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Title: Recommendation: Description: Try to imagine a world without the sheer determination of Harry T. Moore, the vision of Martin Luther King, Jr., the literary brilliance of Langston Hughes, the intellect of W. E. B. DuBois or the athletic grace of Alice Coachman. It would be a world without Bethune-Cookman University, Morehouse College, Lincoln University, Fisk University and Tuskegee University. At these and other Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), hundreds of thousands of sons and daughters of enslaved Africans were able to attend school when white colleges shut them out. These were places where Black students were expected to excel and were given the tools to become president of the student body, editor of the school paper or quarterback of the football team. These were places where the Black adults on campus were professors and scholars, not just cooks and janitors. There are 105 Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) in the Nation. The Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended, defines an HBCU as: "...any historically Black college or university that was established prior to 1964, whose principal mission was, and is, the education of Black Americans, and that is accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting agency or association determined by the Secretary [of Education] to be a reliable authority as to the quality of training offered or is, according to such an agency or association, making reasonable progress toward accreditation…” These HBCUs were formed to eliminate the diverse residue from slavery, plus a century of legally sanctioned discrimination, against United States citizens of African descent. While only 3 percent of the country's institutions of higher education qualify as HBCUs, 35 percent of all African Americans who receive bachelor's degrees earn them at these schools. The alumni rolls of HBCUs read like a Great American Who’s Who list: Ralph Abernathy, Debbie Allen, Ed Bradley, John Chaney, Benjamin O. Davis, Althea Gibson, Alexis Herman, William Holland, Zora Neale Hurston, Elaine Jones, Barbara Jordan, Spike Lee, Reginald Lewis, Thurgood Marshall, Carrie Meek, Toni Morrison, Kwame Nkrumah, Walter Payton, Leontyne Price, Tim Reid, Debra Robinson, Judge I. C. Smith, Booker T. Washington, Frederica Wilson and Oprah Winfrey. President George W. Bush is scheduled to issue a proclamation honoring America’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities during the week of September 9-15 at the annual HBCU Conference.. In recognition of HBCU Month, we are recognizing the four HBCUs in Florida but especially the two colleges that were elevated to university status, Florida Memorial University and Bethune-Cookman University. Representatives, former Palm Beach County School District students, from each institution will be recognized. Financial Impact: For Additional Information, contact: Ann Killets Vickie Middlebrooks Attachments (list):
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