Education


were able to pursue a college degree with some focused only on Black males (e.g. Morehouse College founded in Atlanta, GA in 1867, the alma mater of Nobel Peace Prize recipient and Civil Rights Leader Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929- 1968)) and others only on Black females (e.g. Spelman College founded in a church basement in Atlanta, GA in 1881 that was recently ranked #1 in a poll on “social mo- bility because of its impressive 77% grad- uation rate). HBCUs generally did not pursue sole post secondary education un- til after 1900. Per President George H.W. Bush in January 1991, “At a time when many schools barred their doors to black Americans, these colleges offered the best, and often the only, opportunity for a higher education.” Following the significant advances in


Black literacy, the second HBCU era (1916-1969) focused on creating a Black professional and middle class. Their ef- forts, though met serious obstacles. Few Blacks had the financial resources to uti- lize these professionals and fewer Whites were interested in their services. During this time period to ensure Blacks could realize economic benefits from their de- grees, HBCUs, per Ronald Roach, Cele- brating the History And Contributions of Black Colleges (Black Issues, 21 October 2004) shifted their focus from liberal arts to industrial and vocational education af- ter spirited debates between educator, au- thor, orator Booker T. Washington (1856- 1915), (a Hampton University (Hampton, VA) graduate and past President of Tuskegee University) who believed the best opportunity for Blacks to “attain equality... was through the accumulation of power, wealth, and respect by means of hard work in practical [vocational] trades” and sociologist, author, historian W.E.B. DuBois (1868-1963) who believed that “equality and sense of purpose would only come if talented Blacks were allowed to study the arts and sciences” in addition to vocational trades. Ironically, though, the successful cul-


mination of the Civil Rights movement in 1968 that earned Blacks the right to vote, broke down the barriers of segregation and offered important protections against racial discrimination and new opportuni-


50


ties, actually threatened HBCUs leading to their third era (one of threats to their viability and even survival, despite gov- ernment aid through Title III of the Higher Education Act of 1965) as enrollment as a percentage of Blacks plunged. From 1965- 1969 approximately 80%-99% of Blacks were enrolled in HBCUs. From 1970- 2010 less than 10% of Blacks are enrolled in HBCUs with many taking advantage of desegregated Public and Private Institu- tions, Community Colleges, and two-year institutions. This era of decline, financial hardship


(especially among non-State supported institutions), and transition in which some became (e.g. West Virginia State Univer- sity) or are becoming majority White in- stitutions, not surprisingly, brought about


www.blackeoejournal.com


debates about the relevance and even con- tinued need for HBCUs, their mission and focus and even their relevance in 21st Century America. The fact though re- mains - HBCUs are as necessary and rel- evant as ever with a continued critical role to ensure, because it is imperative that, in the words of U.S. Senator Barbara Mikul- ski (D-MD) as recounted in Dr. E. Lee Lassiter’s, Coppin’s HBCU Role Chosen for a National Salute article dated Sep- tember 1, 2006, “all our children have a chance to succeed, and in making sure they have the 21st century skills and... thinking for 21st century jobs.” With every demographic group with the


exception of Whites and Asians regressing in terms of generational academic achieve- ment, it is essential that HBCUs focus on


The Black E.O.E. Journal


&


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76