Historic Black Colleges and Universities are designated higher education institutions that were established before 1964 to serve and educate minority populations that might not otherwise have the opportunity to increase their knowledge and enlighten themselves.
The first institution of higher education that was created exclusively for blacks was Cheyney University of Pennsylvania in 1837. Cheyney was joined by a few more black colleges in antebellum America, but it was the Morrill Act of 1890 which allowed for black land-grant universities to be chartered in cases where segregation barred African Americans from receiving education in state run institutions.
The ranks of HBCUs blossomed, especially throughout the South, to more than 200 institutions dedicated to fostering a learning environment for the achievement and enlightenment of African Americans. However, after desegregation and racial tensions relaxed throughout the country, greater opportunities at predominately white institutions (PWIs) opened up for students of color, and the necessity for African-Americans to rely on HBCUs for education diminished.
Today there are 105 accredited HBCUs in America, which represents less than three percent of colleges and universities nationwide. However, 11 percent of African American college students in the United States are enrolled in HBCUs, according to National Center for Education Statistics. Average enrollment rates are between 5,000-7,000 undergraduate; only three schools have student populations over 10,000 (Howard University, Florida American University, and North Carolina A&T University).
Enrollment rates stagnated after the financial crisis of 2008, when tighter regulations on the Parents PLUS student loans affected approximately 30,000 HBCU students, resulting in $150 million in lost tuition. Even now, if the student qualifies for the loan, many families decide against incurring the debt.
Attracting prospective students continues to be a hot-button issue for HBCUs: more African Americans pursue and receive degrees from for-profit institutions like University of Phoenix than in HBCU programs; the proportion of bachelor’s degrees awarded to black students by historically black colleges dropped from 35 percent in 1976 to 17 percent in 2011, according to the U.S. Department of Education.
“The idea of a college as a special and essential gateway to a successful life is lost on far too many young black men,” said John S. Wilson, President of Morehouse College, in a report titled, The Changing Face of Historically Black Colleges and Universities. “More Americans need to join [us] in adopting the urgency to change that.”
To exacerbate the situation, recent data published by PayScale.com questioned if certain HBCU alumni actually fared better than high school graduates when one considers the amount of debt incurred and average expected salary. Yet some advocates of HBCU programs believe that the current adversities have created a golden opportunity to foster a Renaissance for the historic institutions.
Although data sometimes may be presented to show HBCUs “lagging behind their national counterparts,” the disparity between HBCUs and predominately white institutions (PWIs) “reflects less on the institutions themselves than on the tendency in the United States to invest in students who need the least help instead of those who need the most,” concluded the report published by Center for Minority-Serving Institutions at the University of Pennsylvania,
“Students are savvy these days. They can go anywhere. You have to prove that you’re are one of the best places for them,” said Marybeth Gasman, the head of the CMSI at UPENN and lead author of the paper, in an interview with NewsWorks. “And for me, HBCUs have a really strong track record of preparing students for graduate and professional study, of taking care of students and creating a family environment. But people have to know that.”
That was one of the reasons that scores of HBCU representatives congregated in Atlanta in June at the first annual HBCU Student Success Summit. The three day workshop featured college presidents, faculty and students giving presentations, sharing information and networking with each other in order to figure out the best opportunities that lie ahead for HBCUs.
“Rather than trying to reinvent the wheel, we wanted to use what our colleagues are already doing—that’s working well for them—and share that information across universities. I believe strongly that the summit achieved that goal,” said Juliette M. Bell, president of the University of Maryland Eastern Shore and chair of the APLU Council of 1890 Universities.
The main aim of the event was to figure out the key factors that promote a culture of student success and will improve retention and graduation rates, and how to develop effective partnerships with underrepresented students.
“This is an exciting time for HBCUs,” said John Michael Lee, vice president of the Office of Access and Success at APLU. “These institutions play an essential role in achieving the nation’s college degree completion goals and it is important that both HBCUs and non-HBCUs work collaboratively to share new and effective practices and strategies. This summit is providing a forum for a stimulating and robust discussion about those practices and strategies.”
The common concurrence among experts was the bounty of opportunity the future holds for HBCUs. New population demographics, such as the Hispanic and Asian communities, are the next targets for student recruiters; administrations now realize the crucial prestige a high quality faculty can lend to an institution and are focused on acquiring professors with doctorates; departments are developing cutting edge business, IT, and STEM programs to rival PWIs nationwide.
“As the country moves closer to becoming a minority-majority population, several opportunities exist for HBCUs, from increased enrollments, funding, and overall attention,” said Brian Bridges, executive Director of the UNCF Frederick D. Patterson Research Institute. “However, the appropriate strategic leaders and vision must be in place to take advantage of any opportunities that arise for these schools.”
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“This summit is providing a forum for a stimulating and robust discussion about those practices and strategies.” John Michael Lee, vice president of the Office of Access and Success at APLU.
“These institutions play an essential role in achieving the nation’s college degree completion goals and it is important that both HBCUs and non-HBCUs work collaboratively to share new and effective practices and strategies,” John Michael Lee, vice president of the Office of Access and Success at APLU.
“Rather than trying to reinvent the wheel, we wanted to use what our colleagues are already doing—that’s working well for them—and share that information across universities. I believe strongly that the summit achieved that goal,” said Juliette M. Bell, president of the University of Maryland Eastern Shore and chair of the APLU Council of 1890 Universities.
“HBCUs have a really strong track record of preparing students for graduate and professional study, of taking care of students and creating a family environment. But people have to know that.” Marybeth Gasman
“The idea of a college as a special and essential gateway to a successful life is lost on far too many young black men. More Americans need to join [us] in adopting the urgency to change that,” John S. Wilson, President of Morehouse College, in a report titled The Changing Face of Historically Black Colleges and Universities.