2001 Annual Grant Issue
Keeon Gregory Kast Grant Report
Historically Black College Tour

I would like to thank the members of the Kast Grant committee for funding my proposal. This project has allowed me to travel to numerous historically black colleges and universities to record data and learn more about the black college experience. This pilgrimage began with me wanting to educate the GA college counseling staff. However, I learned very quickly that I personally was the one needing to be educated.

I entered into this research feeling that I understood the mission of these schools. I also had images of what the schools and the people would be like. You guessed it; your Director of Diversity was stereotyping. I expected to see very small campuses with marginally maintained grounds. I also expected to encounter some bureaucracy. Needless to say, everything I was thinking was a total misconception.

It is amazing that even an educated African-American who has experienced stereotypes can unknowingly buy into some of the myths about historically black colleges. The majority of my experience with historically black colleges has come from the media and information from friends. The images I was left with were that of supportive faculty, strong pride in school, poor facilities, party atmosphere, small campuses, and a lot of red tape. When these are the images programmed into one's mind, it hard to convince people that these schools are a viable college option. If this voyage has reinforced anything, it has again taught me not to take information at face value but rather draw conclusions based on personal experience.

I found the people to be extremely cordial and accommodating. The campus grounds were very green and well maintained. I also found the students to be extremely friendly and open to discussing their experiences with me.

The common experience that each school possesses is its pride in educating successful African-American graduates. The orientation programs for new students spend an extraordinary amount of time sharing their oral history. The sense of pride and tradition was overflowing in every session I attended. The students begin to realize that they have a responsibility to make their parents, their school, their race, and more importantly themselves proud.

Each campus had its own unique flavor. I was pleasantly surprised with the variety of programs and facilities each school offered. The programs ranged from architecture to forensic science. These schools are also concerned about diversity. They are very committed to educating students, regardless of race. Most of the schools actively recruit and award scholarships to white students. Interesting fact: most historically black colleges with golf teams have a predominately white team. The visits were very inspirational and educational. I was surprised to learn that historically black colleges spend enormous amounts of time recruiting white students. These efforts are comparable to the amount of time predominately white institutions spend trying to diversify their campuses.

You may ask why a white student would want to attend a black college. The reasons are numerous: location, entrance requirements, cost, special programs, diversity scholarships, and a supportive environment. The average historically black college has about a 5% white population.

Each college was very different in terms of size, academic programs, and reputation. The one common denominator was their commitment to educate the black students about themselves and their history. One of the major goals of this type of school is to instill a sense of pride in self and the black college experience. This is done to help the students come to terms with the years of oppression suffered by blacks in the United States. Most of this indoctrination occurs during the summer orientation program. The school brings in numerous outside speakers to lecture on accountability and responsibility to one's race and more importantly to society. It is each schools mission to change the way the majority of white America views African-Americans.

The majority of the students come from public schools in large urban environments. These students are often not looked upon as the leaders of tomorrow. Their profiles are usually in the C/B range with SAT's ranging from 700-900, not what you would call Ivy League material. These profiles are not seen as a negative but rather as an opportunity to educate a population of people that is usually overlooked. Many of these students go on to excel academically and attend graduate and professional schools. Also hundreds of corporations visit these schools to recruit their graduates into the workforce. As the marketplace changes, employers realize that they need employees who look like their customers.

In contrast to the profile described in the last paragraph, there are some selective historically black colleges that seek a much higher student profile. Schools like Howard, Hampton, Morehouse, Spelman, and Xavier are very competitive. Often time, African-American students with stellar profiles will select one of these institutions over schools like Harvard and Yale.

During the early 80's and into the 90's, many of the historically black colleges began to see major declines in enrollment. This was attributed to a perception by many educated African-Americans that they had to attend a predominately white college in order compete in a white America. The second reason enrollment declined was the United States was in a period during which the number of white students graduating from high school was at an all time low; therefore, many predominately white colleges were actively recruiting black student to survive. Many of these schools were offering students scholarships and financial aid that the historically black college could not compete against. The final reason enrollments declined during this period was that many students viewed these schools as offering an inferior education.

As the mid-1990's approached, the young people of Generation X wanted to connect to their roots. They viewed the black colleges and universities as a place to search for their identity.

The Colleges:

North Carolina Central University

My first visit was to North Carolina Central University. I would describe this school as the hidden jewel of the group. I met with Ms. Tracey Wilson, Associate Director of Admission and Transfer Coordinator. She was extremely personable and professional. She personally gave me a tour around campus on a muggy 90-degree day. The campus was stunning. It had a blend of old and new buildings that complemented each other very well. The grounds were gorgeous, and everyone that we encountered was very cordial. The campus has four major schools for its undergraduates: the School of Arts and Science, the School of Nursing, the School of Education, and the School of Business. North Carolina Central also has two professional schools, the School of Law and the School of Library and Information Science.

