Named for Dr. O's parents. Built for the students whose presence in this profession will change who feels seen, believed, and helped. Four awards. Six recipients each year.
Nnamdi and Nkem are the names of Dr. O's father and mother. What they carried in life, this Foundation carries forward.
A name that says a person continues in what they build. It honors a trailblazer, and it carries forward the idea that a person's work and spirit live on in what they make possible for others.
A name about claiming, and tending, what belongs to us. It honors a community-keeper, and speaks to the kind of love that says you belong to me and I will not let you be overlooked.
Each award reaches a different point on the path. Together they widen it.
The Nnamdi Award honors Dr. O's father, a trailblazer. It carries his name and the belief inside that name: that a person's work, courage, and spirit live on in what they make possible for others.
This award is for the student who has carved a lane. The one who started something, built something, fought for something, or finished something that did not have a clear path ahead of it. The first in a family. The one who made a way where the map showed none.
Trailblazing is not glamorous from the inside. It is uncertainty, improvisation, and doing things that have never been modeled for you. This award exists to recognize that work, and to invest in the person doing it.
The Nkem Award honors Dr. O's mother, a community-keeper. It carries her name and the love inside that name: the kind of love that claims people as its own and tends to them.
This award is for the student who is training to bring care back. The one who can name exactly who in their community is going unseen, underserved, or misunderstood, and who is becoming the provider those people have been waiting for.
Representation in mental health care is not a slogan. It is the difference between a person feeling believed or feeling dismissed, staying in care or walking away. This award invests in the students who will close that gap, one community at a time.
A threshold is the place where you are not quite inside yet, but you are close. It is the most fragile point on any path, the point where people fall away, not for lack of talent, but for lack of a little money or a little guidance at exactly the wrong time.
The Nnamdi and Nkem Awards support students already in graduate school. The Threshold Award reaches earlier, to catch people before they fall at the edge.
For students applying to license-eligible mental health graduate programs. Application fees, test fees, transcripts, and score reports add up to hundreds of dollars. This track eases that.
For junior and senior undergraduates considering a mental health career, who do not have a mentor showing them the way. No funding. Just guidance and belonging.
Choose one award (Nnamdi or Nkem). Answer that award's essay prompt (500 words). Optional 200-word short answer. Optional 15-minute video conversation for shortlisted applicants.
Check the track or tracks you want (Funding, Mentorship, or both). One 250-word essay. Brief budget only if you are applying for the Funding Track. That's it.
Answer the questions in your browser above. No PDF download required.
Real over polished. Tell us something true.
Your application goes directly to info@dropsych.com when you hit submit.
Within five business days. If you don't hear from us, check your spam folder.
All three awards are open to students whose identities and lived experiences are underrepresented in mental health training, and whose presence in the field would expand who feels seen, believed, and helped. You do not need to fit a particular profile or check a particular box. If the mission speaks to you and your path, you are encouraged to apply. The Foundation is committed to applying its criteria fairly and lawfully. Eligibility language may be refined over time.
We are honored that you are considering this path. If anything about the awards, the process, or your eligibility is unclear, please reach out.
info@dropsych.com