USDA in San Antonio for meeting with HACU

San Antonio, TX – Representatives of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) visited the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities’ (HACU) National Headquarters Wednesday afternoon to meet with staff members and discuss aspects of the Memorandum of Understanding between HACU and the USDA.  The MOU was established to help Hispanic students attending HACU-member schools learn about employment opportunities, faculty exchange programs, and internship opportunities with the USDA.

The HSI program at USDA provides internships and scholarships for Hispanic students and fellowships for faculty to work with the USDA as well as research grants. For more details, please visit the USDA’s website at www.hsi.usda.gov.

“This partnership is opening new doors to rewarding careers and important faculty development opportunities for Hispanic higher education students and faculty.  Today’s meeting is one more instance of USDA’s commitment to expanding these opportunities,” said HACU President and CEO Antonio R. Flores.

The formal objectives of the MOU are to increase employment and educational opportunities in the USDA for students and educators of HACU-member institutions, as well as to target USDA resources for strengthening HSIs.

The visiting USDA representatives included regional liaison officers who are being hosted by HACU- member colleges and universities in an effort to provide outreach to different regions of the U.S.

In attendance from the USDA at Wednesday’s meeting were:

• Willis Collie, Deputy Director, USDA-HSI National Program
• Mr. John Ebsworth-Mojica, Liaison Officer for Florida and Puerto Rico, hosted by Miami-Dade College, North Campus, Miami, FL
• Mr. Javier Barron, Liaison Officer for Texas, hosted by Palo Alto College, San Antonio, TX
• Mr. Fidel Trujillo, Liaison Officer for Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico, hosted by University of New Mexico, Albuquerque
• Mr. Ramiro Porras, Jr., Liaison Officer for Southern California, hosted by California State University, San Bernardino, and San Bernardino Community College
• Mr. Roberto Gonzalez, Jr., Liaison Officer for Northern California, Oregon, and Washington State, hosted by California State University, Fresno

HACU, which also has a government affairs office in Washington, DC, represents more than 400 colleges and universities, including Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs), which collectively serve more than two-thirds of all Hispanic higher education students in the United States.  HACU’s international membership includes leading higher education institutions in Latin America and in Spain.

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