This part establishes the process to certify and designate a group of eligible educational institutions as Hispanic-Serving Agricultural Colleges and Universities, as authorized by Section 7101 of the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (FCEA), 7 U.S.C. 3103; Public Law 110-246.

The Secretary will follow the processes and criteria established in this regulation to certify and designate qualifying colleges and universities as HSACUs. Institutions designated as HSACUs will be eligible for five new programs authorized by Congress in section 7129 of the FCEA as well as for other ongoing NIFA programs for which HSACUs are now eligible (e.g., integrated programs authorized by section 406 of the Agricultural Research, Extension, and Education Reform Act of 1998). The five new programs include the HSACU Endowment Fund (formula-based), HSACU Institutional Capacity Building Grants Program (competitive), HSACU Extension Grants Program (competitive), HSACU Applied and Fundamental Research Grants Program (competitive), and HSACU Equity Grants Program (formula-based). The administrative provisions, including reporting requirements, for the HSACU Endowment Fund will be established in a separate part (7 CFR part 3437). The administrative provisions and reporting requirements for the other four new HSACU programs will be established as subparts in 7 CFR part 3430.

As used in this part:

Agency or NIFA means the National Institute of Food and Agriculture.

Agriculture-related fields means a group of instructional programs that are determined to be agriculture-related fields of study for HSACU eligibility purposes by a panel of National Program Leaders at the National Institute of Food and Agriculture.

Department means the United States Department of Agriculture.

Hispanic-serving Institution means an institution of higher education that:

(1) Is an eligible institution, as that term is defined at 20 U.S.C. 1101a; and

(2) Has an enrollment of undergraduate full-time equivalent students that is at least 25 percent Hispanic students, as reported to the U.S. Department of Education's Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System during the fall semester of the previous academic year.

Secretary means the Secretary of Agriculture and any other officer or employee of the Department to whom the authority involved has been delegated.

(a) General. To be eligible to receive designation as a HSACU, colleges and universities must:

(1) Qualify as Hispanic-serving Institutions; and

(2) Offer associate, bachelors, or other accredited degree programs in agriculture-related fields pursuant to § 3434.5.

(b) Non-eligibility. The following colleges and universities are ineligible for HSACU certification:

(1) 1862 land-grant institutions, as defined in section 2 of the Agricultural Research, Extension, and Education Reform Act of 1998 (7 U.S.C. 7601);

(2) Institutions that appear in the Lists of Parties Excluded from Federal financial and nonfinancial assistance and benefits programs (Excluded Parties List System);

(3) Institutions that are not accredited by a nationally recognized accredited agency or association; and

(4) Institutions with Hispanic students receiving less than 15% of the degrees awarded in agriculture-related programs over the two most recent completed academic years.

(a) The Secretary shall use the Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) coding system developed by the U.S. Department of Education's National Center for Education Statistics as the source of information for all existing instructional programs. This source is located at http://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/cipcode.

(b) A complete list of instructional programs deemed to be agriculture-related fields by the Secretary is provided in Appendix A to this part. This list will include the full six-digit CIP code and program title (or major) for each agriculture-related instructional program.

(c) The list of agriculture-related fields will be updated every five years starting in 2015. However, the Secretary reserves the right to make changes at any time, if deemed appropriate and necessary.

(d) Any changes made in the CIP coding system by the U.S. Department of Education may result in a review or reevaluation of the list of agriculture-related fields by the Secretary.

(a) Except as provided in paragraph (c) of this section, institutions that meet the eligibility criteria set forth in § 3434.4 and offer agriculture-related programs in accordance to the criteria set forth in § 3434.5 (see list in Appendix A to this part) shall be granted HSACU certification by the Secretary.

(b) A complete list of institutions with HSACU certification shall be provided in Appendix B to this part and posted on the NIFA Web site at http://www.nifa.usda.gov.

(c) Institutions with Hispanic students receiving less than 15% of degrees awarded in agriculture-related programs during the two most recent completed academic years shall not be granted HSACU certification by the Secretary.

(d) The list of HSACU institutions will be updated annually. However, the Secretary reserves the right to make changes at any time, when deemed appropriate and necessary.

(a) Except as provided in paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section, HSACU certification granted to an institution by the Secretary under this part shall remain valid for a period of one year.

(b) Failure to maintain eligibility status at any time during the HSACU certification period shall result in an immediate revocation of HSACU certification.