The school also boasts some very unique programs like forensic science and actuarial science. These two programs alone attract students from all over the United States. Because NCCU is a state school, they are mandated by the state of North Carolina not to admit more than 18% of its students from out-of-state.

Located in Durham, NC, North Carolina Central University is only about a 10-minute drive to Duke University. I only mention this because a many of Duke's and The University of North Carolina's African-American students frequent NCCU to have simple things done like getting their hair cut. Unlike most students, African-American hair care can impact where a student attends college. Many black students attending schools in rural areas may have to travel up to an hour to get their hair done. The second reason students from these other campuses visit is to interact and socialize with other African-American college students. Some of their visitors have included basketball players Michael Jordan, Rick Fox, and Rasheed Wallace. I was informed that Michael Jordan got his hair cut at NCCU every time he returned to visit Chapel Hill.

Quick Facts

Dr. James Shepard originally founded NCCU as a private institution in 1910. In 1925, the school became the nation's first public liberal arts college for African-Americans.

The school enrolls 5,500 students of which 4,000 are undergraduate students. The 135-acre campus houses 56 buildings. The student faculty ratio is 15:1, and the average class size is 25.

The library houses over 400,000 volumes and has an expanded network with The University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill and North Carolina State University.

The tuition is very reasonable. Tuition and fees for an in-state student is $1,145. and $4,856. for an out-of-state student. The room and board cost is modest at $1,918.50.

The campus also boasts 22 computer labs and an Internet connection in each residence hall room.

To learn more about NCCU log onto www.nccu.com.

Hampton University

I visited Hampton on a picture perfect day in late July. My campus tour was like strolling through the park. The beautifully manicured lawns and stunning views of the Hampton River gave the feeling of a vacation paradise. Hampton was the most physically attractive college campus that I visited this summer.

Hampton has long had an excellent academic reputation in higher education as well as in the African-American community. After speaking with members of the Alumni Affairs and Career Services Offices, I learned why this school is held in such high regard.

Hampton views itself as the Princeton for African-American students. They are very proud of the fact that the schools average SAT score is over 1,000. This may not sound significant, but the national average SAT for African-American students is about 800. They also matriculate students from all 50 states and numerous countries from around the world. Hampton also treasures its success with a high job placement rate for its graduates. I have recently learned that Germantown Academy parent, Ric Ramsey, is a Hampton University alumnus.

The opening lines in the Hampton view book reads; "Hampton University is a community of teachers and learners. A place that will challenge your intellect and nurture the spirit, broaden your outlook, and expand your opportunities." I think words like these would inspire any student.

Hampton students refer to themselves as Hamptonians. Because Hampton is not the only historically black college in the area, this nickname distinguishes the Hampton student from the rest. Many students from other historically black colleges have labeled Hamptonians arrogant, but they see themselves as serious students.

Quick Facts

Like GA, Hampton is a private nonsectarian, co-educational institution. The school was founded in 1868 as Hampton Normal and Agricultural Institute. The school was later renamed Hampton Institute, and in 1984 named Hampton University.

The campus is nestled near the Hampton River in Hampton, Virginia. The campus sits on 254 beautiful acres with 118 buildings, including the Hampton University Museum of Black Culture.

Hampton offers a diverse array of academic programs. Some of their most notable programs are architecture and pharmacy. The university offers baccalaureate degrees in 35 different areas, master's degrees in 13 areas including an MBA program, and Doctoral programs in nursing, pharmacy, physical therapy, and physics.

The library seats 1,000 and has 600,000 volumes. It also houses the George Peabody Collection of 33,000 items by and about black people.

Hampton boasts a $170 million endowment.

The annual cost for tuition, room, and board is $16,200. Hampton is a NCAA Division I school therefore athletic scholarships are available.

To learn more about Hampton University visit their website at www.hampton.edu.

Norfolk State University

My third stop was at Norfolk State University. My day at NSU was extremely pleasant. I met a current sophomore female student from Dallas, Texas. Her role was student greeter and tour guide. Everyone from the student workers, receptionist, and Director of Admission were obliged to help gather information for me. For this, I was very grateful.

One of the greatest treats of this visit was watching the renowned Norfolk State University band practice. If you have never seen a historically black college band perform, you have missed one of the world's most entertaining shows.

Norfolk's campus is located in a residential neighborhood with views of the downtown skyline. The campus was well groomed but not as attractive as North Carolina Central or Hampton University.

