Up to $100 million total
The educational system has been a vocal point of the Biden-Harris administration as they have donated $100 million dollars to different institutions and have forgiven the debt or paid full tuition to thousands of students in college. They also started funding and grant programs for students of color to better support them and their educational endeavors.
The U.S. Department of Education has recently announced the launch of two grant programs to help expand research infrastructures at Historically Black Colleges and Universities(HBCU), Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), and Minority-Serving institutions (MSIs) to better serve underserved students.
The grants will provide nearly $100 million for transformational infrastructure investments and strategies to improve student outcomes. This donation is a follow-up to the $25 billion in funding to each institution from President Biden and the Department of Education.
“At a time when diversity in higher education is under attack, it’s never been more important to invest in our nation’s Historically Black Colleges and universities, Tribal Colleges and universities, Minority-Serving institutions, community colleges, and other inclusive institutions,” said U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona. “These grant programs represent opportunities for our nation’s most inclusive and diverse colleges and universities to expand their capacity to drive research and innovation and strengthen evidence-based supports that help underserved students complete their degrees and build brighter futures,” Cardona said as he spoke about supporting these different colleges after the banning of affirmative action.
Another initiative started to help underserved students is the Advancing Educational Equity, Excellence, and Economic Opportunity initiative, which started in 2020 when Biden and Harris took office.
“HBCUs are engines of prosperity for the students they serve. Since their founding, these critical institutions have played a role in educating our students to ensure they succeed and receive a first-class education,” said Dietra Trent, executive director of the White House Initiative on Advancing Educational Equity, Excellence and Economic Opportunity through Historically Black Colleges and Universities. “As a proud Hampton graduate, I’m honored to support the growth of our HBCU family at this year’s National HBCU Conference where resources and support will be offered to ensure our HBCUs continue to thrive for generations to come.”
