Aspiring Doulas
Scholarships
The Global Doula Project partners with training organizations to offer need-based scholarships to aspiring doulas showing particular promise and passion.
By partnering with training organizations to offer sponsored seats and financial aid, our scholarships help aspiring doulas turn their passion into a career. Selected recipients demonstrate a commitment to improving birth and death for families in their communities.
We invite interested organizations to reach out via email.
Featured Recipients
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![Woman smiling with curly black hair wearing a maroon shirt and glasses resting on the collar.]()
Jamila Barfield
Full Scholarship
2024
“I am pursuing this work because everyone deserves support, no matter what you look like or what your background is. Finances should not be an issue. What you look like should not matter. Black and brown people are often not listened to in a hospital setting. You know Serena Williams, the tennis player? She was giving birth and the doctors didn’t listen to her cries for help until her white husband spoke up. That’s not okay, but it’s really common. I want to make sure that everyone is heard, and let people know that no one is judging them. I have five kids and one has special needs. We’ve been through a lot. I always let people know there’s nothing to be ashamed of if you’re going through a hard time. I’ve been there too.”
Program: Capital City Doula Services Birth Doula Training
Georgia, USA
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![Person with short hair and tattoos, wearing a patterned shirt, posing for a portrait.]()
Nish Newton
Full Scholarship
2024
“I am a Black trans person who has personally relied on doula services, and as an aspiring doula, I want to provide a sense of unwavering support to other Black and gender-expansive individuals. This is the kind of care I received and want to share, but I know this isn’t the norm. Many culturally-specific needs are too often unmet—especially at the intersections of race and gender. Systemic barriers can lead folks from my communities to be disregarded and discarded of; my mission is to change that. We are meant to be celebrated and supported—not dismissed. My goal is to become a knowledgeable, steady, holistic source of care that resonates long after my journey(s) with a client. I can’t undo all the oppression we face, but I can interrupt and transform it with each of the clients I work with.”
Program: jOURney Doula Training via Black Liberation Collective
Idaho, USA
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![Person standing in front of steps and a large window, wearing a gray t-shirt and layered necklaces.]()
Sophie Mbongo
Full Scholarship
2024
“I am pursuing a birthwork career because I have always been passionate about women’s reproductive health and justice. Moreover, I am motivated to better the lives of people in my local and global community, while using my creativity, empathy, and physiology knowledge along the way. I am grateful to the Global Doula Project for granting me the opportunity to start my doula journey!”
Program: Childbirth International Postpartum Training Course
Louisiana, USA
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![Person holding the book 'Cultivating the Doula Heart: Essentials of Compassionate Care' by Francesca Lynn Arnoldy, seated in a cozy setting.]()
Lori McCole Mazur
Full Scholarship
2023
“I feel I have a strong calling to be a doula. After I start practicing, my ultimate goal in a few years is to teach and spread the awareness on the sacred work of doulas.”
Course: End of Life Doula training program at University of Vermont
Vermont, USA
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![A person smiling indoors, wearing a black sweater and a necklace, with braided hair.]()
Breanna Davis
Full Scholarship
2024
“I want to become a doula because women of color, black women especially have been suffering for too long with lack of proper prenatal/birth care. My goal is to assist lower income women and teens by providing an opportunity for them to have a pleasant birthing experience like I had with my doula. At this time I am a single mother to an extremely loving and smart baby girl named Sarai. Living in Southern California life is naturally more expensive for us and I often find myself living paycheck to paycheck. My goal is to become a doula to help lower income women like myself get the birth care they may not know they need and hopefully with income from my doula work I can begin to save for my family’s future as well.”
Course: Virtual birth doula training course Birth Matters
California, USA
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![A group of seven women posing in front of a castle-themed mural. Six women are wearing red tops, one is wearing white. The mural features a drawing of a castle and a small fairy to the left.]()
Bedford Hills Correctional Facility Cohort
Partial Scholarship
2025
Global Doula Project provided partial funding for a postpartum doula training at the Bedford Hills Correctional Facility in New York. Seven incarcerated individuals participated and they will be offering postpartum support to mothers who give birth while serving their sentence.
New York, USA
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![Person holding "End-of-Life Practitioner" book.]()
Janice Polucha
Partial Scholarship
2023
“We did a deep dive into death in regards to cultural and religious backgrounds, age related psychological/emotional responses to death and dying, and how to best advocate for the quality of an individuals experience. There was a lot of self-reflection and writing involved, as well as copious amounts of reading, watching documentaries, and discussions with break out groups during zoom classes.”
Course: End of Life practitioner course by the HeartWay, a hybrid online and in person course based in California
California, USA
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![Smiling woman with hoop earrings and curly hair in a patterned top, sitting on a gray upholstered chair.]()
Ciara Love
Full Scholarship
2023
“I am pursuing this work because I believe in the power of community and the importance of nurturing a woman's voice and choices during the birthing process. Supporting women in birthing not only new life but new versions of themselves, and seeing them reclaim their strength and intuition, inspires me every day. I feel called to be a part of that process, providing care, guidance, and a compassionate presence in those sacred moments. For me, birth work is about honoring the divine connection between body, spirit, and life itself—guiding others as they embrace their full power and potential.”
Course: Traditional birthworker training course Sumi's Touch
Merida, Mexico
All scholarship recipients —
Postpartum doula training at Bedford hills correctional facility, New York.
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