After completing my campus tour, I met with the Director of Admission. We had a pleasant conversation about admission standards, scholarships, and the school's major selling points. She described the school as nurturing, innovative, and lively. She quickly pointed to the view book that lays out the top ten things to know about Norfolk State University: Premium education at an affordable price, Location, Outstanding faculty, Job placement, State-of-the art-facilities, Admissions options, Learning outside the classroom, Special programs, Nationally Recognized athletic programs, A degree you can be proud of.

She and I agreed that we would work to have an admission counselor from Norfolk State University visit GA sometime during the school year. She was very impressed with GA and thought many of our students of color would be full merit scholarship candidates.

Quick Facts

Norfolk State is comprised of six schools. The school are as follows: School of Liberal Arts, School of Business and Entrepreneurship, School of Education, School of Science and Technology, School of Social Work, and the Office of Graduate Studies.

The school enrolls 8,000 students with a student/faculty ratio of 22:1.

The campus has nearly 80 student organizations including an active Greek life. The school has a 1,000-watt, student-run, radio station.

The tuition is $1,500. per year for in-state students and $4,000. for out-of-state students. Room and board cost is $5,268. per year.

Some of schools notable alumni include Dr. Julian Earls, scientist, and Deputy Director of Operations/NASA; Nathan McCall, national best-seller author; and Regina Mobley, television anchor.

The school is located in Norfolk, Virginia which was voted the #1 city in the south by Money Magazine in 1998. The school is only a short 15-minute drive to Virginia Beach.

Howard University

Howard University for many years has been perceived as the Harvard for African-Americans. I have known about the prestigious Howard University for years but to visit this institution of higher learning was an honor. Located in the heart of the Washington D.C. black ghetto, the campus is like a protected gem. It has beauty, tradition, and a characteristic that I can not describe in words, but I know it was powerful and uplifting.

I saw future doctors strut through the campus in their scrubs. I saw pictures of black Fulbright Scholars plastered all over the walls of the administration wings and the most satisfied students that I have ever had the pleasure to interact with.

Howard is one of only 88 Research I institutions in the country. Like Hampton, many African-American students choose Howard over the Ivy League. Howard students matriculate with about 3.5 grade point averages and SAT's over 1100. These students are serious scholars looking to make their impact on the world.

As I sat and listened to the admission presentation, I could not help but envision my own child attending such an awesome place. Their alumni include Debbie and Phylicia Allen (Fame and the Cosby Show), Andrew Young (former mayor of Atlanta, Georgia), former New York City mayor David Dinkins, actor Ossie Davis, and singer Roberta Flack just to name a few.

Howard is also very active in the local political scene and neighborhood revitalization. A student attending this school is getting a holistic experience in and out of the classroom.

The campus is made up of twelve schools. The schools are as follows: College of Arts and Science, School of Business, School of Communication, College of Dentistry, School of Divinity, School of Education, College of Architecture, Engineering, and Computer Science, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, School of Law, College of Medicine, College of Pharmacy, Nursing and Allied Health Sciences and the School of Social Work.

Quick Facts

The school was founded in 1867 after Congress enacted the university charter and President Andrew Johnson approved the charter.

The school has a total enrollment of 10,010 students. The undergraduate population is 6,569. The graduate population is 1,814 students and the professional school population is 1,627 students.

The endowment market value is $329.3 million.

There are 93,033 Howard alumni.

The campus has 97 buildings on a 240-acre campus.

Howard is a member of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC). The school competes in 21 varsity sports.

The Howard University Hospital was cited by "U.S. News" as one of the nations best. Howard has the only major teaching hospital located on a historically black college campus.

The school has attracted seven Presidential Scholars. These are students with GPA of 3.75 and above and SAT of 1500 and above.

The average starting salary for students graduating with an undergraduate degree in business was $55,000. per year.

The Howard University television station, WHUT-TV, has been the only African-American owned public television station the United States for over 20 years. The station also partners with Bryant Gumbel's Dunbar productions. Together they produce, "The Reading Club," a nationally syndicated talk show about books.

To learn more about this most prestigious institution, please log onto www.howard.edu.

Wilberforce University

Having attended Ohio State University, I have known about Wilberforce University for years. It has always had a well-respected name in the African-American community. Like many private institutions, a certain amount of prestige is associated with the school.

The school is located in Wilberforce, Ohio, in a very rural setting. The nearest city, Dayton, Ohio, is about 30 minutes away. Students are very dependent on each other for emotional support. Central State University, directly across the street from Wilberforce, is the "state" school for the want-to-be Wilberforcer's.

