BUSH ADMINISTRATION AWARDS $7.5 MILLION IN GRANTS TO HISPANIC-SERVING UNIVERSITIES FOR COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

WASHINGTON - Housing and Urban Development Secretary Alphonso Jackson today announced more than $7.5 million in competitive grants to 12 Hispanic-serving colleges and universities to help rehabilitate low-income neighborhoods near their campuses and bring new opportunities to students and working families living there.

"The Bush Administration is deeply committed to Hispanic colleges and universities and their efforts to open the doors of opportunity to every citizen who seeks higher knowledge," said Jackson. "These grants will help ensure these institutions continue to educate many of the nation's Hispanic physicians, lawyers and business leaders while also being able to revitalize the communities that surround them."

The grants were awarded under HUD's Hispanic-Serving Institutions Assisting Communities (HSIAC) program. Grantees use the funds for a wide range of housing and community development projects that improve the quality of life in their communities. Projects include: purchasing local property for community development purposes; clearance and demolition; rehabilitating neighborhood housing for low- and moderate-income people; homeownership assistance for low- and moderate-income residents; lead-based paint hazard reduction; economic development assistance; developing public facilities such as day care; and, job and career-counseling.

HSIAC applicants must be accredited, nonprofit 2- and 4-year institutions of higher learning that have at least 25 percent Hispanic full-time undergraduate enrollment, with at least 50 percent of these Hispanic students being low-income individuals. Approximately 219 HSI-designated schools are eligible to apply for the HUD grants, which were first awarded in 1999.

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The 12 recipients in HSIAC grants are:

Additional information about HUD's Hispanic-Serving Institutions Assisting Communities program, administered through HUD's Office of University Partnerships, can be obtained.

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.

Hispanic Serving Institutions Assisting Communities
Program Summaries

Arizona

Project Name: Central Arizona College
Grant Amount: $600,000

Central Arizona College will use its Hispanic Serving Institutions Assisting Communities (HSIAC) grant to serve the residents of the four colonias located in western Pinal County, Arizona. The colonias are Coolidge, Eloy, the West Side Neighborhood of Casa Grande, and Colonia Del Sol in Casa Grande. The colonias' total population is approximately 24,000. The grant will provide the following activities: 1) establish a career and business development center, 2) skill assessment programs, 3) job training programs and placement services, 4) business and industry development training, and 5) technical assistance to women and minority owned (start up or expansion) businesses. The target population is comprised of unemployed and underemployed residents, Temporary Aid to Needy Family (TANF) recipients, and low- to moderate-income workers.

California

Project Name: Allan Hancock College
Grant Amount: $600,000

Allan Hancock College will use its Hispanic Serving Institutions Assisting Communities (HSIAC) grant to build an addition onto a 5000 square foot community center located in the northwest quadrant of the city adjacent to the Boys and Girls Club, two elementary schools and the Santa Maria Bonita School District neighborhood resource. The resulting complex will provide space for the following: 1) adult education classes to meet the identified needs of the community for advanced ESL skills, civic education, keyboarding, business skills and job readiness skills; 2) a permanent location for a community education technology center that encompasses a basic skills laboratory of the welfare-to-work job training program, college resources, exchange and no cost email links for neighborhood residents to promote lifelong learning; 3) a location for the needed expansion of the City of Santa Maria's CARES, Inc. program; and 4) an expanded sports field to provide space for community fitness, community meetings, and enhanced opportunities for community cultural and special events.

Project Name: Imperial Valley College
Grant Amount: $600,000

Imperial Valley College will use its Hispanic Serving Institutions Assisting Communities (HSIAC) grant to foster empowerment and self -sufficiency opportunities exclusively for countywide Colonia residents. The grant will provide the following interventions: 1) workforce development, 2) vocational training, 3) case management, 4) job development and placement and 5) supportive services.

Project Name: Santa Ana College
Grant Amount: $600,000

Santa Ana College will use its Hispanic Serving Institutions Assisting Communities (HSIAC) grant to build a two-story, six-room building to centralize classes and services specifically associated with children and families. The proposed complex and activities are anticipated to produce the following: a) adult education, childcare provider, business, computer skills, parenting, child development and family literacy classes; b) a childcare provider and parenting resource center; c) space for meeting and counseling; and d) additional space for subsidized childcare with a kitchen that will allow delivery of cooking and nutrition classes.

