New Life for Historically Black Colleges and Universities

In December 2008, Georgia state senator Seth Harp ignited controversy when he proposed merging two historically Black colleges with nearby predominantly white colleges to save money. Less than a year later, Mississippi governor Haley Barbour sought to unite Mississippi’s three predominantly Black colleges. These efforts kindled renewed interest in historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) across the nation and the globe. In this study, HBCU officials and faculty attempt to identify the challenges that HBCUs face, explore the historic origin of HBCU management systems, and identify models of success that will improve the long-term viability of the HBCU. By analyzing HBCUs within a larger framework of American higher education and the cultural context in which HBCUs operate, these essays introduce a new paradigm in the quest to ensure that HBCUs continue to play an important role in the education of Americans of all races.

Vann R. Newkirk is an associate vice president for Academic Affairs and associate professor of history at Fort Valley State University in Fort Valley, Georgia. He has extensively researched the development of the NAACP in North Carolina and has served as an educational consultant for colleges across the South.

Edited by Vann R. Newkirk
Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 288
Bibliographic Info: 16 photos, appendix, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2012
pISBN: 978-0-7864-5903-2
eISBN: 978-0-7864-9099-8
Imprint: McFarland

Preface      1

Introduction      5

I. HBCU History and Social Impact

1. The Origin and Development of the HBCU      13

Group I: A Struggle to Survive Storer College

DAWN J. HERD-CLARK      18

Edward Waters College

VANN R. NEWKIRK      26

Arkansas Baptist College

DAWN J. HERD-CLARK      33

Group II: Just Enough to Survive Bluefield State College

VANN R. NEWKIRK      37

Langston University

DAWN J. HERD-CLARK      43

Group III: The New Elite Claflin University

DAWN J. HERD-CLARK      51

2. Private vs. Public: The Politics of Access with Opportunity

MEIGAN M. FIELDS and KOMANDURI S. MURTY      70

3. Survival Management Becomes Academic Autocracy

KOMANDURI S. MURTY and JULIUS SCIPIO      97

II. Operational Challenges and Models for Improvement

4. Continuing the Fiefdom: A Matter of Governance and Management

KOMANDURI S. MURTY      123

5. Compliance and Accreditation: Pressures and Challenges

KOMANDURI S. MURTY and JULIUS SCIPIO      145

6. Going Global: The International Focus

KOMANDURI S. MURTY      169

7. Business, Finance and Fund-Raising

VANN R. NEWKIRK and DANIEL WIMS      186

8. Summary and Thoughts for the Future

VANN R. NEWKIRK and DANIEL WIMS      233

Appendix: Profiles of Closed HBCUs

DAWN J. HERD-CLARK      239

Bibliographical Essay

JUONE BROWN      245

Bibliography      253

About the Contributors      273

Index      275

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