if applicable)
  • Past scholarships, awards, and honors
  • Publications and posters (if applicable)
  • Applicant must provide documentation that one faculty member has agreed to support and supervise their trip (signature line at the end of the application suffices).

What is the application timeline?

Student travel grants will be accepted November 1st for winter travel, February 1st for spring break travel, and April 1st for summer travel. Decisions will be made by the end of the deadline month.

What are my obligations as a HGHC grant recipient?

  • Recipients must provide documentation of the trip (e.g. photos, video - all documentation must respect the privacy of the population being served, asking permission to document when applicable and in particular, with minors)
  • Recipients must submit a written half-page reflection on their travel experience
  • Recipients are highly encouraged meet with donors to discuss their experience (when applicable)
  • Recipients are highly encouraged to attend the annual HGHC conference (registration fee will be waived for recipients)
  • Recipientsmust submit documentation of expenses no later than 90 days after the trip

How are funds disbursed?

Recipients will be expected to pay for travel expenses and then receive grant funding through reimbursement. Students will submit receipts for their expenditures and be reimbursed for up to their grants funding amount. Recipients may claim their reimbursement either before their trip or within 90 days after returning from their trip.

HGHC funds should only be used for items listed on the budget sheet (a miscellaneous category can be included for unexpected expenses).

What is the nature of oversight by the Committee?

The Committee reserves the right to request updates at any time and withhold and/or recover grant funds from students in case such funds are, or appear to be, misused.

HGHC Application Form for Student Travel Funding

Submit the completed application, with signatures, and curriculum vitae to .

Please submit application as a word document. Signature pages can be submitted as a PDF.

Applicant Information
Name:
School e-mail:
Phone number:
School:
Area of study:
Expected graduation date:

Global Health Experiences

In 250 words or less, please discuss your previous experiences, current activities, and future long-term plans related to the field of global health.

Make a bulleted list of impactful service activities in which you have participated.

Student Travel/Medical Brigade
Location:
Population to be served:
Community/local contact:

Medical Brigade Background

Describe the history of this trip (if applicable) and discuss the local population to be served, including evidence of need and local/community support that has been established for your visit.

Expected Outcomes

Explain how this project will impact the population you will be serving and evidence/plans of project sustainability.

TravelItinerary

Create a bulleted itinerary of the trip, including planned service activities:

Line Item Budget:create a line item budget in a table detailing the projected expenses. HGHC funds should only be used for items listed on the budget sheet (a miscellaneous category can be included for unexpected expenses).Not all costs necessitate a unit price.

Item / Cost per unit / Number of units / Total amount

Add more rows if necessary.

Other Funding Sources (include amount):

Essay Portion

Discuss your value system, motivation, and idealism and how it shapes your global health perspective and commitment to service. Please provide specific examples from your own experience in service projects and activities.Please limit your response to one single spaced page using 11.5pt font.

Survey

How did you hear about this grant opportunity?

RELEASE FORM

By signing this release form, I authorize Houston Global Health Collaborative, to use the following personal information:

(1) My picture – including photographic, motion picture, and electronic (video) images.

(2) My voice – including sound and video recordings.

(3) My writing – including but not limited to my essay(s), reflection(s), and blog(s).

I hereby grant to Houston Global Health Collaborative, its subsidiaries, licensees, successors and assigns, the right to use, publish, and reproduce, for all purposes, my name, pictures of me in film or electronic (video) form, sound and video recordings of my voice, and printed and electronic copy of the information described in sections (1), (2), and (3) above in any and all media including, without limitation, cable and broadcast television and the Internet, and for exhibition, distribution, promotion, advertising, sale, press conferences, meetings, hearings, educational conferences and in brochures and other print media. This permission extends to all languages, media, formats and markets now known or hereafter devised. This permission shall continue forever unless I revoke the permission in writing.

I further grant Houston Global Health Collaborative all right, title, and interest that I may have in all finished pictures, negatives, reproductions, and copies of the original print, and further grant Houston Global Health Collaborative the right to give, sell, transfer, and exhibit the print in copies or facsimiles thereof, for marketing, communications, or advertising purposes, as it deems fit.

I hereby waive the right to receive any payment for signing this release and waive the right to receive any payment for Houston Global Health Collaborative’s use of any of the material described above for any of the purposes authorized by this release. I also waive any right to inspect or approve finished photographs, audio, video, multimedia, or advertising recordings and copy or printed matter or computer generated scanned image and other electronic media that may be used in conjunction therewith or to approve the eventual use that it might be applied.

I acknowledge that I have read the foregoing and I fully understand the contents.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have executed this release on this ____ day of ______, 20__.

Print Name: Telephone Number:

Address: Signature:

City/State/Zip:

I, ______(written student name), commit to following through with the travel and service as written in this application should it be funded by the HGHC Grant Steering Committee. I will also comply with all assigned obligations if selected as a HGHC recipient.

Signature______Date______

I, ______(written faculty name), by signing, agree to supervise this student in his/her travel and service and will offer guidance in my area of expertise.

Signature______Date______