I saw a tweet a few days after the Supreme Court ruling on race conscious admissions practices being unconstitutional
that said, “welp, HBCUs better build more dorms!” It was the response I knew would come, and I was ready for it, as I saw more versions of the same sentiment being shared.
It’s no secret that I fiercely advocate for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs); I wrote a five-part series on
them for Black History Month. HBCUs are what brought me into education in the first place. I’m a proud alumna of Howard University, and I take every opportunity to bring these illustrious institutions to the forefront of the conversation.
But it’s more than just school pride. It’s incredibly unfair to ask or expect HBCUs to suddenly take on massive (or even considerably gradual) influxes of students without the proper and necessary systemic support.
The Math
HBCUs represent 3% of America’s higher education system. More people lived in Lincoln, NE during the 2020 census (291,000) than the total HBCU enrollment in fall 2020 (279,000).
Part two of the February series discussed the history of gross underfunding of HBCUs, which highlighted Tennessee
State University and all four Maryland HBCUs suing their respective states for owed state appropriated funds.
In June, Florida Agricultural & Mechanical University students (FAMU) sued the state for unequal per student appropriations when compared with the University of Florida. “Over 33 years, from 1987 to 2020, that shortfall amounted to approximately $1.3 billion,
though the two schools share the distinction of being the state’s only two public land-grant colleges.” In 2020, FAMU received $2,600 less per student than the University of Florida. This impacts everything, from the quality of research labs to the condition of gyms and dorms to the experience level faculty a university can afford.
North Carolina Agricultural & Technical University (NC A&T) has been historically underfunded compared to its predominantly white counterpart North Carolina State University (NC State). A 2022 Forbes study highlighted drastic differences in state funds earmarked for research: NC A&T received $9.5 million, while NC State was awarded $79 million. It has been estimated that since 1987, after adjusting for inflation, NC A&T has been underfunded by $2.8
billion.
Meanwhile, NC A&T was fined by the state university system $2 million for exceeding their limit of out of state students. Rules are rules, sure, but explicitly being denied the totality of owed state funding means NC A&T and other HBCUs must continuously
do more with less and find revenue streams how they can. Understandably, HBCU enrollment dipped in 2020 due to the pandemic; 279,000 students down from 289,000 in 2019, but it bounced right back in 2021 to 287,000.
Why It Matters
Let’s focus on Black students for our purposes (although HBCUs have been and continue to be beacons of diversity). The National Center for Education Statistics reports that there were 2.3 million Black students enrolled in college in 2020, of which 211,000 were enrolled at an HBCU. Currently, HBCUs are serving nine percent of Black student enrollment with a funding deficit already in the billions.
It’s a catch-22: without funding levels equal to their predominately white counterparts, HBCUs typically can’t offer the same level of innovative programs and cutting-edge research that would then help them secure larger private grants and federal contracts.
Did you know that not one HBCU is classified as a R1 research institution by Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education?
Of the 133 R2 research institutions, only 11 HBCUs meet the classification standards. They’re making strides to reach R1 status,
but again, without the necessary funding, it’s an uphill battle they shouldn’t have to fight.
Pushing more students to already underfunded and under resourced HBCUs will make a difficult situation worse. HBCUs have historically provided a better cultural experience for students of color, but they are not sufficiently funded to provide the best
of the best in terms of financial aid, housing, facilities and mental health services. Historically telling HBCUs to make do with less is problematic and unjust to both these institutions and the students they serve.
If we’re asking or expecting HBCUs to do more, be more, help more students across the finish line, federal and state policymakers must renew their commitment and right these wrongs. Meeting the need created by the ruling on affirmative action requires
more than lip service. HBCU revenues need to rise to support current and incoming students, and one of the easiest ways to raise revenues is to pay HBCUs what is rightfully owed to them.
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