TO: Campus Community
FROM: Dr. Gerald L. Jones, Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students; Tramaine Austin-Dillon, Director of Institutional Equity and Belonging
The U.S. Department of Education has announced it will no longer provide discretionary funding for Minority-Serving Institution (MSI) programs, including Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs). Read the full policy here. Although this change limits access to certain federal grants, Sonoma State University proudly remains a Hispanic-Serving Institution.
As of Fall 2024, Latinx students represented 42.6% of our campus enrollment and 50.1% across the CSU, including 49.5% of Sonoma State’s first-year students last year. This representation will continue to grow among new first-year students.
As noted by Chancellor Mildred García, the HSI designation is understood not simply in terms of enrollment numbers of Latinx students, but also as a commitment to servingness, reflected in equitable access, resources, and opportunities for success.
Although PUERTA 2.0 will no longer receive federal funding, the PUERTA faculty and Career Center remain committed to supporting students in pre-professional pathways such as education, nursing, and health professions. These teams will continue serving students and fostering lasting support. We are deeply grateful to them, and to everyone whose dedication helped secure this award and sustain this essential commitment in our communities.
As Hispanic Heritage Month continues, we celebrate the rich histories, cultures, and contributions of Latinx communities to our nation, our state, and our university. We also honor the generations of Latinx students, families, faculty, and staff who continue to shape Sonoma State.
In keeping with Sonoma State’s mission, we remain dedicated to advancing access and equity. The HSI Advisory Council and Alianza for Equity continue to lead our efforts in supporting Latinx students, while we also affirm our unwavering solidarity with all historically marginalized and underserved communities.