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yesterday

Education Department Withholds $350 Million From Minority-Serving College Grants, Citing Constitutional Concerns

The agency urges Congress to replace race-based enrollment thresholds following the Justice Department’s decision not to defend the HSI rule.

FILE - Pedestrians cross University Ave on the campus of Arizona State University in Tempe, Ariz., July 25, 2018. (AP Photo/Matt York, File)
UC Merced is among 615 “Hispanic Serving Institutions” in the U.S. — 171 of them in California — that will lose millions of dollars in federal HSI funding as the Trump administration cancels the 30-year-old national program. 
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Overview

  • More than $250 million of the halted funding had been slated for Hispanic-Serving Institutions that qualify when at least 25% of undergraduates are Latino.
  • Additional cuts affect programs tied to specific Black, Asian American, Pacific Islander, Alaska Native and Native American enrollment levels, while HBCU-specific funding is not reduced.
  • The move follows a lawsuit by Tennessee and Students for Fair Admissions challenging the HSI threshold, which the Justice Department in July said violates the Constitution.
  • The department will still release about $132 million in mandatory funding for related programs as it reviews the legality of that mechanism.
  • California officials say at least 171 campuses stand to lose HSI support, with the California State University system warning of immediate harm and a $9.6 million fifth-year installment at risk from a $48 million grant.