A U.S. Senate panel has rejected White House plans to consolidate federal science programs for minority-serving colleges and universities, noting that these postsecondary institutions reap significant gains under the existing system.
“One size will not fit all,” the Senate Appropriations Committee said in outlining its opposition to the Obama administration plan to merge the programs into a larger fund and then allow participation by majority white institutions. Instead, the panel voted to continue existing funding streams for the federal fiscal year that begins Oct 1.
In its fiscal 2011 budget plan, the National Science Foundation proposed consolidating three programs funded at $90 million annually:
n The Historically Black College and Universities Undergraduate Program (HBCU-UP);
n The Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation; and
n The Tribal Colleges and Universities Program (T-CUP).
