The Hispanic Scholarship Fund, one of the largest sources of college money for Latino students in the country, will soon open its awards to applicants of every race and ethnicity. The change is part of a deal that settles a lawsuit claiming the program was discriminatory.

Starting in January, the nonprofit will stop asking about an applicant's heritage. It will instead choose scholars who show a commitment to the success of Hispanic Americans.

For half a century the fund has limited its main scholars program to students of Hispanic heritage. Over that time it says it has handed out more than $756 million, with awards from $500 to $5,000 going to about 10,000 students a year along with mentoring and career support.

How the lawsuit started

The American Alliance for Equal Rights sued the fund in federal court in Washington last year. The group was founded by Edward Blum, the activist behind the case that ended race-conscious college admissions at the Supreme Court in 2023.

The suit argued that the scholarship application is a contract and that limiting it to one ethnic group violates the Civil Rights Act of 1866, a Reconstruction-era law that bans racial bias in contracts. It said some of the group's members, including Asian American and white students, wanted to apply but could not.

A change the fund was already weighing

Fund President and CEO Fidel Vargas said the group had been thinking about this shift since that 2023 ruling. He said opening the doors will bring allies from more communities into the work of lifting up Hispanic Americans.

Vargas said the mission is not changing. He described it as making the country stronger by strengthening the Hispanic community and said that job takes everyone, not just Latinos.

The settlement is the latest in a string of challenges to scholarships built for one racial or ethnic group. Similar suits have pushed other programs to rename themselves or widen who can apply. For Latino families, the fund's message is that the money and support will keep flowing toward the same goal.