NO WAYS TIRED AND STILL STANDING

NO WAYS TIRED & STILL STANDING… THE HBCU STORY ENDURES BY KYRA M. ROBINSON

Adams v. Bennett (Adams v. Richardson). Geier v. Dunn. U.S. v. Fordice.

When I wrote my master’s thesis-turned-book, No Ways Tired: The Public Historically Black College Dilemma, over two decades ago, these court cases were not unfamiliar to those in HBCU circles. During that time, quite a few public HBCUs were at the center of state-mandated integration lawsuits, grappling with states’ dismantling of dual systems of higher education and concerns about program duplication, trying to balance diversity and maintain HBCU heritage, and confronting other related matters. Back then, some HBCU higher education experts may have argued that state-mandated integration would be one of the most controversial issues facing HBCUs.

A Long Way from Where HBCUs Started

These matters have had a lasting impact, but time has proven that there is always something else – another giant that historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) must wrestle and slay. Even though HBCUs have been beacons of hope and access for a people who have been historically denied these freedoms in the mainstream American higher education system, they continue to combat the age-old battle of proving their worth and fight daily to maintain their historical, educational, and cultural significance. Throughout HBCUs’ 183-year existence, there have always been external and internal forces threatening their survival. Today’s ever-changing political, economic and legal climate can either be a blessing -- or curse -- for HBCUs.

There has been renewed interest in HBCUs, as displayed in the critically acclaimed documentary, Tell Them We Are Rising: The Story of Black Colleges and Universities. Airing on PBS stations nationwide in February 2018, the film was the brainchild of award-winning director and filmmaker Stanley Nelson. Before its release, HBCUs were experiencing an uptick in enrollment for a myriad of reasons -- nuanced recruiting strategies, expert use of social media, lower tuition costs, and most notably, the shift in the country’s racial climate (as reported by PBS News Hour and other media outlets). Even so, HBCU enrollment numbers continue to fluctuate, with some years seeing lower growth than others. The last enrollment increases were in 2017, which HBCU Digest noted in February 2019.

The Road Isn’t and Hasn’t Been Easy

Nonetheless, challenges still exist for these beloved institutions. The COVID-19 global pandemic endangers the enrollment and financial stability of all higher education institutions, particularly HBCUs. Diverse Issues in Higher Education reports that

the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act has earmarked approximately $1 billion emergency funding for the nation’s minority-serving institutions (MSIs). Further, over the last couple of decades, we’ve lost some HBCUs to closure, while others endure fiscal woes, work to address accreditation issues, or continue to be embroiled in litigation denouncing their “separate, but equal” status quo. Though less prominent in current news accounts, some judicial matters remain relevant, including the dispute between Maryland’s four public HBCUs (Morgan State University, Coppin State University, Bowie State University and the University of Maryland Eastern Shore) and the state of Maryland – a case dating back to 2006. According to Inside Higher Ed’s Rick Seltzer in the article, “Maryland HBCU Case Back in Mediation,” this particular case has examined segregation at HBCUs, program duplication at traditionally white institutions (TWIs), and how these two issues may be interrelated. The Maryland Senate and House of Delegates passed legislation allocating $580 million to these HBCUs over a ten-year period. Hopefully, Governor Larry Hogan will have signed the bill into law by press time of this article. (Source: The Baltimore Sun, “General Assembly passes legislation for additional funding for Maryland’s historically black universities”)

Consequently, these various legal proceedings have birthed several offspring. Some state legislatures are introducing legislation that will seemingly diminish HBCUs’ standing and autonomy. As reported by HBCU Digest, in the spring of 2019, the Texas House of Representatives floated a bill that would remove Texas Southern University’s Thurgood Marshall School of Law from the institution and establish it as a separate institution. Defender News Service provided additional context detailing that the bill’s sponsor, State Representative and two-time TSU alumnus Harold Dutton, proposed the measure proactively as an alternative in the event TSU was moved into a statewide university system. University administrators disapproved of the bill and countered that they are proud of the university’s independent status and aren’t aware of any plans for the institution to become a part of a larger university structure.

Similarly, Georgia lawmakers have submitted different iterations of a bill that would consolidate the state’s three public HBCUs – Albany State University, Fort Valley State University, and Savannah State University – into a new system, Georgia A&M (Agricultural & Mechanical) University (separate from the University System of Georgia). Many stakeholders at each of

these institutions are resistant to the idea and fearful that the individual university cultures and histories would be lost. One bill version allows for each school to operate under its own name and president. On the other hand, others agree with State Senator Lester G. Jackson, who sponsored two of the bills. According to Diverse Issues in Higher Education journalist Tiffany Pennamon, Jackson has stated that the intention of this legislation would be to help to address “declining enrollment, historical underfunding, low endowment, a lack of student and alumni involvement in the presidential search process and overall inequities compared to other universities in the state” (“Alumni, Several Lawmakers Decry Proposed Georgia HBCU Bill”). While no bill has passed yet, Atlanta’s WGCL-TV/CBS 46 has reported that legislation may be reintroduced in 2020.

