HACU Action Alert—July 17, 2006

Contact your senator to end the 2 year wait out period

for eligibility and continuation for HSI Title V Grants

HACU is urging our HSI presidents and membership to assist our efforts and formally intervene with Congress to request that the elimination language for the 2 year wait out period for the Title V grants program be released from the HEA Reauthorization bill and included into a FY 2007 appropriations bill. 

Please call and/or FAX  a letter to your U. S. Senator requesting that he or she encourage Senator Michael B. Enzi, Chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor & Pensions (HELP) committee, to permit the 2 year wait out period elimination provision of Title V of the HEA  to be included in a FY 2007 appropriations bill.  You will find attached a sample letter which you may wish to use in communicating with your U.S. Senator.

In communicating with your U.S. Senator, please emphasize that the two-year wait out period is in direct opposition to the intent of Title V to enhance the quality and accessibility of  Hispanic-Serving Institutions and that more than 160 HSIs have already been impacted, as well as thousands of Hispanics and other students that attend these institutions.

Contact the HACU Government Relations Office in Washington D.C. at 202-833-8361 if we can give you any additional information on this critical issue.

HACU Action Alerts are a service of the

Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities.

_______________________________________________________________________

SAMPLE LETTER:

(Please revise with information about your institution and other information at your discretion.)

Date

The Honorable

United States Senate

Suite

Washington, D.C. 20510

Dear Senator       :

On behalf of [YOUR INSTITUTION’S  NAME], I respectfully request your leadership and support on a matter of urgent importance to our Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs)  in [Your state] and throughout the nation. Each year dozens of HSIs continue to lose valuable infrastructure funding due to a two year wait out provision included in the Title V Education Grants Program for HSIs.  This provision unfairly regulates our institutions compared to other minority education grants program authorized through the Higher Education Act.   The two year wait out period is in direct opposition to the intent of the HSI grants program which was created to enhance the quality and accessibility of higher education for Hispanic communities across the U.S.

As you may know, each university is awarded a grant for a 5 year period, after which, according to this provision, the HSI must wait 2 years before re-applying for a new grant.  This provision leads to the dismantling of program initiatives, loss of valuable staff and the destruction of program momentum.  Since the inception of the HSI grants program, over 160 institutions and countless minority students have been impacted by this restrictive regulation.

We appreciate your leadership, as a distinguished member of the U.S. Senate and a strong supporter of Hispanic-Serving Institutions, in championing our effort to support Hispanic higher education.  Therefore, I respectfully request your assistance in contacting your colleague, Senator Michael Enzi, to request that he permit the removal of the 2 year wait out period provision from the HEA Reauthorization bill and allow the amending language to be appended to one of the FY 2007 appropriations bills so that HSIs can finally be on equal ground with all other minority institution grants programs.

Your advocacy is essential to the continuation of the highly successful HSI infrastructure programs and to the educational achievement of our nation’s future leaders.

Sincerely,

Name

Title