UT Arlington Students Protest HSI Office Closure

0:00It's April 7. Welcome to Dallas News Today, powered by AI. I'm Corey with the story. University of Texas at Arlington students are fighting back after the school quietly restructured its Hispanic-serving institutions' initiatives. Back in February, junior Emanuel Hernandez got called into a meeting expecting trouble, but admins revealed they were fold in the office into the. Broughter Intercultural Student Engagement Center This ASI office started in 2023, handled grants, academic support, and community building for the schools growing Hispanic. Population, which now makes up 34.7% of undergrads. The move came without public notice or student input, sparking outrage amid Texas Senate Bill 17, a 2023 law cracking down on. Diversity efforts at public universities. Students met with leaders in March, sharing data and stories of how the office created a real sense of belonging. They worry it will fade like the LGBTQ plus program did last year after a similar shift,

1:02effectively vanishing under a bigger center. For many Hispanic students, this office was a lifeline amid fears from immigration issues and family pressures. Transfers in first years found mentors and cultural events there. Filling gaps in faculty representation, only about 7% of tenured. Professors are Hispanic. Without a standing alone, they fear losing visibility on a campus that's been an HSI since 2014. University spokesperson Jeff Kaplan says, the change aligns HSI work better with student services under student affairs, focusing on engagement and success. Grant functions shifted to other offices to match state and federal rules, but they skipped details on why no announcement happened or how Senate Bill 17 played in. Meanwhile, nationwide, federal cuts to HSI grants and executive orders targeting DEI mean more schools are blending these programs. UTA students keep advocating, hoping to preserve that vital space before it slips away for

2:02good.