I have to be honest and say that I was not overly impressed with Wilberforce College.

I took a self-guided tour, which was less than desirable. The campus facilities were average at best. The grounds were not well maintained, and I did not see that sense of pride at Wilberforce that I saw at the other schools that I had visited.

I found the people very cordial and the students very willing to discuss their experiences. Most students felt good about the education they were getting, but commented that they felt isolated so far from city life. Unlike Hampton and Howard Universities, two other private historically black colleges, Wilberforce is not as well known for its academic reputation. Its major focus seemed to be enlightening the student about self. From the first day of orientation, the students are immersed with their responsibility to the black community. Though I thought the message was powerful, I also believed it was a bit overwhelming for the typical 18 year-old freshman student.

Many students commented about the sense of spirituality that the school possesses. Students are heavily involved with the Gospel Choir.

Quick Facts

The school was founded in 1856.

The renowned W. E. Dubois was an instructor at Wilberforce.

Business, English, Biology, and Communications are the most popular majors.

Wilberforce was the first historically black college to be owned and operated by African-Americans.

The student body is 855 students.

Morehouse College

My Kast Grant research would not have been complete without a visit to Morehouse College and Spelman College. Morehouse and Spelman are respectively all-male and all-female historically black colleges.

I arrived on the Morehouse campus on a lovely October morning. The campus was thriving with young men in pursuit of excellence. As I approached the cemented urban campus, I found myself in a mecca of four historically black colleges: Morehouse College, Spelman College, Clark-Atlanta University, and Morris Brown College. The campus is located in a modest neighborhood about four miles outside of downtown Atlanta. Not knowing which direction to turn, I encountered two Morehouse men. They volunteered to escort me to the Office of Admission. During our short walk, I was able to really get a sense of the pride and tradition that makes Morehouse a special place.

The two young men were extremely articulate, mature, and polite. They also were honored and felt it a privilege to be students at Morehouse. They viewed their college experience as an opportunity of a lifetime. One of the students mentioned, "Where else can you be taught by black professors, learn about self, and bond with other intelligent black brothers and receive a quality education other than Morehouse." After a moment of reflection, I had to agree with his viewpoint. I can not name think of another place in the world that can empower young African-American males like the Morehouse experience. The other student commented, "In a time where the media and society portray black males in a negative light, we are viewed as the best and brightest at Morehouse; and for lack of a better phrase, we shine and feel uplifted everyday when we see each other doing awesome things in the arts, research, studying abroad, and getting high paying jobs."

Once I arrived at the Admission office, I met with Corey McNair. He gave me a lot of insight into the type of student that Morehouse College wants to attract. Morehouse is very committed to tradition and legacy. They have numerous alumni children in every class. For example, Morehouse alum, actor Spike Lee's grandfather and father graduated from Morehouse.

They are also looking for students who are seeking to make a positive impact on the world. Morehouse admission standards are very competitive. They will not consider students for admission unless they have a minimum GPA of 2.7 and an SAT of 1000. The typical profile for an entering student is about a 3.25 GPA and an SAT of 1150. The students come from all 50 states and from over 12 countries abroad. The school has a six-percent international student population. Most of the international students come from Japan and Trinidad.

I also had a tremendous session with Mr. Danny Bellinger, who is the Morehouse admission representative for Philadelphia. Currently he visits Central High School, Masterman High School, Germantown Friends, and Cheltenham High School. He hopes to expand his visits. It seemed that my visit to campus was very timely.

Danny commented that the school has three goals that it would like to accomplish over the next several years. The goals are: first, to become the number one school choice for the most outstanding African-American male students, second, to attract more students from independent and boarding schools, and finally, to matriculate more full-pay students. As I listened to him review the objectives, I knew that we could be an asset to each other.

We agreed to begin a dialogue between Morehouse College and Germantown Academy to develop strategies to introduce this college to other area independent schools. We proposed a visit to Germantown Academy sometime in the late fall. We also would like to a plan a group session for all the area independent schools. Finally, Danny invited me to join a group of college counselors from across the country to tour the Atlanta area colleges in the Spring, including the other area historically black colleges and universities as well as non-historically black colleges and universities such as Georgia Tech, Emory University, and Georgia State University.

Quick Facts

Morehouse was founded in 1867 as Augusta Institute. The school was renamed Morehouse College in 1913.

The campus has 35 buildings nestled on a small 61-acre campus.

The college has 180 full-time faculty with 74 percent holding doctoral degrees.

Morehouse enrolls 3,000 young men.

Morehouse is a member of Phi Beta Kappa.

