Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions

Since receiving federal grant funding and recognition in 2007 and 2008, Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs) have been serving students who were historically disenfranchised from the U.S. higher education system. Primarily public two- and four-year institutions, AANAPISIs educated 33% of all Asian American or Pacific Islander (AAPI) students in fall 2020. Currently present in 27 states and territories, they are clustered mostly on the west coast and in Hawaii and the Pacific territories, as well as New York.

The College Cost Reduction and Access Act of 2007 established federal funds for Minority-Serving Institutions (MSIs), including AANAPISIs and Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Predominantly Black Institutions (PBIs), Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs), and Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs). During the reauthorization of the Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) in 2008, AANAPISIs were authorized, with specific eligibility and use requirements codified in 2009 into Title III, Parts A and F of the HEA. These acts established a limited pool of federal funds for which eligible institutions could apply with the specific intent of increasing the ability of institutions to serve AAPI students.

The AANAPISI program allows eligible institutions of higher education to improve their academic quality, increase their self-sufficiency, and strengthen their capacity to make a substantial contribution to the success of AAPI students. To be eligible for AANAPISI status, an institution’s undergraduate student enrollment must be at least 10% Asian American or Native American Pacific Islander. In addition to being an accredited institution, schools need to demonstrate that at least half of their enrolled students received federal financial aid and must maintain less-than-average expenditures per FTE student. Institutions that meet these standards can apply to be designated as an AANAPISI by the U.S. Department of Education. Once an institution has been designated as an AANAPISI, they may apply for discretionary grants up to $350,000 per year for five years, with a cumulative maximum award of $1,750,000.

AANAPISI grants encourage schools to provide students with support services, develop summer bridge programs between two-year and four-year colleges and universities, strengthen student advising and academic support, provide professional development to faculty, and develop an endowment fund to meet costs for maintenance and technological upgrades. AANAPISI funding also provides resources to increase access to leadership development, create first-year experience programs, establish student learning communities, and provide mentorship opportunities for students. AANAPISI dollars may be used to conduct research on the AAPI population and to provide staff development opportunities to help AANAPISI administrators, faculty, and campus personnel better understand the complexities of the AAPI communities.