CPE awards final round of grants from the Healthcare Workforce Investment Fund

December 11, 2025

On Tuesday, the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education (CPE) recognized recipients of the fourth and final round of Healthcare Workforce Investment Fund (HWIF) grants. The luncheon ceremony was part of the third annual Healthcare Workforce Collaboratory at the Campbell House in Lexington.

Enacted by the General Assembly in 2023, the HWIF primarily supports scholarships for students pursuing in-demand healthcare professions. To be eligible for funding, postsecondary programs must partner with private healthcare employers, who match state funding awarded on a dollar-for-dollar basis.

Cumulatively, $10 million in state funding was appropriated to the HWIF. Over four rounds of funding, 85 public/private healthcare partnerships generated approximately $18.9 million for scholarships to 1,113 Kentucky students.

Award recipients and their industry partners from the final round of funding are listed below.

• Asbury University with CHI Saint Joseph Health: $400,000 (nursing)
• Bellarmine University with KORT: $120,000 (physical therapy)
• Central Kentucky Paramedic Educational Consortium with Jessamine County EMS: $11,214 (paramedicine)
• Hopkinsville/Christian County Paramedicine Program with Somerset-Pulaski EMS, Boyle County EMS, and Campbellsville-Taylor County EMS: $154,000 (paramedicine)
• Morehead State University with CHI Saint Joseph Health: $100,000 (imaging science)
• Northern Kentucky University with Children’s Home of Northern Kentucky Behavioral Health: $100,000 (counseling)
• Pair O Medics Emergency Medical Training, LLC with Waco Volunteer Fire Department: $21,850 (emergency medical services)
• University of Kentucky with UK HealthCare: $35,976 (dental assistant)
• University of Kentucky with UK St. Claire: $300,000 (physical therapy)