The nation's 107 historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) are in the spotlight due to surging enrollment. Also, you may have heard, Vice President Kamala Harris, a Howard University grad, is running for president.
The first couple of HBCUs were established before the war while slavery was still thriving. And over the next century, dozens of HBCUs were established throughout the country. In Title III of the Higher Education Act of 1965, Congress officially defined an HBCU as an accredited institution established before 1964 with the principal mission of providing an education for Black Americans.
'Engines of upward mobility' HBCUs have spent 180 years establishing themselves as "engines of upward mobility for students who, due to systemic racism and discrimination, had limited access to other higher education options," the White House Council of Economic Advisers said in an "Economics of HBCUs" brief. Despite representing only 3% of colleges and universities, HBCUs play a massive role in the cultivation of the Black middle class, producing 40% of all Black engineers, 50% of all Black teachers, 70% of Black doctors and dentists and 80% of Black judges.
For more than a century, HBCUs have produced many prominent graduates, many of whom have made history. Thurgood Marshall, the first Black Supreme Court Justice, attended Lincoln University and Howard University Law School. Fellow Bison Kamala Harris, who graduated from Howard in 1968, was the first HBCU grad to be elected vice president and is now the first to lead a major party ticket for the presidential election.
HBCUs in the 21st century While some might question the necessity of HBCUs since the desegregation of the school system, interest in the institutions has spiked in recent years. As the number of undergraduate college students in the U.S. dropped during the pandemic, HBCUs saw a historic enrollment increase.
In a climate where racial politics seem to clash with academics, there's a "growing recognition of the unique cultural and educational experience that HBCUs offer," said Jennifer Price, the vice president of enrollment management at Edward Waters University in Jacksonville, Florida. They provide a nurturing environment in which "students can thrive academically and personally, surrounded by peers, staff and faculty who understand their backgrounds and experiences." |