President Donald J. Trump stated recently that he looks forward to selecting an executive director for the White House Initiative on HBCUs.
Since that time, Diverse has obtained the names of four individuals whose names have been floated for the post, including two who held it under previous administrations. However, two of those individuals — including one who set the office up under President Jimmy Carter — have indicated they have no interest in the position.
The four individuals being considered for the post include:
Observers say no matter who is ultimately selected for the position, that person is in for a rough ride given the mercurial nature of President Trump and some of his administration’s early missteps
regarding HBCUs. Trump questioned the constitutionality of a program that provides low-cost capital finance loans to HBCUs, and his education secretary — school choice proponent and billionaire philanthropist Betsy DeVos — recently referred to HBCUs as “real pioneers when it comes to school choice,” when in fact the schools were founded at a time when Blacks were largely denied access to White institutions.
“Whoever is selected will find themselves between a rock and a hard place!” one longtime HBCU leader who now works as a consultant said in an e-mail statement to Diverse.
“Trying to convince the Trump administration that the HBCU community deserves support when Blacks voted overwhelmingly for Secretary Clinton will be a monumental challenge,” the consultant said. “Similarly, winning the support of a skeptical HBCU sector will be equally as challenging.”
