Senators to USDA Secretary: “The Department’s decision to suspend EKDLG Fellowship Program threatens the U.S. agricultural workforce pipeline and the opportunities this program provides educators and students nationwide”
NMSU Was Part of 2024 Fellowship Program That Supported our Nation’s Agricultural Workforce
WASHINGTON — U.S. Senators Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), a member of the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee, joined 11 Democratic colleagues to urge U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Brooke Rollins to immediately reinstate the E. Kika De La Garza (EKDLG) Fellowship Program. The EKDLG program, suspended by the Trump administration, supports the nation’s agricultural workforce while uplifting professionals and students of all backgrounds at Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs), including non-Latino students. Last year, staff at the New Mexico State University (NMSU) was selected for the 2024 EKDLG Fellowship Program.
The USDA established the nonpartisan EKDLG Fellowship Program in 1998, designing the program to strengthen educational partnerships between faculty, staff, and administrators from HSIs and the USDA. These partnerships support professional development, workforce development, and exposure opportunities for Hispanic-Serving Institutions nationwide, offering critical insight and understanding of the federal government.
“USDA’s partnership with HSIs and Hispanic Serving Agricultural Colleges and Universities (HSACUs) plays a vital role in establishing a collaborative relationship and creating a nationwide network of educators working with USDA to help grow the next generation of the American agricultural workforce,” the senators wrote in a letter to USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins.
“The Department’s decision to suspend EKDLG Fellowship Program threatens the U.S. agricultural workforce pipeline and the opportunities this program provides educators and students nationwide. We urge you to immediately reinstate the E. Kika De La Garza Fellowship Program, similar to Department’s reinstatement of the 1890 National Scholars Program, and to collaborate with Congress to ensure its long-term stability,” the senators continued.
The letter is led by U.S. Senators Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.). Alongside Heinrich and Luján, the letter is signed by U.S. Senators Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.).
The letter is endorsed by the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU) and UnidosUS.
Full text of the letter is here and below:
Dear Secretary Rollins,
We write to express our significant concerns about the suspension of the USDA Hispanic-Serving (HSI) E. Kika De La Garza (EKDLG) Fellowship Program and to ask that you immediately reinstate it.
The EKDLG Fellowship Program was established in 1998 by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and the program has had consistent support from every presidential administration since its establishment. The program strengthens educational partnerships between faculty, staff, and administrators from HSIs and USDA.
The EKDLG Fellowship Program is non-partisan and supports increasing the professional development, workforce development, and exposure opportunities for faculty, staff, and students nationwide. USDA’s partnership with HSIs and Hispanic Serving Agricultural Colleges and Universities (HSACUs) plays a vital role in establishing a collaborative relationship and creating a nationwide network of educators working with USDA to help grow the next generation of the American agricultural workforce. These fellowships are open to faculty, staff, and administrators of all backgrounds that are employed at HSIs or Hispanic-Serving School Districts and students of all backgrounds are eligible to participate.
HSIs are economic engines and shape our nation’s agricultural workforce. In 2022, HSIs enrolled 5.2 million students, including 66% of all Hispanic undergraduate students and over 31% of all college students in non-profit postsecondary institutions in the country. Programs like the EKDLG Fellowship Program equip educators with the tools to help students reach their full potential and support the nation’s agricultural workforce pipeline. For example, the list of 2024 EKDLG participants shows the program’s nationwide impact:
1. University of Houston, Sugar Land, Texas
2. New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, New Mexico
3. The University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona
4. Arizona Western College, Yuma, Arizona
5. Coastal Bend College, Beeville, Texas
6. Adams State University, Alamosa, Colorado
7. California State University, Chico, Chico, California
8. Montclair State University, Montclair, New Jersey
9. Texas A&M University, Kingsville, Texas
10. Mesa Community College, Mesa, Arizona
11. Hartnell College, Salinas, California
12. Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas
13. City Colleges of Chicago, Harold Washington College, Chicago, Illinois
14. Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas
15. Maricopa Community Colleges, Tempe, Arizona
16. University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut
17. Waubonsee Community College, Sugar Grove, Illinois
18. Northern Arizona University, Yuma, Arizona
19. University of California, Santa Barbara, California
20. Cuesta College, San Luis Obispo, California
21. University of Texas, San Antonio, Texas
22. CUNY New York City College of Technology, Brooklyn, New York
23. CUNY Hunter College, New York, New York
24. Florida International University, Miami, Florida
25. California State University, Fresno, California
26. Arizona State University, Mesa, Arizona
27. Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas
29. Mt. Adams School District #209, White Swan, Washington
30. The Urban Assembly New York Harbor School, New York, New York
31. John Bowne High School, Flushing, New York
The Department’s decision to suspend EKDLG Fellowship Program threatens the U.S. agricultural workforce pipeline and the opportunities this program provides educators and students nationwide.
We urge you to immediately reinstate the E. Kika De La Garza Fellowship Program, similar to Department’s reinstatement of the 1890 National Scholars Program, and to collaborate with Congress to ensure its long-term stability.
Sincerely,
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