Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti has filed a federal lawsuit against the Department of Education, arguing that its Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI) grant program is racially discriminatory and violates the U.S. Constitution. The legal challenge, joined by the nonprofit Students for Fair Admissions, was filed in the U.S. District Court for Eastern Tennessee.
At the center of the lawsuit is the Department of Education’s HSI program, which awards millions in federal funds exclusively to colleges and universities where at least 25% of full-time undergraduate students identify as Hispanic. Skrmetti argues that the program unfairly excludes Tennessee institutions, which do not meet that demographic threshold but still serve large minority populations.
“The University of Memphis, for example, is ineligible for the grant despite its 61% minority enrollment because its student body is insufficiently diverse according to the federal government’s arbitrary requirement,” Skrmetti said.
The Department awarded $45.7 million in grants to 78 schools under the HSI program in fiscal year 2022, with Congress boosting funding to $228.9 million for FY2024. Grants can total up to $600,000 annually for five years.
Skrmetti contends the program forces schools into an unconstitutional bind: either ignore the grant money or implement illegal affirmative action policies to qualify. “The HSI program also puts Tennessee’s colleges and universities to an unconstitutional dilemma,” he stated.
Students for Fair Admissions, the group behind the Supreme Court case that overturned affirmative action at Harvard and UNC, joined the suit. The complaint echoes Chief Justice John Roberts’ ruling that students must be treated “based on his or her experiences as an individual – not on the basis of race.”
This case adds to mounting legal pressure on federal programs that use race-based criteria in funding or admissions.
