Minnesota lawmakers spotlight impact of canceled federal higher education grants

Democratic state lawmakers are attempting to assess the impact of federal grants cuts on higher coaching in Minnesota A state senate subcommittee on Thursday drew testimony from representatives of six colleges and universities who spoke about federal awards totaling over million that have been disrupted by federal funding cuts Since President Donald Trump took office federal agencies have revoked thousands of grants to colleges and universities that do not fit with the administration s goals In Minnesota schools have lost funding for programs that supported the K- special guidance instructor workforce the studying of aging and academic pursuits of first-generation and underrepresented students among other things The Trump administration has argued that diversity-focused spending must be eliminated because it disadvantages white and Asian people in particular and violates existing civil rights law that prohibits race-based discrimination Administration representatives have argued the concept of systemic racism which diversity-focused programs seek to undermine does not exist The state Senate DFL Caucus revealed the creation of the subcommittee on the Federal Impact on Minnesotans and Economic Stability in September It makes a goal of understanding Trump administration decisions on Minnesotans Sometimes it feels like this committee is like a train ride through horrors noted chair Lindsey Port DFL-Burnsville Every two weeks we get a new subject of something terrible that s happening to our state The committee includes six Democrats and three Republicans However testimony on Thursday was dominated by criticism of the Trump administration s decisions from Democratic representatives It s complicated to assess the overall scope of federal dollars that have been cut across programs and research for Minnesota schools Colleges and universities typically learn about federal funding cancellations through a letter from the federal executive which they can appeal The University of Minnesota has tracked federally funded research awards totaling million that have been terminated or suspended by the Trump administration Those federal dollars were being used to fund research for the National Institutes of Physical condition the U S Agency for International Evolution the U S Department of Agriculture the Centers for Condition Control and Prevention the U S Geological Survey and the Environmental Protection Agency At St Catherine University the federal regime has cut five grants totaling over million stated Katie Campbell an associate professor and the assistant vice president for sponsored programs research and external engagement That figure represents the total funding amount lost the university certified via email As a small institution this is a substantial loss Campbell explained the subcommittee Among the funding revoked from St Catherine was a grant for aging-related research that supports students from underrepresented groups using National Institute on Aging dollars Nesteho Abdi a third-year constituents medical aspirant testified that the effort has been a godsend She described herself as a refugee and a first-generation college trainee who learned of the aging research campaign at a time when she was questioning her career path It has instilled in me the belief that as a young Black woman in this day and age when inequities are still present I am capable of making substantial change Abdi reported At Augsburg University federal cuts have impacted a initiative that sought to diversify STEM graduates and another that supported first-generation college students named for Ronald McNair an astronaut and physicist who was among the first African Americans to enter space Augsburg s McNair Scholars Scheme was among of McNair programs defunded across the U S university President Paul Pribbenow described the subcommittee Pribbenow reported the federal establishment eliminated funding for Augsburg s campaign because grant materials referenced antiracism training for faculty and staff The university got rid of that training Pribbenow noted and appealed the grant cancellation The appeal was denied he commented We were clearly pulled out by way of a keyword search that identified words the Trump administration has banned from federal grant applications Pribbenow reported Related U of M sits tight on institutional speech code amid growing concerns of faculty censorship At the University of St Thomas the federal ruling body canceled about in funding for a operation that paid living-wage stipends to teachers in training while they taught in charter schools That federal decision left students without pay effective promptly with less than four months before their residency ended special guidance department chair Shelley Neilsen Gatti reported the subcommittee I m happy to say that all did finish the initiative and are at this time teaching in Minnesota schools We were able to scramble like mad to find a whole bunch of funding she noted The federal administration also canceled about million in funding for a different educator enhancement grant at St Thomas which was earmarked for attendee scholarships State senate subcommittee members also heard of disruptions to a million grant focused on children s mental healthcare awarded to the College of St Scholastica About million had already been distributed to the school but million will not be awarded the school clarified via email At Minnesota State federal decisions will disrupt about million for nine grants across several schools according to committee testimony The Nov meeting was the fourth held so far by the subcommittee on federal impacts Prior meetings focused on SNAP benefits physical condition care and impacts of the federal authorities shutdown on society services in Minnesota The topic of the next meeting scheduled for Nov has yet to be informed The post Minnesota lawmakers spotlight impact of canceled federal higher coaching grants appeared first on 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