Notable alumni include the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., filmmaker, Spike Lee, actor, Samuel L. Jackson, former Atlanta Mayor, Maynard Jackson, theologian and author Howard Thurman, and Olympic Gold Medalist in track and field, Edwin Moses.

Spelman College

After completing my visit to Morehouse, I was directed to the Spelman College campus for a tour and information session. As I approached the Spelman gates, I felt a sense of serenity. I was amazed that Spelman's campus, located adjacent to Morehouse, had such a beautiful tree-lined exterior that gave the college a sense of seclusion. Like Morehouse, I found the students to be very upbeat and extremely bright. I listened to women salute each other as I was strolling to the Admission office. There was such a genuine appreciation for each other.

I saw diverse African-American women that you could not find anywhere else but at Spelman College. I saw every style from preppy to hip-hop to conservative penencostal, and even the 70's Angela Davis look including the afro. Within this incredible diversity, I found such unity and pride amongst the young women. The students describe this as sisterhood.

I was fascinated to learn that Spelman College was named after the spouse of John Rockefeller, Spelman Rockefeller. There are also other buildings on campus bearing the Rockefeller name.

The well-landscaped quad is mostly made up of residence halls. Students seem to flock to the quad to study, relax, and reflect. On the beautiful 75-degree day that I was visiting, students were studying on the lawn and others seemed to be totally engaged with intellectual curiosity by meeting with professors and encouraging students to become involved with different school activities.

The students were very cordial. My tour guides, Anthonika Miles, a sophomore from Birmingham, Alabama and Stacey Marshall, a freshman from Winston-Salem, North Carolina were terrific. They were bursting with pride about their Spelman experience and the quality education that they are receiving. The two students were also very excited to share some of the schools unique history.

I learned many interesting facts. For instance, the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s wake was held at Spelman's Mueller Chapel and that the hit 80's sitcom, " A Different World" was filmed on the Spelman campus. On the television program, the Spelman campus was referred to as Hillman College. This show was a spin off of the "Cosby Show." The students shared that Philadelphia's own, Bill Cosby, is one of Spelman's major philanthropist. Cosby has given over $13 million dollars to Spelman and the Olivia Hanks Cosby Building is named after his wife. It houses the departments of Philosophy, English, History, Foreign Language, and Religion. One of Cosby's daughters is Spelman alum.

Spelman also has two new state-of-the-art residence halls. They are referred to as LL-1 and LL-2. The two Living Learning Centers are the only air-conditioned halls on campus. They are reserved for upperclassman.

As we toured the campus, I could not help but notice all the male students roaming the campus. Though Spelman is a single sex school, dating is not a problem. Surrounded by three other historically black colleges, students are not lacking for an intellectual or social life. The four campuses have cross registration, so interaction with the other schools is plentiful.

Quick Facts

The average SAT is 1160.

The average GPA is 3.4.

The student/ faculty ratio is 14:1.

The student body is 2,065 females from 45 states and 19 foreign countries.

The tuition, room, and board cost is $19,215.

Approximately 85% of the students receive financial assistance.

The only historically black college to have a Women's Research and Resource Center.

Outcomes of Project

I found this research to be very insightful and rewarding. I learned that black colleges play a major role in educating many African-American students. Helping those who ordinarily may not have felt comfortable attending a mostly white institution be successful. The schools have a mission to raise self-esteem, provide quality education, and to give African-American students a sense of pride, purpose and hope.

I had intended to use this project to identify ways to attract faculty of color. I found this objective to be very difficult for two reasons: First, department heads and many of the faculty were not around this summer. Second, when I spoke of my desire to recruit teachers, most officials either directed me to the School of Education or told me they did not have a teacher education program. It seemed that most schools were not open to me recruiting teachers from their liberal arts programs. I gather that this strategy was a new concept for most of these colleges and universities. An official from one of the schools could not understand why I would want to talk to students without a teaching certificate and/or teaching degree.

Throughout the course of this academic year, I plan to meet with the Germantown Academy college counselors to share the value of these schools for our students of color. We also may want to consider some of these schools for our majority students as well. The black colleges and universities are working diligently to recruit more white students and they have diversity scholarships.

In addition, I am planning to share my research with the Diversity Committee, Parents of Color, and the All Cultures Together (ACT) Club.

There will be a binder with materials from each visit located in my office and the MS/US library. The binder will include catalogues, applications, view books, as well as the data I have collected about each school.

Last but not least, my counterparts from the Shipley School and Friends Select and I are in the process of laying the groundwork to plan a historically black college tour for the area independent schools. We will meet as a group at the People of Color conference with the other diversity directors to finalize our plans. Please stay tuned for details