Financial Assistance is awarded in the sole discretion of the Foundation and its administrating partners. Financial Assistance is awarded without regard to race, sex, disability, religion, national origin, but recipients must be native born residents of the United States Virgin Islands, or having been a resident for at least five (5) years and can demonstrate a commitment to becoming a full time permanent resident. Financial Assistance is awarded based on the medical/health needs of the Territories and how the applicant can best serve those needs, and his/her commitment to use the learned skills for the benefit if the people of the Virgin Islands. Financial Assistance is available for advanced degrees in the allied medical and health fields. The Foundation will consider scholarships for specialized educational or technical training where there is a demonstrated need and eventual quantifiable benefit to the community.

In addition to completing the Application, all Financial Assistance recipients will be required to sign the Bennie and Martha Benjamin Foundation Scholarship Loan and Commitment Agreement, along with a Promissory Note. The Agreement and Note will have to be guaranteed by a parent or other family member. The Application, Scholarship Agreement, Promissory Note and Guaranty are available in PDF format on this web site to be downloaded. The Agreement provides that the Scholarship will be in the form of a loan which will convert automatically to a Scholarship once the recipient completes the course of study, certificate or degree program applied for, and then contributes his or her professional skills thereby gained to the delivery of health care in the United States Virgin Islands through a government facility or a 501(c)(3) privately owned facility. The length of commitment depends on the total amount of funding received, with a requirement of one year for every $5,000.00 received. Generally, the recipient will be required to practice in the public sector, such as at a clinic or hospital, but not necessarily on an exclusive basis.

Bennie and Martha Benjamin envisioned a health care system in the Virgin Islands staffed by Virgin Islanders committed to providing quality services to benefit the health and well-being of all Virgin Islanders. As such, the Foundation will evaluate applicants living in the Virgin Islands for partial support who wish to pursue degrees in the following areas:

• Nursing
• Midwifery
• Physical Therapy
• Occupational Therapy
• Pharmacy
• Master’s Degrees in Allied Health Fields
• Audiology
• Laboratory Technicians
• Dental Assistants and Technicians
• Other degree and certificate programs may be considered depending on the needs of a particular health care institution.