The Thurgood Marshall College Fund, in conjunction with the Millennium Leadership Institute and the American Association for State Colleges and Universities, recently released a new report entitled Preserving the Legacy and Securing the Future for HBCUs: Solutions from Thought Leaders.
The report describes the challenges facing HBCUs today and offers possible solutions to these challenges. First and foremost, sustaining and growing student enrollment is the key to a brighter future for HBCUs, according to educational leaders who participated in discussions that led to the report. To do so, the authors of the report encourage HBCUs to seek out nontraditional students, including those currently in the workforce who seek to enhance their educational credentials.
The report also notes that HBCUs are predominantly Black, not exclusively Black. They recommend efforts to further diversify the student body by reaching out to non-Black ethnic groups.
The authors recommend that administrators reach out to corporations and foundations to create partnerships for growth. They also urge administrators to become more involved with local, state, and federal officeholders in order to garner support for HBCUs. Also, the report urges these administrators to more fully take advantage of existing federal grant programs that are already available and not fully utilized.
Finally, the authors urge HBCU administrators to not discount the possibility of mergers or partnerships with other educational institutions.