Joe Biden, on Friday, unveiled his first budget as President. It called for significant investments in historically black colleges and universities including a $3 billion in increase in the federal Pell Grant, increasing the maximum award by $400 -- the largest one-time increase in more than a decade. (The current maximum is $6,495.) President Biden says the Funding is part of a larger effort to double the maximum Pell award.
The plan calls for an additional $600 million for historically Black colleges and universities, and other minority-serving institutions, as well as “low-resourced institutions.”
The request increases research funding opportunities at Hbcus and minority-serving institutions, while also investing in their lab and IT infrastructure. The plan would additionally fund workforce development programs in STEM at HBCUs and MSIs. It also increases the funding to the Office of STEM Engagement by $20 million to “expand initiatives to attract and retain underserved and underrepresented students in engineering and other STEM fields, in partnership with minority serving institutions.
The 58-page budget proposal requires congressional approval.
