Hinge Announces Therapy Scholarship Fund to Support BIPOC and LGBTQ Users

Dating app Hinge announced it has started a fund to support aspiring therapists and counselors from the LGBTQ and BIPOC (black, indigenous and people of color) communities. It will be providing $10,000 in scholarship to ten people towards their education in these fields, according to Mashable.  

From May 18 through June 17, applications for the fund will be open to U.S. college and graduate students in the mental health field, who can apply via the website HingeAdvocatesofTomorrow.com. According to Mashable, applicants complete the form and respond to two prompts about the mental health and wellness needs of the LGBTQ and/or BIPOC communities, and from there, twenty finalists will be selected. The finalists will be asked to create a video about how the scholarship will support their individual journey as well as their career.

Hinge has also collaborated with artist and mental health advocate Fariha Rosin, who authored a book on mental health resources for marginalized communities. She said in the company’s press release: “These times can be really dark and overwhelming in a lot of ways and that’s why we need mental health advocates. This initiative is helping people become the light bearers, creating generational ripple effects of healing.”

Hinge says the purpose of its fund is to support therapists who will shape a more empathetic approach to underserved populations. According to The National Bureau of Labor, only one in four mental health professionals are people of color, and according to The Trevor Project, close to half of transgender and non-binary youth aren’t seeking mental health care because they lack understanding and compassion for their lived experiences. 

In addition to the fund, Hinge has reached out to BEAM (Black Emotional and Mental Health Collective) and Inclusive Therapists to help amplify the campaign and reach more people and inspire advocates who want to support the initiative.

Hinge’s focus on mental health is also extending to its user base directly. The company has launched a new feature that offers conversational prompts for users to initiate conversations about mental health. The answers will populate a user’s profile, sparking conversations with matches. 

The company found that 97 percent of its users want to date someone who “actively takes care of their mental health,” but that only 9 percent of people are willing to bring it up on a first date. With these initiatives, Hinge hopes to bring some much-needed help to people struggling.