New Mexico Democratic Sen. Ben Ray Lujan is decrying a decision by the U.S. Department of Education to terminate federal funding of grants for Minority Serving Institutions.
“In New Mexico and across the country, Minority-Serving Institutions have long played a vital role in expanding access to education and creating pathways to economic opportunity. The Trump administration’s decision to eliminate these grant programs is a blatant political move that threatens educational opportunities for students from all backgrounds and wreaks havoc on our schools,” Lujan said in a press release on Tuesday.
Minority-Serving Institutions are schools and universities that serve large numbers of minority students.
Last week, the U.S. Department of Education announced it would be taking $350 million in discretionary funding allocated by Congress for Minority Serving Institutions in Fiscal Year 2025 and allocating it to other programs that meet the Trump administration’s priorities. The Department called funding for such institutions discriminatory and unconstitutional.
Lujan, an alum of New Mexico Highlands University, a Hispanic-serving institution, said that the move will limit equal access to learning and make it harder to achieve the American dream. He noted that New Mexico is home to 24 Hispanic-Serving Institutions.