WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump addressed a packed auditorium at the end of the second day of the 2019 HBCU Conference. He described his administration’s work on behalf of historically Black colleges and universities, praised Department of Education policies, and alluded to the upcoming election.
“For more than 180 years, HBCUs have strengthened our country and called our country to greatness,” Trump said. “Your institutions have been pillars of excellence in higher education and the engines of advancement for African-American citizens. It’s been incredible the job they’ve done.”
Trump gave a brief history of HBCUs, listing famous graduates like Booker T. Washington, Rosa Parks, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and football coach Eddie Robinson.
“Eddie Robinson won more games than anyone,” he interjected to cheers from the crowd. “Is that true? I think so.”
Trump went on to describe how he has “taken action to make HBCUs a top priority,” calling his administration’s “commitment” to HBCUs “bigger, better and stronger than any previous administration by far.”
He reminded the audience of his decision to move the Initiative back to the White House, instead of under the auspices of the Department of Education, where it’s been since George W. Bush was president. He also mentioned raising federal funding for HBCUs by 13 percent, including Pell grants for summer classes in the federal budget, forgiving disaster loans for HBCUs hit by Hurricane Katrina and offering capital finance loan deferment to 13 HBCUs and loaning over $500 million to HBCUs.
The president went on to announce that 40 faith-based HBCUs will now have “equal access” to federal support for capital improvements because of a Department of Justice opinion that came out this week, declaring the restrictions “unconstitutional,” he said.
