HOUSE BILL REPORT

                  HB 1066

             As Reported By House Committee on:

                      Higher Education

Title:  An act relating to the Hispanic American endowed scholarship program.

Brief Description:  Establishing the Hispanic American endowed scholarship program.

Sponsor(s):  Representatives Prentice, Prince, Jacobsen, Dellwo, Bray, Miller, Ludwig and Kremen.

Brief History:

  Reported by House Committee on:

Higher Education, February 20, 1991, DPS.

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON

HIGHER EDUCATION

Majority Report: That Substitute House Bill No. 1066 be substituted therefor, and the substitute bill do pass.  Signed by 13 members:  Representatives Jacobsen, Chair; Ogden, Vice Chair; Wood, Ranking Minority Member; May, Assistant Ranking Minority Member; Basich; Dellwo; Fraser; Ludwig; Miller; Prince; Sheldon; Spanel; and Van Luven. 

Staff:  Patricia Cazares (786-7071).

Background:

Population & Enrollment:

According to 1988 population statistics, Hispanic Americans comprise approximately 3.6 percent of Washington's population.  They are enrolled in higher education at the lower rate of 2.6 percent.  Hispanic American students participate in greater numbers in lower division courses than in upper division courses.  They are also represented in greater numbers in community colleges than in four-year institutions.

Graduation Statistics:

A recent study on the Status of Minority Students and Faculty in Washington's Higher Education System indicates a low graduation rate among Hispanic American students.  While, on the average, Hispanic American students enroll at approximately 2.6 percent of the total student enrollment, they are conferred only 1.1 percent of all bachelor's degrees awarded at four-year institutions.  

A discrepancy exists between the enrollment and graduation rates among Hispanic American students.  This discrepancy may otherwise be characterized as a low retention rate.  Low retention rates among Hispanic American students are attributable to a variety of factors including limited financial resources, inadequate preparation, and difficulty in adjusting to a campus environment.

Summary of Substitute Bill:  The bill establishes the Hispanic American Endowed Scholarship program.  The HECB is responsible for administering the program.  Its powers and duties are described to include, but not be limited to, establishing both an advisory and a screening committee; selecting scholarship recipients; and soliciting and accepting grants and donations from public and private sources for the program.

Eligibility is described to include a Hispanic American student who is a financially needy, full-time resident student at an institution of higher education in this state who promises to use his or her education to benefit other Hispanic Americans.

The board and advisory committee shall develop criteria for selecting scholarship recipients.  The criteria shall assess the student's social and cultural ties to a Hispanic American community within the state.  The criteria shall include a priority for upper division or graduate students.  It may also include a priority for students majoring in a program in which expertise is needed by the state's Hispanic Americans.

The bill establishes the endowment and trust funds.  Upon raising $50,000 in private donations, matching funds may be requested by the board to be deposited into the endowment fund from the trust fund.  No appropriation is requested in this bill.  In order for the board to award scholarships, however, funds would need to be appropriated in the state budget bill.

Substitute Bill Compared to Original Bill:  In the substitute bill, race is not defined by the board.  A student's eligibility is determined by whether they meet the specific criteria that is outlined.  In addition to the existing criteria, the eligibility criteria will assess the student's social and cultural ties to the Hispanic American community within the state.

Fiscal Note:  Requested February 11, 1991.

Effective Date of Substitute Bill:  Ninety days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.

Testimony For:  Many people spoke in favor of this bill.  They pointed to the increasing discrepancy between enrollment and graduation rates among Hispanic students.  The lack of change in the number of baccalaureate degrees conferred to Hispanics between the years 1985 and 1989 was of particular concern.  They explained that the creation of the Hispanic American Endowed Scholarship program could allow business, government and private individuals to join in a partnership to eliminate some of the financial barriers often experienced by Hispanic undergraduate students.  This, in turn, could help produce the needed role models among the Hispanic community in this state.

Testimony Against:  None.

Witnesses:  Representative Prentice; Phyllis Guitierrez Kenny; Dr. Carlos Maldonado, Northwest Regional Office of the National Association for Chicano Studies; Adelina Gonzales, Chicano Education Program, Eastern Washington University; Maribel Perales; Javier Valdez; Gilbert Garcia, Chicano Education Program, Assistant Professor at Eastern Washington University; Jill Zubia, Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers; Luis Leon, Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers; Anita Rodriguez, Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers; Andrew Rodriguez, Commission on Hispanic Affairs; and Ernest Aguilar, Washington State Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.