The Department of Education announced Wednesday it would be ending a grant program that serves Hispanic-Serving Institutions as well as other programs.
Institutions earn the “Hispanic-Serving” designation by having an undergraduate population that is at least 25% Latiné. CSUMB is nearly 48% Latiné.
There are 167 HSIs in California and 21 of 23 CSUs are HSIs. Together they received over $600 million since 1995.
CSU Chancellor Mildred García said in a prepared statement that ending the grants “will have an immediate impact and irreparable harm to our entire community.”
U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon was quoted in a Ed Source article saying the grants for Hispanic-Serving Institutions “discriminate by restricting eligibility to institutions that meet government-mandated racial quotas.”
Only a year ago, CSUMB’s Center for Latiné Student Success El Centro received a five-year, $3 million grant from the Department of Education.
In total, $350M worth of grants will be held back in 2025.
CSUMB officials are still investigating what the effects of the lost grants will be.
“We are disappointed in the decision to end the funding program that has helped so many of our students attain a college degree and go on to successful careers.” said CSUMB spokesperson Walter Ryce..
“Nearly half of the students we serve at Cal State Monterey Bay identify as Hispanic and Latiné, and we are proud that the diversity of the state of California is part of the fiber of our university,” Ryce said. “We remain dedicated to providing accessible and affordable education to all the students we serve.”