When President Donald J. Trump convened leaders of HBCUs in the Oval Office in February to sign an executive order on HBCUs, he proclaimed these institutions as “very important” and an “absolute priority.”
However, now that the White House Initiative on historically Black Colleges and Universities has remained leaderless for longer than it has under any previous administration, a chorus of HBCU advocates and some lawmakers are increasingly of the mind that the Trump administration has failed to make good on its promise to HBCUs.
“President Trump’s HBCU fly-in meeting was a photo op, his budget cuts programs that are vital to the success of HBCU students, and he questioned the constitutionality of some funding for HBCUs. As a result of those actions and others, we’ve concluded that the President and the Administration don’t have a real interest in supporting and strengthening these schools,” said U.S. Rep. Cedric L. Richmond, D-Va., chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus. “Appointing an executive director to lead the White House Initiative on HBCUs is critical to ensuring that the cross-agency needs of HBCUs do not go unaddressed and that the CBC and other HBCU advocates have a direct line of communication to the White House.”
Founded in 1980, during President Jimmy Carter’s administration, the White House Initiative on HBCUs was designed to “overcome the effects of discriminatory treatment and to strengthen and expand the capacity of historically Black college and universities to provide quality education,” according to Executive Order 12232 which established the Initiative.
Meldon Hollis, the first person to hold the executive director position, said the office was established to provide a focal point for federal support for HBCUs.
“There are some 37 departments and agencies that can potentially provide support to HBCUs, and unless there’s some sort of coordinated effort and some sort of direction then it’s not going to be very effective, and it’s not going to be very efficient, and HBCUs will lose out on a wide number of opportunities,” he said.
When HBCU leaders assembled in the White House Oval Office and watched as President Trump signed the HBCU executive order— an order that moved the White House Initiative on HBCUs directly under the management of the White House—some were hopeful that this action would give these institutions the support they needed in order to prosper.
