It’s time we get together and do something about it! 

The EBB Instructor Program launched in 2015 because of birth workers asking us to provide a teaching curriculum for them to use with their clients. We began with an initial cohort of 11 pilot Instructors, and rapidly grew to 100+ Instructors. In 2021, our Team overhauled the EBB Instructor program with a new lens of anti-racism and financial accessibility. One of the results of this evaluation was that we decided to lower the cost of the enrollment fee for everyone by more than 50%.

Starting in 2021, the new enrollment fee for the EBB Instructor program is $599. This fee is substantially lower than most doula and childbirth educator trainings, which typically cost $900-$1,200 or more. We also lowered the annual renewal fees by 50%, to $199.  And we instituted a policy of 20% off the renewal fee for all Instructors who identify as birth workers of color and do not have a full scholarship.

This new model meant making hard decisions about our budget so that EBB can break even and continue to offer this program. We prioritize the compensation of our team members and curriculum, while keep other costs related to the administration low (such as for software and technology).

Instructor enrollment and renewal fees go primarily to fund the hard work of real people who are running what we believe is an excellent, accessible, and sustainable program.

EBB Instructors who complete the training and choose to teach the EBB Childbirth Class typically report to us that they can recoup their initial investment (and turn a profit) with the first class they teach. In particular, many EBB Instructors make the EBB Childbirth Class a core feature of their birth services. The revenue that they earn from teaching EBB classes and workshops can help support themselves and/or their families. 

EBB advertises Instructors’ classes for free on our EBB Event Calendar (driving many potential clients to Instructor registration pages and other services offered by each Instructor). EBB does not take a portion of any Instructors’ ticket sales. We do charge an optional supply fee (at cost) if an Instructor chooses to order supplies from the EBB shop.  

We want EBB Instructors to be successful and empowered financially, and we know that a culture shift in birth will be strengthened by birth workers having financial resources from teaching EBB classes.

Even with lowered fees, we know that financial barriers still exist. Classism is real, and racism, colonialism, and other “isms” cause and exacerbate financial disparities.

Therefore, we have a commitment to providing as many full scholarships as possible to a) birth workers of color, b) disabled birth workers, and c) birth workers from countries that are categorized as low-income by the World Bank. When full scholarships run out, we have a policy of offering partial scholarships to every scholarship applicant who is eligible to become an Instructor. 

The EBB Instructor enrollment and scholarship decisions are made by paid members of the Evidence Based Birth® Programs Team—the majority of whom are from marginalized communities and have a breadth of experiences. Our Programs Team has full authority to administer the Instructor program, make scholarship and admission decisions, and care for EBB Instructors and applicants.

The application fee for regular applicants is $50. The application fee for scholarship candidates is $20. Sometimes we have people that donate to cover the costs of the application fees. If the application fee is a hardship, please reach out for availability. 

Application fees helps cover the cost of our team members’ time, including:

• The EBB Programs Team reaches out multiple times to see if Instructor applicants need help with their applications, and provides 1:1 assistance as needed or if accommodations are requested.
• The Team reviews the hundreds of Instructor applications submitted to EBB, including dozens of scholarship applications.
• Each application is personally reviewed by at least two Team members, and many applications are reviewed by three or four Team members.
• The Programs Team meets many times throughout the course of application month to discuss the applications coming in.

In 2023, we had a record number of 62 people apply for full scholarships, and we had the funds to provide 8 full scholarships (2 more than we initially expected to be able to provide). We provided partial scholarships of 20% off the enrollment fee to everyone who met the eligibility criteria but was not awarded a full scholarship.

We also work with potential Instructors on a case-by-case basis if assistance is needed with timing of payments, community funding, deferral until a better time, or working with the applicant’s employer (if they have one) to request that they fund the enrollment fee. Our Instructor Program Coordinator is always available if a potential Instructor needs any support.

EBB is a small business run by humans doing our best with the resources we have—balancing both sustainability and a bold vision. We are currently evaluating what changes we will make in the scholarship process for 2024. Anyone who has feedback or suggestions can reach out to us via email at info@evidencebasedbirth.com and we will take your input into consideration! 

We also invite organizations or individuals who would like to fund the enrollment fee of individual Instructors to reach out to us, so that we can match them with individual Instructors who have indicated a need for mutual aid.