USDA Under Pressure to Restore Hispanic-Serving Institution Fellowship Program

Senator Amy KlobucharIn a significant push to strengthen the agricultural workforce pipeline, a coalition of Democratic senators led by Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) is calling on the Department of Agriculture to immediately reinstate its Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI) E. Kika De La Garza Fellowship Program.

The program, which was suspended by the Trump administration in January, has been a cornerstone of agricultural education partnerships since 1998. It was designed to create meaningful connections between faculty and administrators at Hispanic-Serving Institutions and the USDA.

"USDA's partnership with HSIs plays a vital role in establishing a collaborative relationship and creating a nationwide network of educators working with USDA to help grow the next generation of the American agricultural workforce," the senators wrote in their letter to Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins.

The fellowship program had widespread impact before its suspension, with the 2024 cohort including 31 participants from institutions across 11 states, including Texas, Arizona, California, New York, and Illinois. These fellows represented a diverse cross-section of educational institutions, from community colleges to major universities.

Senator Alex PadillaHispanic-Serving Institutions, which enroll over 5.2 million students nationwide, are defined as institutions with undergraduate populations that are at least 25 percent Hispanic or Latino. According to the senators' letter, these institutions educate two-thirds of all Hispanic undergraduates and 32.2 percent of total Pell Grant recipients.

Padilla, who chairs the Senate HSI Caucus, has been a consistent advocate for Latino education initiatives. His previous work includes introducing the bipartisan Hispanic Educational Resources and Empowerment (HERE) Act and passing resolutions supporting Latino students in STEM fields.

The senators' letter emphasized that the fellowship program is non-partisan and serves students and educators of all backgrounds, noting that it had "consistent support from every presidential administration since its establishment" until now.

The letter, which was endorsed by the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU) and UnidosUS, urges Rollins to reinstate the program immediately and work with Congress to ensure its long-term stability.