All of Colorado’s Democrats in Congress wrote Tuesday to the U.S. Department of Education opposing its move to end grant funding programs for minority-serving institutions.

The department in September announced that it would end federal grants designated for MSIs, schools that are federally designated for serving a high concentration of minority and low-income students. Colorado has 15 MSIs, 14 of which are Hispanic-serving institutions and one of which is a Native American-serving institution, according to the letter.

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“These grant programs help provide programming and support specifically for students of color and lower-income students,” the Democrats wrote. “Ending these programs will have widespread detrimental effects on students from all states and backgrounds.”

U.S. Senators Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper and U.S. Representatives Diana DeGette of Denver, Joe Neguse of Lafayette, Jason Crow of Aurora and Brittany Pettersen of Lakewood wrote the letter U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon.

Colorado colleges and universities have lost millions because of the cuts, the letter says. The Democrats asked the department to help affected institutions find other opportunities for federal funding to make up for the loss of grant funding. They also asked for a written response within 30 days providing more information on where grant funding will be reallocated to ensure it continues to support students.

“We have heard strong concerns from Colorado colleges and universities that have received termination notices from the Department,” the letter says. “The loss of millions of dollars will mean fewer opportunities for students and will only cause harm to the communities these institutions serve.”

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In a press release announcing the funding cuts, McMahon said grant programs specifically for MSIs “discriminate by restricting eligibility to institutions that meet government-mandated racial quotas.” The release said about $350 million in discretionary funding will be reallocated to programs that do not include racial quotas.

Seven of the Colorado Community College System’s 13 colleges are designated HSIs, and three of those schools received grant termination notices. Morgan Community College lost $1.6 million in federal grant funding, Lamar Community College lost $3 million, and Pueblo Community College lost just under $600,000, according to CCCS spokesperson Fiona Lytle. CCCS also has two other schools that were approaching HSI eligibility and were preparing to apply for federal funding.

Those grants supported first-generation and low-income college students, staff positions that helped students and prospective future students, English as a second language students, orientation programs, and professional development for staff and faculty, among other programs and initiatives at the three affected community colleges.

A lawsuit filed in Tennessee in June challenged the constitutionality of HSIs and related grant programs, arguing they discriminate on the basis of ethnicity.