(c) Failure to remain in compliance with reporting requirements or adherence to any administrative or national policy requirements listed in award terms and conditions for any of the HSACU programs may result in a suspension or an immediate revocation of HSACU certification.

(a) An institution not listed as a HSACU in Appendix B to this part may submit an appeal to address denial of a certification made pursuant to this part. Such appeals must be in writing and received by the HSACU Appeals Officer, Policy and Oversight Division, National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture, 800 9th Street SW., Washington, DC 20024 within 30 days following an announcement of institutions designated for certification. The Appeals Officer will consider the record of the decision in question, any further written submissions by the institution, and other available information and shall provide the appellant a written decision as promptly as circumstances permit. Such appeals constitute an administrative review of the decision appealed from and are not conducted as an adjudicative proceeding.

(b) Appeals involving an agriculture-related field of study must include the CIP code and program title of the field of study (or major).

(c) Appeals from non-HSI schools will not be considered.

(d) The NIFA Assistant Director of the Institute of Youth, Family, and Community shall serve as the Appeals Officer.

(e) In considering such appeals or administrative reviews, the Appeals Officer shall take into account alleged errors in professional judgment or alleged prejudicial procedural errors by NIFA officials. The Appeals Officer's decision may:

(1) Reverse the appealed decision;

(2) Affirm the appealed decision;

(3) Where appropriate, withhold a decision until additional materials are provided. The Appeals Officer may base his/her decision in whole or part on matters or factors not discussed in the decision appealed from.

(f) If the NIFA decision on the appeal is adverse to the appellant or if an appellant's request for review is rejected, the appellant then has the option of submitting a request to the NIFA Deputy Director for Food and Community Resources for further review.

(g) The request for further review must be submitted to Policy and Oversight Division, National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture, 800 9th Street SW., Washington, DC 20024 within 30 days following the Appeals Officer's decision.

(h) No institution shall be considered to have exhausted its administrative remedies with respect to the certification or decision described in this part until the NIFA Deputy Director for Food and Community Resources has issued a final administrative decision pursuant to this section. The decision of the NIFA Deputy Director for Food and Community Resources is considered final.

(i) Appellants shall be notified in writing of any decision made by NIFA in regards to the appeal.

(a) The recertification process for a HSACU remains the same as the process outlined in § 3434.6.

(b) There is no limit to the number of times an institution may be recertified as a HSACU.

(c) In the event an institution is not granted recertification due to noncompliance with reporting requirements for a HSACU program, the institution shall be notified in writing and given a period of 90 days from the date of notification to be in compliance.

(a) The certification process does not involve any reporting requirements.

(b) Reporting requirements for HSACU programs (e.g., HSACU Endowment Fund) shall be established in separate parts.

The instructional programs listed in this appendix are observed to be agriculture-related fields for HSACU eligibility purposes. Programs are listed in numerical order by their six-digit CIP code followed by the full title of the instructional program, as listed by the U.S. Department of Education.

