North Park University has been named a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI) by the U.S. Department of Education, a designation that recognizes North Park’s commitment to equitable outcomes for Hispanic students.
“The Hispanic-Serving Institution distinction is an enviable one, sought by many institutions, and we are proud of this designation,” said North Park President Mary K. Surridge. “Most important, though, is our striving for equitable outcomes as we live into our intercultural distinctive. And that is the effort these federal grant dollars will support on our campus.”
With the designation, North Park is now eligible to apply to federal funding opportunities that are only available to Hispanic-Serving Institutions, according to Renee Cox, North Park’s Government, Corporate, and Foundation Relations Manager. Over the next year, North Park hopes to explore funding opportunities that are now available at the U.S. Department of Education, National Science Foundation, and National Endowment for the Humanities.
Sharee L. Myricks, M.Ed, North Park University Director of Diversity and Intercultural Life, said the designation underscores North Park’s commitment to diversity.
“North Park University has a long history of supporting a diverse and intentionally intercultural student population. North Park’s recent designation as a Hispanic-Serving Institution enables us to expand future opportunities that support student recruitment, retention, and completion further,” Myricks said.
To become a designated HSI, an institution’s undergraduate enrollment must be at least 25% Hispanic (defined as an individual of Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, Central or South American or other Spanish culture or origin).
Hispanic-Serving Institutions were created in 1995 to expand the educational opportunities of the country’s rapidly growing Hispanic population and to improve Hispanic students’ measures of academic attainment.