This is not the first time it has been suggested that Georgia institutions consider pooling their resources into one mega, powerhouse HBCU. In March 2019, The Atlanta JournalConstitution guest columnist Scott Craft suggested merging Morehouse College, Spelman College, Clark Atlanta University, and the Morehouse School of Medicine into a newly formed institution, Atlanta University. This concept isn’t unheard of in Atlanta, as Clark College and Atlanta University merged to become Clark Atlanta University in 1988 (http://www.cau.edu/ history.html), and the four colleges are members of the Atlanta University Center Consortium.

No stranger to the HBCU experience, Craft, an alumnus of Albany State and Clark Atlanta, cites other successful mergers to support his point in the article, “Should Spelman, Morehouse and Clark Atlanta merge into one super school?” and explains: “The Atlanta University Center, with the right guidance, planning and strategy (not to mention sizable funding) could become the largest most prestigious black college in the country. If they could forego hubris, ego and status in order to look to the future, they could become a new Atlanta University that stands shoulder to shoulder with other city named schools such as New York University, Boston University and University of Chicago. It would be the Howard University of the South.”

Mergers remain a debatable topic. One thing is for certain, though. HBCUs are trying to maintain their existence in a transitional higher education atmosphere, and some administrators, partners and constituents are creating feasible and innovative solutions.

HBCUs Haven’t Come this Far to be Left Behind

In spite of challenges, the approximately 100 HBCUs remaining persist! Their caretakers know that navigating the current educational landscape requires new paradigms to move HBCUs forward. HBCUs and HBCU-affiliated organizations are demonstrating that merely thinking outside of that proverbial box is not enough. They must act as if there is no box. Here are a few examples of how the HBCU community is doing just that: The HBCU story is timeless, with new chapters written daily. It parallels that of the people they were established to serve and educate. How else can one explain their nearly two centuries of existence? There will be progress and setbacks, but they continue to hang in and hold on. The grit, fortitude and sheer will and determination to not just survive, but thrive remains. It has never been easy, but HBCUs have proven that the possibilities abound!

• Some HBCUs, upon losing their Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) accreditation have pursued Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and Schools (TRACS) accreditation. Paul Quinn College is TRACS-accredited and both Bennett, which maintains SACS accreditation due to ongoing legal proceedings, and Paine Colleges are seeking it. (Source: Diverse Issues In Higher Education)

• The Dayton Daily News has reported that Central State University and Wilberforce University are in talks to consolidate some of their campus operations such as housing, academic courses, food service and library services.

• Cleveland’s WEWS/ABC News 5 featured a story about Cuyahoga Community College partnering with the UNCF to help expose their students to HBCU possibilities. And, Keith Harriston’s article in the Spring 2019 HBCU Times issue highlighted Prince George’s Community College’s relationship with Morehouse College.

• Corporate HBCU collaborations include UnitedHealth Group’s $8.25 million investment in the Atlanta University Center Consortium institutions and Southern Company’s $50 million initiative for select HBCUs within their service area. According to press releases from U.S. Congresswoman Alma Adams’ office, more than three dozen companies participate in the HBCU Partnership Challenge, launched by the Congressional Bipartisan HBCU Caucus in 2017 to foster government, industry and HBCU partnerships. (Sources: Business Wire and Southern Company newsroom)

• The UNCF study, “HBCUs Punching Above Their Weight: A State-Level Analysis of Historically Black College and University Enrollment and Graduation,” and a companion report, “HBCUs Make America Strong: The Positive Economic Impact of the Nation’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities,” highlight HBCU performance in enrolling and graduating students and HBCUs’ economic impact on their local regions, respectively.

Kyra M. Robinson has built her career in higher and secondary education. Currently, she is the Educational Leadership program coordinator in the Department of Leadership Studies in Education and Organizations at Wright State University. Prior to this most recent position, she was employed as an Upward Bound program assistant at the University of Dayton, an academic advisor at Wright State University, and held comparable positions at two historically black institutions, Ohio’s Wilberforce University and Harris-Stowe State University in St. Louis. Additionally, she served as a communication specialist with Dayton Public Schools. In her spare time, Kyra utilizes her communications skills and career experiences to write about HBCUs and related academic matters. She also composes articles and posts content on her social media platforms. A fierce advocate of HBCUs, she is also the author of No Ways Tired: The Public Historically Black College Dilemma. A proud alumna of Fisk University, Kyra graduated in 1993 with a bachelor’s degree in English. She received a master’s degree in journalism from Ohio University. She and her husband Chet are natives of Dayton, Ohio and are the parents of two children.

“Never let anyone say that you’re not good enough, or it’s not your time. My life’s work is about proving the doubters and the pessimists wrong. Because I know how much we can do together.

It is our time.”

Jaime Harrison Candidate, U.S. Senate