By Merdie Nzanga •
KiShewna Durham graduated from Clark Atlanta University, a Historically Black College and University (HBCU) in Atlanta GA, in 2009.
She matriculated during the great recession which financially hurt many Americans so giving back to her alma mater, was challenging for her.
As an HBCU alum, she wants to contribute to her alma mater financially.
She says she does give back in other ways. Durham is one of many HBCU grads who believes one of the reasons why many HBCU alums don’t give back is because they are not financially stable to do so.
Brian. K. Bridges, Vice President for Research and Member Engagement of United Negro College Fund (UNCF), an organization that funds scholarships for black students and HBCU students, agrees.
He suggests that the reason HBCUs struggle with alumni giving is because of the wealth gap between African Americans and their white counterparts.
According to Bridges, African Americans, tend to make less money than their white colleagues, which makes it difficult for HBCU graduates to contribute to their alma mater financially.
“There’s also institutionalized racism, where black folks just make less,” he said in an interview. “Even if they have the same credentials, the same background as the white folks, they make less; they have fewer resources to give back to their institutions.”
A study by the Economic Policy Institute showed that since the 2008 great recession, African Americans and other minority groups were negatively impacted the most.
The average income for black people decreased by 10.1 percent between 2007-2010 compared to only 5.4 percent for white households, the Economic Policy Institute reported.
The study also highlighted that the unemployment rate increased by 19.5 percent between 2010 and 2011 for African Americans, 12.5 percent for Hispanics, and 8.5 percent for white Americans.
Chauntel Webb- Candler knew that at twelve-years-old, she wanted to go to Clark Atlanta University (CAU).When she graduated in 2008, she knew that giving back to her alma mater was a priority to her.
“I’m involved because I am an advocate of paying it forward. I’ll always love my alma mater,” Webb- Candler said.
She’s been an active member of the Clark Atlanta University Alumni Association since 2015 and encourages other alums to give as well.
The organization does recruitment and encourages alumni to give. Although she is not involved in monetary giving, she gives back to not only CAU but other HBCUs’.
Webb- Candler selects less well known HBCUs’ and gives between $5 to $15 dollars to “keep HBCUs’ alive.
“Most (HBCUs’) don't get more opportunities as predominantly white institutions (and) it shows in alumni giving, If you trust your institution to get a degree, I don’t see why you wouldn’t give back,” Webb- Candler said in a phone interview.
Claflin University in Orangeburg, South Carolina, is one of the few HBCUs with a high alumni giving rate.
Alumni donation increased by almost ten percent within a year. As of 2013, its alumni giving rate was at 43 percent, and in 2014 it rose to 52.2 percent. This is the latest data.
According to the White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities, the school credits this accomplishment to strengthening existing initiatives, embarking on new ones, collaborating with the alumni association, and having strong leadership.
Claflin’s giving rate is rare among HBCUs’ given the fact that most of them historically have low alumni giving rates.
According to Defender Network, alumni giving rates on average at HBCUs’’ are 5 to 7 percent for public, and 9 to 11 percent for private HBCUs’’.
A school such as Princeton University, for instance, has alumni giving a rate of 59.1 percent, according to U.S. News and World Reports.
According to Washington’s Top News, on a national level, alumni gave more than $11 billion to their alma matters.
According to Morehouse Office of Institutional Development, alumni giving went from 16 percent to 13 percent in a span of five years, between 2012-2013 school year through the 2016-2017 school year.
Howard University News Service, reached out to Morehouse College to ask for a percentage of that have given back in recent years.
Morehouse declined to comment on “specific numbers” because it is “reorganizing its efforts and strategies.” It did, however, praise its alumni of giving back to the institution.
“There is much energy among Morehouse alumni to share their time, talent and gifts with the college,” Director of Development Office of Institutional Advancement, Torian.J. Robinson said in an email.
Damario Butts, a 2010 graduate of Morehouse College from Chattanooga Tennessee, said what made his time at Morehouse memorable were the people he was around: positive black men.
However, there was only one problem.
He hasn’t given back to his alma mater and said his experience with the school is to blame.
Butts says he never received his financial aid on time and feels that those in authority at the
school did not care about him.
His experience is what has led him not to give back to his institution.
He even allegedly threatened the school, to receive his diploma.
“When I graduated, I didn’t get my diploma,” Butts said in an interview. “It took me to email the provost, and the registrar and say every day that I don’t get my diploma; it’s going to be a year that I don’t donate.”
Butts suggests that having younger leadership at Morehouse College can help.
“My opinion matters now that I’m out of Morehouse, and that I can donate to the school,” he said.
“If Morehouse put more effort into making grads proud, then there would be no questions about donations.”
Candler- Webb believes that it is more critical for her to give back, because of the rich history that historically black colleges and universities contribute to American schools.
“For me, It’s even more important for alumni to give back, just the history of HBCUs. Its apart of American history where blacks get an education. “
According to Bridges, HBCUs’ don’t have enough resources to employ the kind of staff that it needs to be as successful as its counterparts on alumni giving.
“So what happens if you hire one person to do two or three jobs on the campus, and you’re not as effective,” he said.
Bridges also said, that most HBCUs’ do not reach out to their alumni because they “can't sustain deep engagement with them.”
He suggests that for these schools to move forward and gain alumni support, they need to “make their case better to get more funding, as well as make a case for their existence.
This exemplified with a school such as Bennett College, for example, had until February to raise $5 million to keep its accreditation.
“The fact that they were able to raise over $8 million in less than a few months, also demonstrates that people want to support HBCUs,” Bridges said.
Bridges also believe the reason why HBCUs are having issues is that they are not able to work with having good resources.
“It comes down to having equitable resources, also HBCUs’ aren’t able to work their applications as they should. Meaning following up with their demands.”
According to Bridges, most schools have annual campaigns where they call alums.
“The process is each year; your alumni office should be reaching out to alums to find out who is successful, who can give back to the university,” Bridges said in an interview.
“ Even if it’s not money, maybe they want to be a mentor, maybe they want to be involved somehow.”
Candler Webb believes that it is up to HBCU graduates to invest in their alma maters.
They need to take the time to start giving back, because according to Candler Webb, HBCUs’ play an important role, and have played an essential role in educating some of the most renowned African Americans in the country.
“It’s up to black people and the alumni to give back to their institutions so we can get them running,”