BUSH ADMINISTRATION AWARDS $4.6 MILLION IN GRANTS TO THREE HISTORICALLY BLACK COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES IN NEW ORLEANS AND BATON ROUGE
Dillard, Xavier, Southern University-Baton Rouge Receive Awards

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Housing and Urban Development Secretary Alphonso Jackson and Education Secretary
Margaret Spellings today announced that three historically Black colleges and universities in Louisiana would receive $4.6 million to help revitalize neighborhoods near their campuses. The HBCU grants, administered by HUD's Office of University Partnerships, went to Xavier and Dillard Universities in New Orleans and Southern University and A&M College in Baton Rouge. The amounts and purposes of the grants follows. Thirteen grants, totaling $10.4 million,
were awarded nationally today.

"These grants will help ensure these colleges continue to educate many of the nation's African American physicians, lawyers and business leaders while also being able to revitalize the communities that surround them," Jackson said. "Throughout the nation, we have seen HBCUs breathe life into struggling college towns and blighted urban neighborhoods."

Xavier University will use its $2 million grant to restore critical infrastructure needs to help the university continue its educational mission to leadership, and to demolish post-Katrina unsound university-owned properties.

Dillard University will use its $2 million grant to speed up post-Katrina recovery, to help return a critical number
of students to the school, and to return people to the Gentilly Community, one of New Orleans' most historic neighborhoods.

Southern University-Baton Rouge and A&M College will use its $600,000 grant for programs involving housing renovation, homeownership, local clean up, and training for community partners.

HUD's HBCU program funds grantees to carry out projects designed primarily to benefit low- and moderate-income residents, help prevent or eliminate slums or blight, or meet urgent community development needs in their localities. The grants can be used for activities such as acquiring real estate; demolition; homeownership assistance to low-
and moderate-income persons; special economic development activities; and rehabilitation of residential, commercial or industrial buildings to correct code violations. Since 1991, HUD has awarded more than $59 million to HBCUs to stimulate economic and community development activities.

HUD is the nation's housing agency committed to increasing homeownership, particularly among minorities; creating affordable housing opportunities for low-income Americans; and supporting the homeless, elderly, people with disabilities and people living with AIDS. The Department also promotes economic and community development as
well as enforces the nation's fair housing laws. More information about HUD and its programs is available on the Internet and espanol.hud.gov.

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