Why Congress Should Support
the Graduate Psychology Education (GPE) Program

• GPE was established in FY 2002 with $2 million.  It was continued at $4.5 million in FY 2003, FY 2004 and FY 2005 and funded at $2 million in FY 2006.  The reduction eliminated funding for geropsychology training grants and cut funding for the remaining grants by approximately 30 percent. Our request for FY 2007 would restore funding to allow for a new competition for approximately 20 general GPE training grants and 7 geropsychology grants.

• GPE is a highly successful national program authorized under the Health Professions Education Partnerships Act of 1998, P.L. 105-392. Amended Part D, Sec.755 of the Public Health Service Act, Allied Health and Other Disciplines authorizes projects to plan, develop and operate or maintain graduate programs in behavioral and mental health practice as defined in Sec.799B.

• GPE grants target underserved populations. Awarded on a competitive basis to APA accredited psychology doctoral, internship and postdoctoral programs, GPE grants support integrated training of psychology graduate students to work with other health professions in the treatment of underserved populations (elderly, children, chronically ill persons, victims of abuse and trauma, including military.)

• GPE is an exemplary “two-for-one” federal program. GPE supports training of psychology graduate students while they provide supervised mental and behavioral health services to underserved populations, especially in rural and urban communities.

• GPE grants are promoting interdisciplinary training. Four times as many students as those psychology trainees who benefited directly from GPE funding have benefited indirectly from the program (e.g., other psychology trainees and trainees from psychiatry, family practice, nurses and social workers.)

• GPE grants have benefited approximately 1,500 students across the country.  GPE grants support training at a wide range of health care facilities across the country (e.g., children’s hospitals, assisted living centers, Veterans Hospitals, schools, urban neighborhood centers.)

• GPE grants are increasing the trend to remain and practice in underserved areas. The rate of psychology students remaining to practice in underserved areas has increased dramatically over the three years post establishment of the GPE Program. In programs receiving GPE funding, the average number of students entering or beginning to practice in underserved areas was 41% greater in the two years after the establishment of the GPE program (2003-04) as compared to the two years before (2000-01).

• GPE is the only federal program dedicated solely to the education and training of psychologists. GPE is administered by the Bureau of Health Profession’s Division of Medicine and Dentistry and is part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration.

Contact: Nina Levitt * American Psychological Association * 202/336-6023

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