HBCUs get donations 178 times lower than Ivy League News Article

Just sharing a news article on HBCU funding from foundations. I am very thankful for the recent increases in foundation giving to HBCUs (the article’s headline data is from 2019). Here is one excerpt from the article that conveys the continued importance of HBCUs.

“According to the UNCF, the nation’s largest private provider of scholarships and other educational support to Black students, HBCUs account for 80% of Black judges, 50% of Black doctors, and 50% of Black lawyers. Studies show that Black HBCU graduates earn $900,000 more in their lifetimes than Black graduates from predominantly white institutions or Black workers without college degrees.”

https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/hbcus-donations-178-times-lower-ivy-league-study-99010006

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This is a confusing statement. It sounds like it’s saying black graduates from predominantly white institutions and black workers without college degrees make the same amount of money. If that’s the case, what’s the motivation for blacks to attend any university other than a HBCU?

There’s a big hubbub about reparations here in California. The idea of cash payments is very unpopular and I don’t know if that’s going to fly, but maybe the state should look into setting up a black college here as part of reparations.

I think I have found the quote that they based that statement from the UNCF website and it is different. It says “ An HBCU graduate can expect to earn an additional $927,000 in their lifetime, which is 56% more than they could expect to earn without their HBCU degrees or certificates”. I have seen recent data that looked at HBCU graduates at specific HBCUs and showed that they make more than Black graduates at other schools in the same state. The biggest gap that I remember was between Xavier University of Louisiana (XULA) who had a ~15K gap between its college graduates and those Black college graduates with a similar level of education in Louisiana.

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Thanks. That explanation makes sense.

My question…why is everything compared to what happens at the Ivies.

Is there an article about how much less directional universities get in donations than the Ivies?

How about one about SLACs and what they get in donations compared to the Ivies.

Or how about one comparing donations to the Ivies to places like Stanford and MIT.

Or…how about comparing the donations to HBCU to donations to the Colleges That Change Lives. Perhaps that would be a better comparison.

I guess what I’m saying is…I think this article has a very biased slant (and yes, I understand most articles do).

But I’m not sure I understand their point, when they compare only one type of college to the HBCUs.

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I don’t care for the comparison to Ivy League schools specifically, but we know why everything is compared to them (They are considered the standard for many). The article is pointing out the 45 million dollars in foundation donations in 2019 (for the 99 HBCUs) versus the 178 times more In foundation giving (For 8 institutions of higher learning) is a loud headline that tries to communicate and shock people to see the financial inequalities faced by HBCUs.

The fact that HBCUs have received multiples more in foundation donations since 2019 is an important part of the article, but pointing out the discrepancies may help bring more attention to the plight of HBCUs (along with more dollars).