A federal program that supports colleges and universities with high numbers of Latino students could be shut down after the federal government said late last week it will not defend the program against a lawsuit.
In Arizona, 20 schools that earn the designation of Hispanic-Serving Institution — including the University of Arizona, Pima Community College and Cochise College — could lose possible grant money.
A Hispanic-Serving Institution, or HSI, is a school where at least 25% of full-time undergraduates are Hispanic. About 63% of the nation’s Latino students were enrolled at HSIs in the 2022-23 school year, according to the Postsecondary National Policy Institute. As of the 2023-24 school year, there were 615 HSIs nationally…