IV 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. RES. 505 

Honoring the 50th anniversary of the Higher Education Act of 1965. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

OCTOBER 29, 2015 

Mr. HINOJOSA (for himself, Mr. SCOTT of Virginia, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. GENE

GREEN of Texas, Ms. JACKSON LEE, Mr. VELA, Ms. EDDIE BERNICE

JOHNSON of Texas, Mr. VEASEY, Mr. JEFFRIES, Mr. TAKANO, Mr. 

SABLAN, Mr. CA ́RDENAS, Mrs. DAVIS of California, Mr. POLIS, Ms. 

FUDGE, Ms. JUDY CHU of California, Mr. DANNY K. DAVIS of Illinois, 

Mr. POCAN, Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts, Ms. LEE, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, 

Mr. DOGGETT, Mr. GALLEGO, Ms. BONAMICI, Mr. FATTAH, Ms. CLARKE

of New York, Mr. CASTRO of Texas, Mr. O’ROURKE, Ms. ADAMS, Ms. 

ROYBAL-ALLARD, Mr. COURTNEY, Mr. CUELLAR, Mr. DESAULNIER, Mr. 

AL GREEN of Texas, and Ms. WILSON of Florida) submitted the following 

resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Education and the 

Workforce 

RESOLUTION 

Honoring the 50th anniversary of the Higher Education Act 

of 1965. 

Whereas 2015 marks the 50th anniversary of the Higher 

Education Act of 1965; 

Whereas President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Act into 

law on November 8, 1965, as part of the ‘‘Great Society’’; 

Whereas prior to its passage, attending institutions of higher 

education remained an unreachable dream for those withVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:49 Oct 29, 2015 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR505.IH HR505

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•HRES 505 IH 

out the financial means or legal ability to improve their 

educational and occupational status; 

Whereas generations of Americans sought Federal legislation 

to increase access to these institutions of higher education for populations barred from attending due to social and economic inequality; 

Whereas efforts by those in the civil rights movement cast a 

bright light on the restrictive, inhumane treatment of 

Americans facing the oppressive burden of poverty and 

racial injustice; 

Whereas while early Great Society legislation signed into law 

by President Lyndon B. Johnson prohibited discrimination based on race, color, national origin, religion, and 

sex, many Americans still lacked the education and skills 

needed to fully participate in a rapidly modernizing economy through no fault of their own; 

Whereas the Higher Education Act of 1965 authorized a vast 

array of programs and provisions supporting millions of 

low-income students and their families in their efforts to 

attend and complete studies at institutions of higher education; 

Whereas the funding authorized by the Higher Education Act 

of 1965 continues to serve as the primary source of Federal student aid in the form of Federal grants, student 

loans, and Federal Work-Study; 

Whereas the Higher Education Act of 1965, in addition to 

offering aid directly to students, provided grants to institutions of higher education to promote research, established a National Teacher Corps, and allocated aid to historically Black colleges and universities, two-year colleges, 

and other ‘‘developing’’ institutions; 


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•HRES 505 IH 

Whereas Congress has amended the Higher Education Act of 

1965 at various times, with key changes that strengthened the Act; 

Whereas the creation of the Talent Search Program in 1965 

and the Special Services for Disadvantaged Students 

Program under the reauthorization in 1968 formed, with 

the Upward Bound Program, a trio of programs (commonly known as ‘‘TRIO’’) designed to identify and provide services to low-income individuals, first-generation 

college students, and individuals with disabilities in their 

progress from secondary to postbaccalaureate study; 

Whereas the amendments to the Act in the Patsy Takemoto 

Mink Equal Opportunity in Education Act of 1972, commonly known as ‘‘title IX’’, made groundbreaking 

changes that prohibit discrimination on the basis of sex 

in any academic or athletic program receiving Federal 

funding or support and continue the march toward true 

equality of opportunity for all; 

Whereas the Basic Educational Opportunity Grant, signed 

into law in 1972 and now known as the Pell Grant Program, began providing need-based grants to low-income 

students in order to further improve access to institutions 

of higher education; 

Whereas the amendments to the Higher Education Act of 

1965 have underscored the importance of preparing students from migrant and seasonal farmworker families to 

enter and succeed in postsecondary education by providing Federal support for the High School Equivalency 

Program (HEP) and the College Assistance Migrant Program (CAMP); 


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•HRES 505 IH 

Whereas the 1998 amendments created the Gaining Early 

Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs 

(GEAR UP), a discretionary grant program tasked with 

increasing the number of successful low-income students 

in higher education by providing critical supports to cohorts of students in high poverty middle schools; 

Whereas amendments to the Higher Education Act of 1965 

created pathways toward loan forgiveness for the Nation’s servicemembers, public and civil servants, and 

teachers, allowing more graduates to serve in these important roles while working toward the prospect of greater financial independence; 

Whereas amendments to the Higher Education Act of 1965 

created title V, a Federal designation and increased support for Hispanic-serving institutions, colleges and universities that provide a significant proportion of postsecondary opportunities for Latino undergraduate and graduate students and low-income students; 

Whereas amendments to the Act in the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act, enacted as part of the Health 

Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010, made 

landmark investments in Pell Grants, historically Black 

colleges and universities, Hispanic-serving institutions, 

tribal colleges and universities, predominantly Black institutions, Asian-American and Native American Pacific 

Islander-serving institutions, Alaska Native and Native 

Hawaiian-serving institutions, and other minority-serving 

institutions; 

Whereas amendments to the Higher Education Act of 1965 

have created Federal programs to strengthen the capacity 

of institutions enrolling undergraduates at two-year and 

four-year public and private colleges and universities, as 


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•HRES 505 IH 

well as institutions of higher education offering graduate 

study; and 

Whereas the Higher Education Act of 1965 solidified and expanded the Federal Government’s role in higher education policy at an integral time in our Nation’s history, 

and continues to provide Americans with the means for 

access to a postsecondary education: Now, therefore, be 

it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 

2 (1) honors the 50th anniversary of the Higher 

3 Education Act of 1965; 

4 (2) acknowledges those whose support and ef5 forts led to passage of the Higher Education Act of 

6 1965; 

7 (3) recognizes the significant investment the 

8 Higher Education Act of 1965 has made in the lives 

9 of American students, families, and this Nation as 

10 a whole; and 

11 (4) encourages all Americans to recognize and 

12 celebrate the important historical milestone rep13 resented by the congressional passage of the Higher 

14 Education Act of 1965 and its ideals of improving 

15 educational access and affordability. 

Æ 


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