Dive Summary:
- According to an analysis by the White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities, federal money to HBCUs dropped around 13% in fiscal year 2011, with the biggest declines coming from the Education Department ($43 million) and the Department of Health and Human Services ($51.5 million).
- The losses were partially offset by gains from other departments, including the Department of Defense, and the White House says federal funding to the colleges actually increased when Pell Grants and student loans are taken into account, and that the losses from other agencies mirrors declines in higher education funding as a whole.
- Some of the funding for HBCUs that ended in 2011 was from the 2009 economic stimulus bill, and a House of Representatives ban on earmarks additionally hurt higher ed funding as a whole.
From the article:
WASHINGTON -- Historically black colleges and their allies are celebrating National HBCU Week here, including with meetings on federal research investments at such colleges. But money flowing from federal agencies and departments to historically black colleges, including federal money for research in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, dropped by about 13 percent in 2011, according to an analysis by the White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities. ...