2024-23061. Hispanic-Serving Agricultural Colleges and Universities (HSACU) Certification Process

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Department of Agriculture

National Institute of Food and Agriculture

1. 7 CFR Part 3434
2. RIN 0524-AA39

AGENCY:

National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), USDA.

ACTION:

Final rule.

SUMMARY:

This amendment to NIFA regulations updates the list of institutions that are granted Hispanic-Serving Agricultural Colleges and Universities (HSACU) certification by the Secretary and are eligible for HSACU programs for the period starting July 1, 2024, and ending July 1, 2025.

DATES:

This rule is effective October 8, 2024 and applicable July 1, 2024.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Kelly Saunders; Financial Policy Specialist; National Institute of Food and Agriculture; U.S. Department of Agriculture; 805 Pennsylvania Ave; Kansas City, MO 64105; Voice: 802-318-6587; Email: [e-mail].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

HSACU Institutions for Fiscal Year 2024: This rule makes changes to the existing list of institutions in appendix B of 7 CFR part 3434. The list of institutions is amended to reflect the institutions that are granted HSACU certification by the Secretary and are eligible for HSACU programs for the period starting July 1, 2024, and ending July 1, 2025.

Certification Process: As stated in 7 CFR 3434.4, an institution must meet the following criteria to receive HSACU certification: (1) Be a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI), (2) offer agriculture-related degrees, (3) not be designated an 1862 land-grant institution, (4) not appear on the Excluded Parties List System (EPLS), (5) be accredited, and (6) award at least 15% of agriculture-related degrees to Hispanic students over the two most recent academic years.

NIFA obtained the latest report from the U.S. Department of Education's National Center for Education Statistics that lists all HSIs and the degrees conferred by these institutions (completion data) during the 2021-22 academic year. NIFA used this report to identify HSIs that conferred a degree in an instructional program that appears in appendix A of 7 CFR part 3434 and to confirm that over the 2020-21 and 2021-22 academic years at least 15% of the degrees in agriculture-related fields were awarded to Hispanic students. NIFA further confirmed that these institutions were nationally accredited.

The updated list of HSACUs is based on (1) completions data from 2020-21 and 2021-22, and (2) enrollment data from Fall 2022. NIFA identified 240 institutions that met the eligibility criteria to receive HSACU certification for FY 2024 (July 1,2024 to July 1, 2025).

Section 7102 of the Agriculture Act of 2018 (Pub. L. 115-334) amended Section 1404(14) of the National Agricultural Research, Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 3103(14)) to remove the opt-in, opt-out language for Hispanic Serving Agricultural Colleges and Universities (HSACU) in order to apply for Non Land-Grant College of Agriculture (NLGCA) designation.

Appeal Process: As set forth in 7 CFR 3434.8, NIFA will permit HSIs that are not granted HSACU certification to submit an appeal within 30 days of the publication of this notice.

Classification: This rule relates to public property, loans, grants, benefits, or contracts. Accordingly, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553, notice of proposed rulemaking and opportunity for comment are not required, and this rule may be made effective less than 30 days after publication in the Federal Register . This rule also is exempt from the provisions of Executive Order 12866. This action is not a rule as defined by the Regulatory Flexibility Act, as amended by the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996, 5 U.S.C. 601 et seq., or the Congressional Review Act, 5 U.S.C. 801 et seq., and thus is exempt from the provisions of those Acts. This rule contains no information collection or recordkeeping requirements under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 3434

• Administrative practice and procedure
• Agricultural research, education, extension
• Hispanic-serving institutions
• Federal assistance

Title 7 of the Code of Federal Regulations is amended accordingly as set forth below:

PART 3434—HISPANIC-SERVING AGRICULTURAL COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES CERTIFICATION PROCESS

1. The authority citation for part 3434 continues to read as follows:

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 3103.

2. Revise appendix B to read as follows:

Appendix B to Part 3434—List of HSACU Institutions, 2024-2025

The institutions listed in this appendix are granted HSACU certification by the Secretary and are eligible for HSACU programs for the period starting July 1, 2024 and ending July 1, 2025. Institutions are listed alphabetically under the state of the school's location, with the campus indicated where applicable.

Arkansas (1)

Cossatot Community College of the University of Arkansas

Arizona (12)

Arizona State University Campus Immersion

Arizona Western College

Chandler-Gilbert Community College

Cochise County Community College District

Estrella Mountain Community College

GateWay Community College

Glendale Community College

Mesa Community College

Phoenix College

Rio Salado College

Scottsdale Community College

South Mountain Community College

California (97)

Allan Hancock College

American River College

Antelope Valley Community College District

Bakersfield College

Butte College

Cabrillo College

California Baptist University

California Lutheran University

California State Polytechnic University—Humboldt

California State Polytechnic University—Pomona

California State University—Bakersfield ( print page 81294)

