The 5 percent increase is noteworthy since the overall budget provides only a 2 percent increase in non-defense spending, says Dr. Antonio Flores, president of the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities. However, he was hopeful that Congress would approve larger increases later this year.
The new budget plan may "prove the springboard to a larger and more adequate appropriation from Congress for our nation's historically underfunded Hispanic-serving institutions," Flores says.
HACU is asking Congress to provide $175 million for Hispanic colleges and universities when it develops spending bills for 2004.
Elsewhere, the budget would terminate 45 smaller programs costing $1.5 billion. Included on this list are activities to prevent school dropouts, promote smaller high schools and help new teachers use technology. Funds for after-school programs also would drop by 40 percent, to $600 million, following what the administration termed as a poor evaluation on the effectiveness of these activities.
© Copyright 2005 by DiverseEducation.com
