Southern Adventist University is set to receive a $3 million federal grant over the span of five years because it is a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI), wrote Bob Young, senior vice president for Academic Administration, in an email to the Accent. According to a Southern Tidings article, this is the largest grant Southern has ever received. The article also stated that Southern is the only HSI in Tennessee.
The U.S. Department of Education’s website says the federal Developing Hispanic-Serving Institutions Program offers grants to aid HSIs to enhance academic opportunities for Hispanic students.
According to Young, Lucas Patterson, associate director of strategic partnerships, was the main author of the grant proposal. In an email to the Accent, Patterson wrote that in order to be considered an HSI, a university’s enrollment must be 25% Hispanic. Southern has been an HSI since 2018, according to Patterson.
“Currently, Southern’s Hispanic enrollment is 27%,” Patterson wrote.
Southern is not the only Seventh-day Adventist university that has HSI status. According to 2021 figures from the National Center for Education Statistics, five other Adventist Universities qualify to be considered HSIs: AdventHealth University, Southwestern Adventist University, La Sierra University, Loma Linda University and Pacific Union College.
Patterson wrote that the process to receive the grant was a competitive one.
“The U.S. Department of Education invites applications and schools then have approximately two months before they need to submit a 50+ page proposal narrative explaining how they would like to spend the funds and what the measurable outcomes will be that they plan to track and use for project evaluation,” Patterson wrote.
Part of Southern’s plan for the grant money is to create a STEM success program for Hispanic, low-income and other underserved student groups. The program aims to support these students by offering them mentoring opportunities, paid internships, hands-on classroom training and paid undergraduate research. To support this project and accomplish these goals, part of the funding will be used to create three full-time positions. These positions have not been filled yet, but interviews are taking place. Patterson hopes to have the roles filled soon.
“[A] breakdown of the five-year budget includes: $1.3 million for salary and benefits for new grant-related personnel; $1 million for new STEM equipment; $200,000 for faculty development and curriculum revision; $200,000 for an endowment to support paid student internships/research; $150,000 for program supplies; $50,000 for travel; and $75,000 for an external evaluator required by the grant,” Patterson wrote.
