Hispanic-Serving Institutions Face Challenges With Federal Funding Cuts

Here are the morning’s top stories on Wednesday, December 31, 2025…

• California is home to the largest number of Hispanic-serving institutions in the country. That’s a federal program that allows colleges and universities to apply for federal grants if at least a quarter of their students identify as Hispanic. Earlier this year, the Trump administration cut funding for the program, which has helped serve many Latino students in California, benefiting from supportive environments geared toward them.
• E-bike sales in the U.S. have surged, outpacing electric car sales by 20%.  But California building codes haven’t kept up with where they can be safely stored. 

California Colleges Fear Loss Of Federal Funding For Hispanic-Serving Institutions

When Vanessa Perez Rojas began her first year at Saint Mary’s College in Moraga, she recalled feeling a bit lost and out of place. Growing up in San Francisco with parents who migrated from Mexico and El Salvador, she said she wasn’t exposed to much information about college. “I had no idea how to even declare a major. I didn’t really even know where to look,” said the 21-year-old speaking from campus, where graduation celebrations often include mariachi bands and taco bars.

Perez Rojas knew of Saint Mary’s because her older brother had attended — which gave her the confidence that she could find support as a first-generation college student. More than one-third of St. Mary’s students are Latino, and the school is designated a Hispanic Serving Institution, a federal program that allows colleges to apply for grants if at least 25% of their students identify as Hispanic. “I’ve been able to meet great mentors who also fit that description of being first generation, and far beyond being able to see myself through them, they want to see people like myself succeed,” Perez Rojas said.

There are 171 Hispanic-Serving Institutions in California — the most of any state — and they have long relied on federal funding to pay for programs, staff, and support services. Now, those schools are worried about the program’s future. Earlier this year, the U.S. Department of Education pulled $350 million that had been allocated to HSIs. In a statement, Secretary of Education Linda McMahon said the HSI program amounts to “discrimination based upon race or ethnicity,” as the Trump administration scales back initiatives related to diversity, equity and inclusion.

The program’s existence was already under threat. In June, the state of Tennessee and Students for Fair Admissions, a nonprofit legal advocacy organization founded by conservative activist Edward Blum for the purpose of challenging affirmative action admissions policies at schools, filed a federal lawsuit claiming HSI funding is unconstitutional. The Trump administration declined to contest the case. The idea that the program is discriminatory is misleading, said Gina Ann Garcia, a professor in the UC Berkeley School of Education who studies HSIs and hosts a podcast about them. “A lot of campuses do benefit, including our community college system in California, and have had a good success rate of getting those HSI grants to advance programs that we know are serving students,” Garcia said. “It would be detrimental to California if we no longer have access to those funds.”

HSIs were created in the 1990s to ensure that colleges enrolling large numbers of Latino students received adequate funding to help those students graduate. In California, more than 90% of community colleges, and 21 out of 22 California State Universities and seven of nine University of California undergraduate campuses qualify as HSIs. Community colleges in the state estimate they will lose at least $20 million this year.

As E-Bike Sales Soar, California Delays Requirements For Bike Parking

In a cluttered living room in his Sacramento home, Omar Pulido stores four bikes. It’s a stark contrast from the spacious and secure bike parking he enjoys at work.  An avid cyclist, Pulido said he only drove his car to work twice last year because UC Davis Medical Center offers long-term bike parking, which is typically indoor with locks or access control. At home, he doesn’t trust parking his bikes outside. “I love my neighbors, but I don’t want to lock up my expensive bikes out there,” he said. “I’d rather have a cluttered living room than leave it out there.”

The 32-year-old’s concerns are shared by many Californians as electric bike sales surge nationwide. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, e-bike sales have outpaced electric vehicle sales by 20%. Yet, building codes haven’t kept up with safe storage needs for these vehicles.  Pulido owns several e-bikes priced in the $4,000 range, and REI estimates the average e-bike costs around $2,000, with high-end models exceeding $6,000. The lack of secure parking makes them vulnerable to theft or damage.

A 2022 California law sought to address this gap by requiring the state’s housing agency and its building standards commission to consider mandatory bike parking standards in new commercial and residential buildings. But a new law passed earlier this year, AB 130, paused most building code updates until 2027.

Jared Sanchez is a spokesperson for the nonprofit CalBike, which advocates for better bike infrastructure. He said the law —  meant to fast-track post-disaster rebuilding in Los Angeles due to the Palisades fire — delayed the new requirements, which were supposed to take effect next year. He said the new building code requirements would help more people who want to ditch their cars feel safe about storing their costly e-bikes while at work or at home. “That’s the whole goal for us as an organization — to encourage folks to buy [bikes], but not in the status quo where it’s unsafe or just not accessible for a wide range of folks to do that,” Sanchez said.