A r c h i v e d  I n f o r m a t i o n

Letter to Honorable Louis W. Sullivan regarding support for Historically Black Colleges and Universities affected by Hurricane Katrina

January 20, 2006

Honorable Louis W. Sullivan, M.D.
Chairman
President's Board of Advisors on
  Historically Black Colleges and Universities
1990 K Street, NW
Washington, DC 20006-1103

Dear Dr. Sullivan:

Thank you for your letter to President George W. Bush expressing concern for the financial viability of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) affected by Hurricane Katrina. Since you wrote in September, we have been working closely with the institutions of higher education in the Gulf Coast region, including the HBCUs you mentioned specifically in your letter, to provide them with as much support as possible. I am pleased to report that we have made significant progress.

We have provided policy guidance to these institutions, as well as other affected institutions and individuals, to help them through this critical recovery period. This guidance is posted on the Department's Web site at:

http://www.ifap.ed.gov/eannouncements/katrina2005.html.

During a recent trip to the Gulf Coast region, President George W. Bush announced that institutions of higher education that were closed as a result of Hurricane Katrina would be allowed to retain up to $100 million in federal student aid that was awarded prior to the storm. Included on this list of institutions are HBCUs such as Xavier, Dillard, and Southern University. I am also pleased to report that we have had significant success in securing support from Congress for the institutions in the Gulf Coast region, although not in the specific form proposed by the Administration. On December 30, 2005, President Bush signed the Department of Defense, Emergency Supplemental Appropriations to Address Hurricanes in the Gulf of Mexico, and Pandemic Influenza Act, 2006, Public Law 109-148 (Act), which provides significant support to the institutions of higher education located in Mississippi and Louisiana. Specifically, it provides:

• $95 million to the Louisiana Board of Regents to provide emergency assistance, based on demonstrated need, to institutions of higher education in areas affected by hurricanes in the Gulf Coast region to be used for student financial assistance, faculty and staff salaries, equipment and instruments, and any purpose authorized by the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA); and

• $95 million to the Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning to provide student financial assistance under certain programs authorized by Title IV of the HEA. Recipients of this money would not have to comply with any requirements relating to matching, federal share, reservation of funds, or maintenance of effort.

The Act also provides $10 million to help defray the unexpected expenses incurred by institutions of higher education associated with enrolling displaced students from institutions affected by the hurricanes in the Gulf Coast region.

In addition to financial support, the Act grants the Secretary authority to:

• Waive or modify statutory or regulatory provisions applicable to the student financial assistance programs or any student or institutional eligibility provisions in the HEA, including:

  • Waiving administrative requirements placed on affected students, individuals, institutions, lenders, guaranty agencies, and grantees to minimize burden to the greatest extent possible without impairing the integrity of the programs; and
  • Providing temporary relief to institutions of higher education, lenders, guaranty agencies, and other entities when requirements are rendered infeasible or unreasonable due to the effects of a hurricane disaster in the Gulf Coast region, including relief from due diligence requirements and reporting deadlines.

• Extend and waive reporting deadlines under section 131(a) of the HEA.

• Approve modifications to the requirements for Teacher Quality Enhancement Grants for States and Partnerships at the request of grantees to:

  • Assist states and local educational agencies in recruiting and retaining highly qualified teachers in a school district located in an area affected by a hurricane disaster in the Gulf Coast region; and
  • Assist institutions of higher education located in such areas to recruit and retain faculty necessary to prepare teachers and provide professional development.

• Modify required and allowable activities in TRIO, GEAR UP, HEA Title III, and other competitive grant programs at the request of an affected institution or grantee; however, the Secretary may not authorize any new construction, renovation, or improvement of classroom, libraries, laboratories, or other instructional facilities that is not permitted under an institution's existing grant award under the Title III programs.

The Department is moving quickly to get this emergency funding to the states and institutions affected by the hurricanes and to implement the waiver authorities.

Congress passed several other pieces of legislation that we have moved quickly to implement:

• The Pell Grant Hurricane and Disaster Relief Act (Public Law 109-66) and the Student Grant Hurricane and Disaster Relief Act (Public Law 109-67) were enacted on September 21, 2005. These laws amend the HEA to permit the Secretary to waive a student's Title IV grant repayment if the student withdrew because of a major disaster.

• The Natural Disaster Student Aid Fairness Act (Public Law 109-86) extends the period of obligation for campus-based program funds that expired on September 30, 2005, until September 30, 2006, and authorizes the Secretary to reallocate those funds, which will ultimately total $30 million, to institutions either directly affected by Hurricanes Katrina or Rita or accepting students affected by those storms. The Department is working with institutions directly affected by the hurricanes, including several HBCUs, to provide campus-based funds under a separate process. These funds were allocated to affected institutions on January 9.

Again, thank you for contacting me and sharing your requests and concerns.