Texas A&M University Achieves Federal Designation As Hispanic Serving Institution

Texas A&M University has been designated an eligible institution by the U.S. Department of Education to be a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI).

Federal HSI designation provides schools with access to additional funding to improve enrollment and graduation rates among Hispanic students. Title V program funding offers awards for facilities, faculty, services to enhance recruitment efforts, improving course offerings, and educational resources.

To receive any official federal status under Title III and/or Title V of the Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008 (HEA), colleges and universities need regional accreditation and for HSI designation, at least 25 percent of an institution’s undergraduate enrollment must be Hispanic-identifying.

In November 2021, Texas A&M was recognized as an HSI by the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU), which represents more than 500 institutions in the United States, Latin America, Spain, and school districts throughout the U.S. HACU defines an HSI as “colleges, universities or systems/districts where total Hispanic enrollment constitutes a minimum of 25 percent of the total enrollment, including full-time and part-time students whether at the undergraduate or graduate level of the institution, or both.”

“I am thrilled that both HACU and the Department of Education have declared that Texas A&M University is a Hispanic Serving Institution,” said Timothy P. Scott, interim provost and executive vice president. “It is indicative of how seriously we take our land-grant mission to serve all the citizens of this great state.”

Annie McGowan, Texas A&M’s interim vice president and associate provost for diversity, said, “The official designation of Texas A&M as a Hispanic Serving Institution by the Department of Education serves as a positive representation of the university’s progress towards meeting our land-grant mission to equitably serve the state of Texas. Further, the designation aligns with the university’s strategic goal of enhancing the educational experiences and academic success of our students, particularly those from underserved populations. We are excited about the opportunity to expand our scholarship and outreach activities to further distinguish Texas A&M as a world-class institution.”

McGowan said she plans to hire a team of staff and faculty to support and advance Texas A&M’s commitment to fulfill the responsibilities of achieving and maintaining federal HSI status.

Texas A&M-College Station is the seventh federally-designated HSI in The Texas A&M University System, joining Texas A&M International University, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, Texas A&M University-Kingsville, Texas A&M-Central Texas, Texas A&M-San Antonio and West Texas A&M.

According to the Department of Education’s 2021 eligibility matrix for Title III and Title V programs, Texas A&M is the only Southeastern Conference (SEC) school to obtain federal HSI status and one of only five Association of American Universities (AAU) institutions, joining University of Arizona, University of California – Santa Cruz, University of California – Irvine, and University of California – Santa Barbara.