The Trump administration is backing away from defending a federal program that provides about $350 million in annual funding to colleges serving large numbers of Hispanic students. Federal officials said they would not contest a lawsuit that challenges the constitutionality of the Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI) program, which supports colleges where at least 25 percent of undergraduates are Hispanic.
The lawsuit
The case was filed in June in Tennessee federal court by Students for Fair Admissions (SFFA) and the state of Tennessee. SFFA is the group that successfully pushed the Supreme Court to strike down race-conscious college admissions. The plaintiffs argued that the HSI program’s 25 percent enrollment threshold amounted to an illegal quota.
Tennessee also claimed that its public colleges and universities were being unfairly denied millions in federal funding because they did not meet the threshold. The complaint stated: “There is no valid reason to make federal funds turn on race or ethnicity. Funds should help needy students regardless of their immutable traits, and the denial of those funds harms students of all races.”
Link to broader legal battles
The challenge forms part of a wider wave of litigation targeting schools, corporations and diversity programs. Opponents of affirmative action have been looking to extend the reach of the Supreme Court’s Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard ruling, which — along with a similar case against the University of North Carolina — ended race-based admissions in higher education.
The Trump administration’s decision not to fight the lawsuit aligns with its broader opposition to diversity, equity and inclusion efforts. The Washington Free Beacon first reported the government’s position.
Legal basis for withdrawal
In July, Solicitor General D. John Sauer wrote in a letter to House Speaker Mike Johnson that the Justice Department would not defend provisions of the Higher Education Act creating the HSI designation. Sauer argued that requiring a 25 percent Hispanic student body violated the equal-protection component of the Fifth Amendment. The letter said the Supreme Court’s Harvard decision made “clear that the government lacks any legitimate interest in differentiating among universities” based on whether a set number of seats were filled by “individuals from the preferred ethnic groups.”
Impact on colleges
There are 371 colleges and universities designated as Hispanic-Serving Institutions, ranging from large public universities such as Arizona State University to smaller community colleges. Leaders of these institutions said the program provides critical resources for campuses that serve first-generation, low-income and underrepresented students.
“We’re trying to be an institution of access,” Cynthia Larive, chancellor of the University of California, Santa Cruz, told the New York Times. She noted that many students at her university are the children of agricultural workers or the first in their families to attend college. “This is a broader issue. It’s really about how the U.S. is going to be a leader economically and in science and research. There are smart people across the country, and we don’t always serve all of them equally well.”
The lawsuit
The case was filed in June in Tennessee federal court by Students for Fair Admissions (SFFA) and the state of Tennessee. SFFA is the group that successfully pushed the Supreme Court to strike down race-conscious college admissions. The plaintiffs argued that the HSI program’s 25 percent enrollment threshold amounted to an illegal quota.
Tennessee also claimed that its public colleges and universities were being unfairly denied millions in federal funding because they did not meet the threshold. The complaint stated: “There is no valid reason to make federal funds turn on race or ethnicity. Funds should help needy students regardless of their immutable traits, and the denial of those funds harms students of all races.”
Link to broader legal battles
The challenge forms part of a wider wave of litigation targeting schools, corporations and diversity programs. Opponents of affirmative action have been looking to extend the reach of the Supreme Court’s Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard ruling, which — along with a similar case against the University of North Carolina — ended race-based admissions in higher education.
The Trump administration’s decision not to fight the lawsuit aligns with its broader opposition to diversity, equity and inclusion efforts. The Washington Free Beacon first reported the government’s position.
Legal basis for withdrawal
In July, Solicitor General D. John Sauer wrote in a letter to House Speaker Mike Johnson that the Justice Department would not defend provisions of the Higher Education Act creating the HSI designation. Sauer argued that requiring a 25 percent Hispanic student body violated the equal-protection component of the Fifth Amendment. The letter said the Supreme Court’s Harvard decision made “clear that the government lacks any legitimate interest in differentiating among universities” based on whether a set number of seats were filled by “individuals from the preferred ethnic groups.”
Impact on colleges
There are 371 colleges and universities designated as Hispanic-Serving Institutions, ranging from large public universities such as Arizona State University to smaller community colleges. Leaders of these institutions said the program provides critical resources for campuses that serve first-generation, low-income and underrepresented students.
“We’re trying to be an institution of access,” Cynthia Larive, chancellor of the University of California, Santa Cruz, told the New York Times. She noted that many students at her university are the children of agricultural workers or the first in their families to attend college. “This is a broader issue. It’s really about how the U.S. is going to be a leader economically and in science and research. There are smart people across the country, and we don’t always serve all of them equally well.”
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