01.0000, Agriculture, General 01.0101, Agricultural Business and Management, General 01.0102, Agribusiness/Agricultural Business Operations 01.0103, Agricultural Economics 01.0104, Farm/Farm and Ranch Management 01.0105, Agricultural/Farm Supplies Retailing and Wholesaling 01.0106, Agricultural Business Technology 01.0199, Agricultural Business and Management, Other 01.0201, Agricultural Mechanization, General 01.0204, Agricultural Power Machinery Operation 01.0205, Agricultural Mechanics and Equipment/Machine Technology 01.0299, Agricultural Mechanization, Other 01.0301, Agricultural Production Operations, General 01.0302, Animal/Livestock Husbandry and Production 01.0303, Aquaculture 01.0304, Crop Production 01.0306, Dairy Husbandry and Production 01.0307, Horse Husbandry/Equine Science and Management 01.0308, Agroecology and Sustainable Agriculture 01.0309, Viticulture and Enology 01.0399, Agricultural Production Operations, Other 01.0401, Agricultural and Food Products Processing 01.0504, Dog/Pet/Animal Grooming 01.0505, Animal Training 01.0507, Equestrian/Equine Studies 01.0508, Taxidermy/Taxidermist 01.0599, Agricultural and Domestic Animal Services, Other 01.0601, Applied Horticulture/Horticultural Operations, General 01.0603, Ornamental Horticulture 01.0604, Greenhouse Operations and Management 01.0605, Landscaping and Groundskeeping 01.0606, Plant Nursery Operations and Management 01.0607, Turf and Turfgrass Management 01.0608, Floriculture/Floristry Operations and Management 01.0699, Applied Horticulture/Horticultural Business Services, Other 01.0701, International Agriculture 01.0801, Agricultural and Extension Education Services 01.0802, Agricultural Communication/Journalism 01.0899, Agricultural Public Services, Other 01.0901, Animal Sciences, General 01.0902, Agricultural Animal Breeding 01.0903, Animal Health 01.0904, Animal Nutrition 01.0905, Dairy Science 01.0906, Livestock Management 01.0907, Poultry Science 01.0999, Animal Sciences, Other 01.1001, Food Science 01.1002, Food Technology and Processing 01.1099, Food Science and Technology, Other 01.1101, Plant Sciences, General 01.1102, Agronomy and Crop Science 01.1103, Horticultural Science 01.1104, Agricultural and Horticultural Plant Breeding 01.1105, Plant Protection and Integrated Pest Management 01.1106, Range Science and Management 01.1199, Plant Sciences, Other 01.1201, Soil Science and Agronomy, General 01.1202, Soil Chemistry and Physics 01.1203, Soil Microbiology 01.1299, Soil Sciences, Other 01.9999, Agriculture, Agriculture Operations, and Related Sciences, Other 03.0101, Natural Resources/Conservation, General 03.0103, Environmental Studies 03.0104, Environmental Science 03.0199, Natural Resources Conservation and Research, Other 03.0201, Natural Resources Management and Policy 03.0204, Natural Resources Economics 03.0205, Water, Wetlands, and Marine Resources Management 03.0206, Land Use Planning and Management/Development 03.0207, Natural Resources Recreation and Tourism 03.0208, Natural Resources Law Enforcement and Protective Services 03.0299, Natural Resources Management and Policy, Other 03.0301, Fishing and Fisheries Sciences and Management 03.0501, Forestry, General 03.0502, Forest Sciences and Biology 03.0506, Forest Management/Forest Resources Management 03.0508, Urban Forestry 03.0509, Wood Science and Wood Products/Pulp and Paper Technology 03.0510, Forest Resources Production and Management 03.0511, Forest Technology/Technician 03.0599, Forestry, Other 03.0601, Wildlife and Wildlands Science and Management 03.9999, Natural Resources and Conservation, Other 13.1301, Agricultural Teacher Education 14.0301, Agricultural/Biological Engineering and Bioengineering 19.0501, Foods, Nutrition, and Wellness Studies, General 19.0504, Human Nutrition 19.0505, Foodservice Systems Administration/Management 19.0599, Foods, Nutrition, and Related Services, Other 30.1901, Nutrition Sciences 30.3301, Sustainability Studies 51.0808, Veterinary/Animal Health Technology/Technician and Veterinary Assistant

The institutions listed in this appendix are granted HSACU certification by the Secretary and are eligible for HSACU programs for the period starting July 1, 2024 and ending July 1, 2025. Institutions are listed alphabetically under the state of the school's location, with the campus indicated where applicable.

