April 9, 2009
NJ Revilla-Garcia

Antonio Flores meets with U.S. Secretary of Education

HACU President and CEO Antonio Flores was recently in Washington, DC, meeting with various leaders and government officials.  On April 8, Flores and Dolores Fernandez, President of Eugenio Maria de Hostos Community College (NY), met with U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and staff.   

The meeting provided an opportunity to discuss issues important to HACU-member institutions, including increased funding for Hispanic higher education.

photo: HACU president and CEO Antonio Flores, The Honorable Arne Duncan, Secretary of Education and Dolores Fernandez, President of Eugenio Maria de Hostos Community College (NY) at a meeting at the U.S. Department of Education on April 8, 2009.

The following HACU recommendations were among the items discussed:

• Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs):  HACU urged an appropriations increase of 10% each year for the next 5 years for Title V beginning  at the authorization level of $175 M for part A  (undergraduate) and $100 for Part B (post baccalaureate). 

• HACU’s Latino College Planning and Testing Initiative:  HACU proposed the creation of 20 pilot Hispanic Student Success Centers in high schools located in Hispanic-Serving School Districts throughout the United States. 

• No Child Left Behind Reauthorization:  HACU recommended a series of initiatives to address elementary and secondary success of Hispanic students delineated in the HACU’s NCLB Reauthorization Policy Document. Many of these recommendations are intended to strengthen strategic collaborations among HSIs and HSSDs to increase graduation rates for Hispanics in secondary and postsecondary education.

• Hispanic-Serving Institutions Centers of Excellence:   Centers of Excellence in teacher preparation programs at HSIs can serve as sources of well-qualified teachers and of pedagogic innovation for our nation’s lowest performing and under-resourced schools.   Such Centers should be authorized and funded in the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.

• Presidential Advisory Board:  The U.S. Department of Education benefits from advisory groups authorized by statute or by Presidential Executive Order.  HACU proposed that a Board of Advisors for Hispanic-Serving Institutions be created to provide advice on vital issues of concern and interest to HSIs in the area of postsecondary education. 

Related Links
Title V Case Statement: Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities - Title V Case

HACU's 2009 LEGISLATIVE AGENDA (FY 2010) (Complete Document)

HACU’s 2009 AGENDA AT A GLANCE (FY 2010) (Executive Summary)

HACU's Public Policy Priorities for the 2007 Reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) 

photo: HACU president and CEO Antonio Flores, Ida E. Kelley, Hispanic Outreach, U.S. Department of Education and Dolores Fernandez, President of Eugenio Maria de Hostos Community College (NY), at the U.S. Department of Education.