Why are hbcus relevant

Yarbrough said students who attend HBCUs learn the importance of professionalism and can cultivate networking opportunities that they can use upon graduating. She believes that HBCUs are becoming a dying species. Davis believes that the world is changing, and that people should not narrow their experience and slow down their progression to the outside world. Several articles and headlines have been written questioning the importance of these institutions and the value of an HBCU degree.

On the other hand, Wimberly says that the choice to attend an HBCU depends on the values of the student. GSU may have more resources, she says, but they have different funding, different missions, and different reasons for existing.

Some resources are not necessary for a quality education, Wimberly said. She said that Morehouse University and Howard University produce 70 percent of the African-American positions in the country even though all schools in the country allow blacks to go to medical school.

She believes the problem that is happening at several HBCUs is connected to the administrative or governance perspective of the institutions.

Sydney Warner, senior at Savannah State, says that she does believe that HBCUs are relevant and that there is no better time to be around a learning atmosphere that blacks share with common goals. Warner said that if she would not have left GSU and crossed over to an HBCU she would not be in the major she is in now nor would she have the confidence that she currently has.

Warner also says that the reason that there is a narrative that HBCUs are not relevant is because of the time period. He said if you attend Savannah State University or even Morehouse College, people will look as if you attend a high school. Morris Brown used to enroll over 2, students. In , the university lost its accreditation. According to the Journal of Blacks in Higher Education, the loss of accreditation meant that students at Morris Brown College were no longer qualified for federal financial aid.

Ever since then, the college has struggled to remain open. In , the college filed for bankruptcy. Currently, an estimate of around 40 students are enrolled, according to an article about the current Interim President, Kevin James. Several schools are dealing with a huge level of debt, declining enrollment, and their ability to stay relevant while competing in a super competitive environment for the top African American students. The offices of Academic Affairs, Admissions and Recruitments, Alumni Affairs, and the Office of the President were all contacted for interviews about the progression of Morris Brown College since their loss of accreditation, plans to move forward, and input on HBCU relevancy.

Unfortunately, none of the offices were available to comment. Wimberly wants HBCUs to be able to encourage the youth to become an active part of the environment and take over. She said staff and faculty tend to stay at an HBCU, which can also make change difficult.

Department of Education, there were 37, African Americans serving in full-time faculty positions at colleges and universities in the U. This means almost three out of every four students are non-Caucasian. Thirteen schools had a diversity index of 0. Change has also come to HBCUs, where white student enrollment is on the rise. Joshua Packwood made national news last May when he became the first white valedictorian at historically black Morehouse College. Increasing numbers of non-black students report being drawn to HBCUs for their unique educational offerings, and for the opportunity to obtain a rich cultural experience, at an affordable price.

In the absence of formal consolidation, a natural merging of students appears to be underway. This may in part be due to expanded diversity efforts. HBCUs and traditionally white institutions alike are increasingly creating diversity committees and bumping up initiatives to foster an inclusive environment with a diverse student population.

Dean Raymond Pierce, Chance D. Lynch, Joyvan Malbon, Willie J. White, Stacy Maynor, William C. The lines may be blurring, but will eliminating HBCUs be a disservice to the people they were intended to help? HBCU supporters posit that these schools are vital to the successful integration of African Americans into the corporate, research, academic, and government arenas. Cox, president and chief executive officer of Diverse: Issues in Higher Education. But more importantly, black students graduate at a much higher rate than their counterparts at predominately white institutions.

Graduates of HBCUs represent a significant portion of successful professionals both domestically and internationally. Further, nine of the top ten colleges that graduate the most African Americans who go on to earn a Ph. As a comparison point, the top 10 predominantly white institutions, or PWIs, had retention rates that ranged from The campus culture and student-centric programs at these PWIs are stellar but it also stands to reason that the students attending top PWIs, like Brown University and the University of Notre Dame, are predisposed to staying in college anyway — while HBCUs have many more obstacles to overcome when convincing and encouraging their attendees to stay.

Many HBCUs are powerhouses when it comes to offering strong degree programs in science, technology, engineering and math. Spelman College is the second largest school in the nation that sends Black undergraduates on to medical school. Claflin University students work alongside the South Carolina Center for Biotechnology and receive hands-on industry training and connections in the field long before graduation. Xavier University of Louisiana has a consistently top-ranked pharmacy program and is a sought out school for those hoping to advance to medical school.

The advancements these schools are contributing to STEM fields are not just relevant, they are groundbreaking and an asset to the industries the graduates eventually serve. They make college more affordable. As college costs climb, HBCUs remain reasonable options for earning college degrees and come with plenty of financial aid options in the form of grants, scholarships and federal loans. The financial assistance programs at HBCUs have an inherent understanding that their students come from a place where college may not be an option without sound advice and financial assistance — and they step up to meet the needs of those students.

They adequately staff the workforce — and help graduates land jobs. During the latest Recession years, college career centers faced even greater scrutiny when it comes to helping students find jobs when they leave campus. The state of unemployed college graduates reached nearly crisis proportions at one point, with college graduates returning home to live with their parents after receiving a degree.

HBCUs stepped up and worked even harder to help their graduates find the work they were qualified to accomplish after graduation. The HBCU Career Center Survey found that over 90 percent of HBCUs offered career workshops, career counseling, one-on-one resume writing help, one-on-one interview coaching, on-campus job fairs and on-campus interviews from prospective employers. Nearly three-fourths of the HBCUs in the survey said they also offered career development services for alumni.

HBCUs are not simply training their students and sending them off blindly into their future careers; these schools are supplying well-equipped, highly-educated workforce members through connection programs that happen long before graduation day.