California State University—Channel Islands

California State University—Chico

California State University—East Bay

California State University—Fresno

California State University—Fullerton

California State University—Long Beach

California State University—Los Angeles

California State University—Monterey Bay

California State University—Northridge

California State University—Sacramento

California State University—San Bernardino

California State University—San Marcos

California State University—Stanislaus

Chabot College

Chaffey College

Citrus College

Clovis Community College

College of San Mateo

College of the Canyons

College of the Desert

College of the Sequoias

Cosumnes River College

Crafton Hills College

Cuesta College

Cypress College

Diablo Valley College

East Los Angeles College

El Camino Community College District

Evergreen Valley College

Foothill College

Fresno City College

Fresno Pacific University

Fullerton College

Glendale Community College

Hartnell College

Imperial Valley College

Lake Tahoe Community College

Las Positas College

Long Beach City College

Los Angeles City College

Los Angeles Harbor College

Los Angeles Mission College

Los Angeles Pierce College

Los Angeles Southwest College

Los Angeles Trade Technical College

Madera Community College

Merced College

MiraCosta College

Modesto Junior College

Monterey Peninsula College

Moorpark College

Mt San Antonio College

Mt San Jacinto Community College District

Orange Coast College

Oxnard College

Palomar College

Pasadena City College

Porterville College

Reedley College

Rio Hondo College

Riverside City College

Saddleback College

Saint Mary's College of California

San Bernardino Valley College

San Diego Mesa College

San Diego Miramar College

San Diego State University

San Francisco State University

San Joaquin Delta College

San Jose City College

San Jose State University

Santa Barbara City College

Santa Monica College

Santa Rosa Junior College

Southwestern College

University of California-Irvine

University of California-Riverside

University of California-Santa Barbara

University of California-Santa Cruz

University of La Verne

University of Redlands

Ventura College

Victor Valley College

West Hills College-Coalinga

West Los Angeles College

Yuba College

Colorado (6)

Colorado State University Pueblo

Community College of Denver

Metropolitan State University of Denver

Regis University

Trinidad State College

University of Northern Colorado

Connecticut (2)

Gateway Community College

Norwalk Community College

Florida (12)

Ana G. Mendez University

Broward College

Florida Atlantic University

Florida International University

Hillsborough Community College

Indian River State College

Miami Dade College

Nova Southeastern University

Palm Beach State College

Seminole State College of Florida

University of Central Florida

Valencia College

Georgia (2)

Dalton State College

Lanier Technical College

Idaho (1)

College of Southern Idaho

Illinois (6)

City Colleges of Chicago—Richard J Daley College

College of Lake County

Dominican University

Northeastern Illinois University

Triton College

University of Illinois Chicago

Kansas (1)

Seward County Community College

Nevada (4)

College of Southern Nevada

Nevada State College

Truckee Meadows Community College

University of Nevada-Las Vegas

New Jersey (9)

Atlantic Cape Community College

Bergen Community College

Hudson County Community College

Kean University

Middlesex College

Montclair State University

New Jersey Institute of Technology

Passaic County Community College

William Paterson University of New Jersey

New Mexico (9)

Central New Mexico Community College

Eastern New Mexico University—Main Campus

Eastern New Mexico University—Roswell Campus

New Mexico Highlands University

Northern New Mexico College

Santa Fe Community College

University of New Mexico—Los Alamos Campus

University of New Mexico—Main Campus

Western New Mexico University

New York (12)

CUNY City College

CUNY Hostos Community College

CUNY Hunter College

CUNY LaGuardia Community College

CUNY Lehman College

CUNY Queens College

CUNY Queensborough Community College

Manhattan College

Manhattanville College

Mercy College

Nassau Community College

Suffolk County Community College

North Carolina (1)

Sampson Community College

Oregon (1)

Chemeketa Community College

Puerto Rico (20)

Dewey University—Juana Díaz

Instituto Tecnologico de Puerto Rico—Recinto de Manati

Inter American University of Puerto Rico—Aguadilla

Inter American University of Puerto Rico—Arecibo

Inter American University of Puerto Rico—Barranquitas

Inter American University of Puerto Rico—Bayamon

Inter American University of Puerto Rico—Guayama

Inter American University of Puerto Rico—Ponce

Inter American University of Puerto Rico—San German

Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico—Arecibo

Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico—Ponce

Universal Technology College of Puerto Rico

Universidad Ana G. Mendez—Carolina Campus

Universidad Ana G. Mendez—Cupey Campus

Universidad Ana G. Mendez—Gurabo Campus

University of Puerto Rico—Arecibo

University of Puerto Rico—Humacao

University of Puerto Rico—Medical Sciences

University of Puerto Rico—Rio Piedras

University of Puerto Rico—Utuado

Rhode Island (1)

Rhode Island College

Tennessee (1)

Southern Adventist University

Texas (35)

Amarillo College

Angelo State University

Austin College

Austin Community College District

Concordia University Texas

Dallas College ( print page 81295)

Houston Community College

Huston-Tillotson University

Lee College

Lone Star College System

Odessa College

Palo Alto College

Saint Edward's University

Sam Houston State University

South Plains College

Southwest Texas Junior College

Southwestern University

St. Mary's University

Sul Ross State University

Tarrant County College District

Texas A & M University-Corpus Christi

Texas A & M University-Kingsville

Texas State University

Texas Woman's University

The University of Texas at Arlington

The University of Texas at Austin

The University of Texas at El Paso

The University of Texas at San Antonio

The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley

Tyler Junior College

University of Houston

University of Houston-Clear Lake

University of North Texas

University of the Incarnate Word

Wayland Baptist University

Virginia (1)

Northern Virginia Community College

Washington (6)

Big Bend Community College

Columbia Basin College

Heritage University

Perry Technical Institute

Wenatchee Valley College

Yakima Valley College

Done at Washington, DC, this day of October 1, 2024.

Dionne Toombs,

Associate Director for Programs, National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture.