New Report Reveals Nearly $459 Million in Cuts to Hispanic-Serving Institutions
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Jacinda Nembhard | jacinda.nembhard@gse.rutgers.edu | 848-932-0774
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.
The cuts will affect more than 270 HSIs in 20 states, with California, Texas, and Puerto Rico hardest hit. These institutions had relied on multi-year grants to expand infrastructure, student services, and academic programming. For example, an institution awarded a $3.3 million Developing Hispanic Serving Institutions (DHSI) grant in 2023 now stands to lose $1.8 million in expected funding over the next three years.
Since 2021, HSIs have received nearly $188 million annually through discretionary programs, with the expectation of sustained support. The termination of funding mid-cycle leaves schools unable to fulfill planned initiatives and undermines opportunities for the nation's fastest-growing college student population.
“This is more than a budget decision; it is a setback for equity in higher education,” said Perdomo. “The losses will reverberate across campuses and communities that rely on HSIs to create pathways to opportunity.”
You can read the full report here.
About the Rutgers Center for Minority Serving Institutions
The Rutgers Center for Minority Serving Institutions (CMSI) brings together researchers and practitioners from Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Tribal Colleges and Universities, Hispanic Serving Institutions, and Asian American, Native American, and Pacific Islander Serving Institutions. CMSI’s goals include: elevating the educational contributions of MSIs; ensuring that they are a part of national conversations; bringing awareness to the vital role MSIs play in the nation’s economic development; increasing the rigorous scholarship of MSIs; connecting MSIs’ academic and administrative leadership to promote reform initiatives; and strengthening efforts to close educational achievement gaps among disadvantaged communities. The Rutgers Center for Minority Serving Institutions is part of the Samuel DeWitt Proctor Institute for Leadership, Equity and Justice (Proctor Institute) at the Graduate School of Education at Rutgers University, New Brunswick. For more information about CMSI, please visit http://cmsi.gse.rutgers.edu/.
