Soleana Villanueva with her family in Hawai'i.
HPU Doctor of Physical Therapy – Honolulu (DPT-HNL) student Soleana Villanueva has been selected for the Rizing Tide Crest Scholarship 2025 cohort. According to a press release, the scholarship is in its fifth year, and the 20 scholars were chosen from nearly 400 applications across 20 DPT programs across the U.S. Each student receives financial support to pursue their DPT degree.
Ten recipients were awarded scholarships of $14,000 to fund tuition, housing, textbooks, and other academic essentials, and 10 more are recognized as Crest: Rising Stars, receiving $5,000 for the same purposes. The scholarships are renewable each year a scholar attends their DPT school until graduation. In addition to financial support, students gain access to membership, leadership development opportunities, and an invitation to the annual Rizing Tide conference in Pheonix.
“The Rizing Tide Crest Scholar Award has connected me to a meaningful community within the physical therapy profession,” said Villanueva. “The mentorship I have found through Rizing Tide and the greater HPU DPT community has shaped how I see myself as a future clinician. I feel a strong responsibility to advance evidence-based care, research, and representation throughout Oceania, and this award has really reaffirmed my commitment to serving Pacific communities through culturally grounded, high-quality clinical practice.”
For Villanueva and other DPT students, scholarships are often discovered the same way good opportunities tend to arrive, through faculty who keep an eye out and pass them along. Students can also review a wider range of listings through the HPU Financial Aid website. Information about Rizing Tide scholarships, including how to apply, is available through the Rizing Tide Foundation.
"Being selected for the highly competitive Rizing Tide Crest Scholarship is a testament to Soleana’s potential as a physical therapist and emerging leader,” said HPU Dean of the Graduate College of Health Sciences Tricia Catalino, PT, DSc. “I am incredibly proud of her achievement and of the way she represents the HPU DPT program. The Rizing Tide Foundation’s investment in Soleana affirms the meaningful impact she will have on the patients and communities she serves."
HPU’s Doctor of Physical Therapy program in Honolulu is the first and only Doctor of Physical Therapy program in Hawaiʻi. Based in the heart of downtown Honolulu, the program pairs hands-on training with the energy of an urban campus and a culturally diverse community.
Students learn in lab and simulation settings supported by facilities at Waterfront Plaza, near the Kakaʻako area and Honolulu Harbor, including access to a state-of-the-art simulation center and a hands-on anatomy cadaver lab experience.
The program emphasizes interprofessional education, creating opportunities for DPT students to collaborate with peers across HPU’s Graduate College of Health Sciences. Students also benefit from community engagement that helps connect their training to the people and places they hope to serve.
For kamaʻāina, the Honolulu campus offers the opportunity to pursue a DPT degree while staying in Hawaiʻi and continuing to invest in the community after graduation. Students from outside Hawaiʻi come to Honolulu for immersive, hands-on learning and to experience the natural beauty of the islands while joining the HPU ‘ohana along the way.
To learn more about HPU’s DPT programs, visit www.hpu.edu/dpt.
