Minority-Serving Institutions Awarded $49M in New Grants
Credit: ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP / Getty Images- The Department of Education awarded minority-serving institutions grants to improve research capabilities.
- That includes five HBCUs, five Hispanic-serving institutions, and three tribal colleges and universities.
- Grants can be used to construct new research facilities, hire faculty, or create new internship positions for students.
Thirteen colleges and universities will receive a combined $49.4 million in grants to improve research capabilities for faculty and students.
The Department of Education (ED) announced Oct. 30 that it awarded Research and Development Infrastructure Program (RDI) grants to minority-serving institutions across the U.S. That includes grants going to historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs), Hispanic-serving institutions (HSIs), and tribal colleges and universities (TCUs).
“These awards — totaling more than $49 million — are part of the Biden-Harris administration’s continued efforts to fight funding inequities and ensure our nation’s most inclusive institutions have the infrastructure needed to drive innovation, forge new partnerships, and prepare their students for success in today’s fastest-growing fields,” ED Secretary Miguel Cardona said in a statement.
A White House statement stressed that President Joe Biden’s administration has invested $16 billion in HSIs since Biden took office.
RDI grants will go to institutions across nine states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico.
| Institution | State | Institution Type | Grant Award |
|---|---|---|---|
| Howard University | Washington, D.C. | HBCU | $5 million |
| Morgan State University | Maryland | HBCU | $5 million |
| North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University | North Carolina | HBCU | $5 million |
| University of Puerto Rico — Rio Piedras | Puerto Rico | HSI | $5 million |
| Florida A&M University | Florida | HBCU | $5 million |
| Sam Houston State University | Texas | HSI | $5 million |
| Texas A&M University, Corpus Christi | Texas | HSI | $4.7 million |
| Clark Atlanta University | Georgia | HBCU | $4.6 million |
| National Louis University | Illinois | HSI | $3.1 million |
| Institute of American Indian Arts | New Mexico | TCU | $2 million |
| Salish Kootenai College | Montana | TCU | $2 million |
| Turtle Mountain Community College | North Dakota | TCU | $1.9 million |
| Florida Atlantic University | Florida | HSI | $1.1 million |
Schools can use RDI grants broadly to improve research and development capabilities at these institutions, according to ED guidance. Some example potential uses include:
- Building new research facilities
- Hiring faculty, students, and other research-related staff
- Creating research internships and fellowships for students
- Building systems to share research for peer review or other collaborations
- Installing basic systems to help facilitate research, including high-speed internet
Grantees are expected to match all awards one-to-one. Institutions can, however, apply for a waiver of the matching requirement.
Institutions have four years to use these funds.
There are currently no HBCUs with an R1 research designation, and advocates have pushed for federal and state grants to help institutions like Howard University and Clark Atlanta University reach this status. The R1 designation denotes a university with “very high research activity.”
While some HSIs are R1 research universities, Texas A&M is the only recent grantee with this status.
TCUs are not eligible for R1 status.