Black Colleges, Students in Affected States Get Assistance, Band Together
Date: Thursday, September 01, 2005
By: Sherrel Wheeler Stewart, BlackAmericaWeb.com
Historically black colleges and universities hit by the deadly Hurricane Katrina will be getting help from at least two organizations long associated with efforts to keep those universities alive.
The United Negro College Fund has set up a special relief fund to benefit Xavier University and Dillard University, both premier institutions located in New Orleans.
The National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education is coordinating with other universities to provide for alternatives in the event the HBCUs are not able to quickly reopen and return to a regular academic schedule. In addition to Xavier and Dillard, Bishop State College in Mobile, Alabama and Southern University’s New Orleans campus may have also suffered damage, said Linda Earley Chastang, NAFEO senior VP and general counsel.
UNCF President Michael Lomax, who was president at Dillard from 1997 to 2004, said he has talked with that university’s current president, Marvalene Hughes. “We don’t know exactly what they will need, but we do know that they will need money,” Lomax told BlackAmericaWeb.com. “They will need our help, and I know the support is there for our schools.”
UNCF is also offering the impacted institutions space on its website to communicate with faculty staff and students, Lomax said.
“We want people to pray for these schools and contribute to these schools," he told BlackAmericaweb.com. "These schools have been contributing to our communities for more than 130 years.
“Dillard was ranked #14 on the U.S. News and World Report's list of comprehensive colleges, and Xavier is a premier university for African-Americans who go on and get their medical degrees," Lomax said. "We cannot abandon these institutions, and we cannot abandon the city of New Orleans."
Lomax said, as Dillard's president, "I went through seven hurricane seasons. We went through the drills."
He has not talked with Xavier University President Norman Francis. The faculty, staff and most of the students left New Orleans, Lomax said.
"Dr. Francis stayed," said Lomax. "He's been there 40 years and is the longest serving college president in the country. He's like the captain of the ship. That's his university."
Lomax said because several of the buildings at Xavier are tall, anyone remaining on campus could take refuge in the higher elevations, and there were reports of some students remaining on campus.
"I am sure that if students are still on campus, they are being cared for," he said. "But now that they are saying the city must be completely evacuated, I am sure they will leave."
The Dillard campus was completely evacuated on Sunday. Students who did not have immediately have transportation home were taken six hours away to Centenary College in Shreveport. From there, some were give bus rides to Dallas to catch flights home. Others were transported on a bus to their hometowns in Mississippi and nearby cities, said Lynn Stewart, spokeswoman for Centenary College.
One of the Dillard buses en route to Shreveport caught fire sometime around midnight Saturday. The 55 students on board escaped without injury, but most of their belongings burned, said Stewart.
“When word of that story got out, the community opened up and showed lots of support,” she told BlackAmericaweb.com. "They were showing up here with loads of supplies and toiletries."
Some in the community have adopted Dillard students who may not have had a place to go, she said. Wednesday evening, there were only a handful of students remaining in the gym.
Both Dillard and Centenary, a predominately white college, are affiliated with the United Methodist Church.
“They are our sister institution, and we were glad to do it," Stewart said.
Lezli Baskerville, president of NAFEO, said HBCUs around the country are rallying to support the stricken campuses.
“The presidents at other institutions don’t want to see the education process interrupted for students,” she told BlackAmericaWeb.com. “This attitude speaks to what we are about -- when you have Morris Brown College say, 'we have some challenges, but we will do whatever we can do.'"
Jackson State and Alcorn State opened their doors to students from Dillard and Xavier. "They said we may be without power, but our floors are dry," Baskerville said.
NAFEO is contacting impacted HBCUs and those willing to help so that any alternatives for students will be agreeable.
Here’s what’s happening so far with NAFEO institutions.
* Wayne Watson, chancellor of City Colleges of Chicago, will enroll any student from Illinois whose college or university may remain closed for the remainder of the semester due to Katrina at no additional cost to the students for up to one semester.
* Clinton Bristow, president of Alcorn State University, has agreed to receive and enroll any nursing student displaced from Dillard or Xavier in the Alcorn State University Nursing School for the remainder of the semester.
* President William Harvey of Hampton University is extending a similar offer to Xavier’s nursing and pharmacy students.
* Virginia State University President Eddie Moore has offered to take any Virginia residents.
* President John Garland of Central State University has offered to take any Ohio students, and Morris Brown University is committed to providing any needed assistance.
* At the urging of Chancellor Watson, Governor Rod Blagojevich of Illinois announced this afternoon that the State will receive and enroll for the remainder of the semester any displaced Illinois student in the universities of the state.
* Texas Southern University will admit any student currently enrolled at the institutions affected by the hurricane for the fall 2005 semester. Application fees will be waived and a meeting for interested students will be held on Thursday at 10 a.m. to noon in room 243 of Bell Hall. The University will also hire displaced faculty as required.
Baskerville said that NAFEO also will be in discussions with FEMA and with AmeriCorps to get all that is needed to rebuild and restore the damaged HBCUs and to mobilize teams to expedite repairs.
“We want to make sure the unique needs of HBCUs and other under funded institutions are recognized,” she told BlackAmericaWeb.com.
"HBCUs are one of our nation's most valuable assets. At no point could we have imagined the devastation that has occurred at several of our member institutions," said Baskerville. "We have no idea what will be the outcome. What we do know, though, is that it is part of NAFEO's mission and history to think creatively and work doggedly to ensure the survival and continued success of HBCUs -- even in the face of obstacles as large and horrific as Katrina."
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Sunday, September 4th 2005 at 10:39PM
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