Press Release

New Brunswick, N.J., May 19, 2026— The Rutgers Center for Minority Serving Institutions (CMSI) is proud to announce its sixth cohort of MSI Aspiring Leaders. The program consists of a two-day forum, which will be held from Wednesday, October 14, 2026, to Friday, October 16, 2026, and a one-and-a-half-year mentoring program that connects prominent Minority Serving Institution (MSI) presidential leaders with mid-career aspiring leaders in an effort to prepare the next generation of MSI presidents.

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J., April 16, 2026 – The Rutgers Center for Minority Serving Institutions (CMSI) will host the MSI Humanities Leadership Academy conference in Princeton, N.J., from August 4th to August 7th, 2026.

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J., March 6, 2026 – The Rutgers Center for Minority Serving Institutions (CMSI) will be hosting our 11th annual early-career faculty training program, ELEVATE (Enriching Learning, Enhancing Visibility & Training Educators) in New Brunswick, N.J., from June 10th to June 12th, 2026.

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J., February 12, 2026 —The Center for Minority Serving Institutions (CMSI) is proud to announce the release of a new research report, “How Leaders Define Student Success at Minority Serving Institutions.” This report offers insight into how leaders at MSIs describe, cultivate, and measure student success within their own institutional contexts. It also highlights the different dimensions of success that are essential to students' overall progress at MSIs but are often overlooked by traditional academic performance indicators. 

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J., February 9, 2026 – The Rutgers Center for Minority Serving Institutions (CMSI) is proud to announce the launch of the MSI Humanities Leadership Academy, a new academic leadership mentorship program designed to strengthen the pipeline of humanities leaders at Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs). The initiative is supported by a $1 million grant from the Mellon Foundation.

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J., October 9, 2025 –A new report by Rebecca Perdomo, Senior Research Associate at Rutgers CMSI, details the sweeping impact of the Trump Administration’s September 10, 2025, decision to end discretionary funding for Minority Serving Institution (MSI) programs. Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs), colleges and universities where at least 25 percent of undergraduates are Hispanic, face a $458,985,568 loss in funding across three major programs.