SAFRA Grant

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Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act (SAFRA) Grant
 

The Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act (SAFRA), which was included in the health care reconciliation bill that was passed on March 21, 2010 and signed into law on March 30, 2010, embraces the president's challenge to produce the  most college graduates by 2020. SAFRA makes the single largest investment in federal student aid ever.

The SAFRA grant is awarded through the Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) Program of the Department of Education for a ten year period beginning October 1, 2010. Title III, Part F of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended, provides an additional $85 million annually until fiscal year 2019 for the Title III, Part B HBCU program. These mandatory (SAFRA) funds are added to monies appropriated in a regular or supplemental grant awarded under the Title III, Part B Strengthening HBCU Program.

Recipients of the HBCU and SAFRA Grants must comply with these conditions under Public Law 105-78, Sec. 508. The purpose of the Title III/SAFRA program is to assist HBCUs in establishing and strengthening their physical plants, academic resources, and student services to continue to fulfill the goal of equalizing educational opportunity. The following represents the activities allowable under the HBCU program:
  1. Purchase, rental, or lease of scientific or laboratory equipment for educational purposes, including instructional or research purposes;
  2. Construction, maintenance, renovation, and improvement in classroom, library, laboratory, and other instructional facilities, including purchase or rental of telecommunications technology equipment or services;
  3. Academic instruction in disciplines in which Black Americans are underrepresented;
  4. Purchase of library books, periodicals, microfilm, and other educational materials, including telecommunications program materials;
  5. Establishing or enhancing a program of teacher education designed to qualify students to teach in a public elementary or secondary school in the State that shall include, as part of the program, preparation for teacher certification;
  6. Other activities consistent with the institution’s comprehensive plan and designed to increase the institution’s capacity to prepare students for careers in the physical or natural sciences, mathematics, computer science or information technology or sciences, engineering, language instruction, in the less-commonly taught languages or international affairs, or nursing or allied health profession.