Project Name: West Hills College Lemoore
Grant Amount: $365,303

West Hills College Lemoore will use its Hispanic Serving Institutions Assisting Communities (HSIAC) grant to expand their Early Childhood Education Center. The goal of this expansion is to server approximately 45 additional infants and ten children with Special Needs of which 70% are from low-income families. This expansion responds to the dramatically increasing community needs for daycare. In addition, 85 students will be trained annually for employment as early educators, teacher's aide, tutors or future elementary school teachers.

Colorado

Project Name: Adams State College
Grant Amount: $600,000

Adam State College will use its Hispanic Serving Institutions Assisting Communities (HSIAC) grant to renovate a vacant, historical building on the east side of ASC's campus to be used as a community & business development center. The Spanish style adobe building was build in 1932 and is in need of floor plan renovations in order to be a functional and safe. Services provided at the center will include: business counseling, community business Internet access, referrals, volunteering mentoring services, business and community promotion and non-profit organizational assistance. The target area for this project is Alamosa, Colorado.

Project Name: Otero Junior College
Grant Amount: $596,709

Otero Junior College will use its Hispanic Serving Institutions Assisting Communities (HSIAC) grant to open a center within the community that will become a one-stop resource center for residents. The Center's three main areas of focus will be: consolidated economic development, a satellite office for Tri-County Housing, Inc., and grant resources. The proposed 3, 000 square foot facility will be located in the downtown La Junta. The facility will also house office space, conference rooms, and a computer lab. The population being targeted through this project includes the residents of three southeastern Colorado counties, including non-profit and faith-based organizations, residents seeking assistance in finding affordable housing and those who are looking to open or relocate businesses.

New Mexico

Project Name: New Mexico State University-Dona Ana Campus
Grant Amount: $600,000

The regents of New Mexico State University - Dona Ana campus will use its Hispanic Serving Institutions Assisting Communities (HSIAC) grant to allow the community Learning Center in the Mesquite District to continue providing educational activities and job-training workshop, as well as social services. This Center was constructed with an initial HUD-HSIAC grant. However, additional components are needed. This funding will allow for additional services under three basic components: a Micro-enterprise Program, a Work Readiness Program, and a Service Learning Component. The current classes and activities will also be continued due to the efforts of the community partners and the continued community demand.

Project Name: Northern New Mexico Community College
Grant Amount: $600,000

Northern New Mexico Community College will use its Hispanic Serving Institutions Assisting Communities (HSIAC) grant to develop educational and ancillary services for the Rio Arriba County Detention Center and neighboring rural communities of Tierra Amarilla, Los Ojos, Cebolla, Chama and Dulce. This project is a three-prong approach aimed at supporting the economic vitality of rural communities in northern New Mexico through 1) education, 2) workforce development, job placement and micro-enterprise development, and 3) collaboration with community-based organizations to create a safety net for individuals disenfranchised from access to education and jobs. The target population for this project is the inmates and staff of the Detention Center located in the rural village of Tierra Amarilla, New Mexico.

Project Name: University of New Mexico-Taos
Grant Amount: $600,000

The regents of the University of New Mexico-Taos will use its Hispanic Serving Institutions Assisting Communities (HSIAC) grant to establish a Center for Early Care, Education, and Family Support. The funds will be used for the construction of this Center. It will provide childcare, promote parenting skills, and serve as a training center for early childhood education students. The target area for this project will include communities in and surrounding Taos County.

Texas

Project Name: Houston Community College System
Grant Amount: $597,149

Houston Community College System will use its Hispanic Serving Institutions Assisting Communities (HSIAC) grant to address two main goals; 1) offer assistance and training in small business services to entrepreneurs interested in starting up small businesses and to entrepreneurs of existing small businesses wishing to improve their business practices; and 2) provide residents with home ownership training and counseling services. Local government, faith-based organizations and community-based organizations will be involved in this effort. The target population for this program is Hispanic residents of the Houston Federal Enhanced Enterprise Community.

Project Name: The University of Texas at El Paso
Grant Amount: $599,539

The University of Texas at El Paso will use its Hispanic Serving Institutions Assisting Communities (HSIAC) grant to provide technology access with the goal of accelerating the development and use of technologies that radically improve the quality, durability, energy efficiency, environmental performance and affordability of housing specifically for colonia residents. Colonia residents will be assisted in acquiring the best housing technology identified in the local market. Housing providers will also receive assistance to build Energy Star Homes for colonia residents. In addition, the program will include revolving loans, hardship grants, materials for new homes, and publications to the target audience.