FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

June 22, 2023

HACU leaders appointed to Academic Council to advise Department of Homeland Security

SAN ANTONIO – The Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities and three member institutions are among the new appointments by U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro N. Mayorkas to the Homeland Security Academic Partnership Council (HSAPC).

HACU President and CEO Antonio R. Flores, San Diego State University President and HACU Governing Board Member Adela de la Torre, Northwestern University President Michael Schill, and Carnegie Mellon University President Farnam Jahanian, were among the leaders from HACU-member institutions appointed for a two-year term. The HSAPC is designed to provide strategic and actionable recommendations to the Secretary on campus safety and security, improved coordination, research priorities, hiring and more. See full release for a list of the Council members.

The newly appointed Council members are a diverse group representing higher education associations, campus law enforcement, two- and four-year colleges and universities, Hispanic-Serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Tribal Colleges, and Asian American and Pacific Islander-Serving Institutions. The Council will provide advice and recommendations on matters that may relate, but are not limited to:

• Safety and security, including prevention, response, mitigation, recovery, and other emergency management and preparedness measures 
• Improving coordination and sharing of actionable threat and security-related information, including threats of violence as well as targeted violence and terrorism prevention 
• Methods to develop career opportunities to support a 21st century DHS workforce  
• Enhancing and expanding research opportunities, such as the DHS Science and Technology Centers of Excellence and DHS/National Security Agency joint Centers of Academic Excellence
  
  

The Council will host its first public meeting and announce any additional new member appointments in the coming months. Following each meeting, tasks directed by the Secretary will be published in the Federal Register.

About HACU
The Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities, founded in 1986, represents more than 500 colleges and universities in the United States, D.C, Puerto Rico, Latin America, Spain, and school districts throughout the U.S. HACU is the only national association representing existing and emerging Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs). The Association’s headquarters are in San Antonio, Texas, with regional offices in Washington, D.C. and Sacramento, California.