September 18, 2019
Click here to urge the Senate to pass the FUTURE Act before the MSI programs’ authority expires on Sept. 30
The Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities applauds the U.S. House of Representatives for taking prompt action to pass the Fostering Undergraduate Talent by Unlocking Resources for Education (FUTURE) Act (H.R. 2486) yesterday evening by voice vote.
“Now that the House has taken action, we look forward to working with the Senate to pass the bill before Title III, Part F of the Higher Education Act expires in just 11 days,” said HACU President and CEO Antonio R. Flores. “We urge the Senate to act swiftly to ensure that critical STEM and institutional capacity funding is not interrupted to the more than 4.8 million undergraduate students enrolled in Hispanic-Serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Tribal Colleges and Universities, and other Minority-Serving Institutions.”
Once passed, the FUTURE Act will extend for two additional years the mandatory portion of Title III funding (Title III, Part F), currently set to expire on Sept. 30, 2019.
For the past decade Title III, Part F of the Higher Education Act has played a vital role in enhancing the STEM pipeline at Hispanic-Serving Institutions and expanding institutional capacity at Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Predominantly Black Institutions, Tribal Colleges and Universities, and Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institutions.
HSIs account for 15 percent of institutions of higher education yet produce 40 percent of STEM bachelor’s degrees earned by Hispanic students. As the nation becomes increasingly diverse and the number of HSIs and emerging HSIs continues to grow, critical federal funding for these schools is more important than ever to ensure that we prepare today’s students for tomorrow’s jobs.
Take Action. Click here to urge your Senators to pass the FUTURE Act before the MSI programs’ authority expires at the end of the month.