Arkansas (1) Cossatot Community College of the University of Arkansas Arizona (12) Arizona State University Campus Immersion Arizona Western College Chandler-Gilbert Community College Cochise County Community College District Estrella Mountain Community College GateWay Community College Glendale Community College Mesa Community College Phoenix College Rio Salado College Scottsdale Community College South Mountain Community College California (97) Allan Hancock College American River College Antelope Valley Community College District Bakersfield College Butte College Cabrillo College California Baptist University California Lutheran University California State Polytechnic University—Humboldt California State Polytechnic University—Pomona California State University—Bakersfield California State University—Channel Islands California State University—Chico California State University—East Bay California State University—Fresno California State University—Fullerton California State University—Long Beach California State University—Los Angeles California State University—Monterey Bay California State University—Northridge California State University—Sacramento California State University—San Bernardino California State University—San Marcos California State University—Stanislaus Chabot College Chaffey College Citrus College Clovis Community College College of San Mateo College of the Canyons College of the Desert College of the Sequoias Cosumnes River College Crafton Hills College Cuesta College Cypress College Diablo Valley College East Los Angeles College El Camino Community College District Evergreen Valley College Foothill College Fresno City College Fresno Pacific University Fullerton College Glendale Community College Hartnell College Imperial Valley College Lake Tahoe Community College Las Positas College Long Beach City College Los Angeles City College Los Angeles Harbor College Los Angeles Mission College Los Angeles Pierce College Los Angeles Southwest College Los Angeles Trade Technical College Madera Community College Merced College MiraCosta College Modesto Junior College Monterey Peninsula College Moorpark College Mt San Antonio College Mt San Jacinto Community College District Orange Coast College Oxnard College Palomar College Pasadena City College Porterville College Reedley College Rio Hondo College Riverside City College Saddleback College Saint Mary's College of California San Bernardino Valley College San Diego Mesa College San Diego Miramar College San Diego State University San Francisco State University San Joaquin Delta College San Jose City College San Jose State University Santa Barbara City College Santa Monica College Santa Rosa Junior College Southwestern College University of California-Irvine University of California-Riverside University of California-Santa Barbara University of California-Santa Cruz University of La Verne University of Redlands Ventura College Victor Valley College West Hills College-Coalinga West Los Angeles College Yuba College Colorado (6) Colorado State University Pueblo Community College of Denver Metropolitan State University of Denver Regis University Trinidad State College University of Northern Colorado Connecticut (2) Gateway Community College Norwalk Community College Florida (12) Ana G. Mendez University Broward College Florida Atlantic University Florida International University Hillsborough Community College Indian River State College Miami Dade College Nova Southeastern University Palm Beach State College Seminole State College of Florida University of Central Florida Valencia College Georgia (2) Dalton State College Lanier Technical College Idaho (1) College of Southern Idaho Illinois (6) City Colleges of Chicago—Richard J Daley College College of Lake County Dominican University Northeastern Illinois University Triton College University of Illinois Chicago Kansas (1) Seward County Community College Nevada (4) College of Southern Nevada Nevada State College Truckee Meadows Community College University of Nevada-Las Vegas New Jersey (9) Atlantic Cape Community College Bergen Community College Hudson County Community College Kean University Middlesex College Montclair State University New Jersey Institute of Technology Passaic County Community College William Paterson University of New Jersey New Mexico (9) Central New Mexico Community College Eastern New Mexico University—Main Campus Eastern New Mexico University—Roswell Campus New Mexico Highlands University Northern New Mexico College Santa Fe Community College University of New Mexico—Los Alamos Campus University of New Mexico—Main Campus Western New Mexico University New York (12) CUNY City College CUNY Hostos Community College CUNY Hunter College CUNY LaGuardia Community College CUNY Lehman College CUNY Queens College CUNY Queensborough Community College Manhattan College Manhattanville College Mercy College Nassau Community College Suffolk County Community College North Carolina (1) Sampson Community College Oregon (1) Chemeketa Community College Puerto Rico (20) Dewey University—Juana Díaz Instituto Tecnologico de Puerto Rico—Recinto de Manati Inter American University of Puerto Rico—Aguadilla Inter American University of Puerto Rico—Arecibo Inter American University of Puerto Rico—Barranquitas Inter American University of Puerto Rico—Bayamon Inter American University of Puerto Rico—Guayama Inter American University of Puerto Rico—Ponce Inter American University of Puerto Rico—San German Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico—Arecibo Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico—Ponce Universal Technology College of Puerto Rico Universidad Ana G. Mendez—Carolina Campus Universidad Ana G. Mendez—Cupey Campus Universidad Ana G. Mendez—Gurabo Campus University of Puerto Rico—Arecibo University of Puerto Rico—Humacao University of Puerto Rico—Medical Sciences University of Puerto Rico—Rio Piedras University of Puerto Rico—Utuado Rhode Island (1) Rhode Island College Tennessee (1) Southern Adventist University Texas (35) Amarillo College Angelo State University Austin College Austin Community College District Concordia University Texas Dallas College Houston Community College Huston-Tillotson University Lee College Lone Star College System Odessa College Palo Alto College Saint Edward's University Sam Houston State University South Plains College Southwest Texas Junior College Southwestern University St. Mary's University Sul Ross State University Tarrant County College District Texas A & M University-Corpus Christi Texas A & M University-Kingsville Texas State University Texas Woman's University The University of Texas at Arlington The University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at El Paso The University of Texas at San Antonio The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Tyler Junior College University of Houston University of Houston-Clear Lake University of North Texas University of the Incarnate Word Wayland Baptist University Virginia (1) Northern Virginia Community College Washington (6) Big Bend Community College Columbia Basin College Heritage University Perry Technical Institute Wenatchee Valley College Yakima Valley College [89 FR 81293, Oct. 8, 2024]