The Value of an HBCU Education
What Kamala Harris, Martin Luther King, and I Have in Common
“Education will set this tangle straight!” — W.E.B. DuBois
When I set foot on the campus of Fisk University, I knew almost nothing about HBCUs in general or Fisk in particular. In high school, I performed exceptionally well on the PSAT Test and was named a National Merit Semi-Finalist. I started receiving mail and offers from hundreds of colleges and universities nationwide. The ones I knew were mainly because of their football or basketball programs. Fortunately, someone in my family knew Fisk and steered me in that direction.
I was well aware of what a Predominantly White Institution (PWI) looked like. In 7th Grade, I attended University High, a private high school associated with and on the campus of the University of Minnesota. It later merged with the public school Marshall High to become Marshall University High. I spent six years on the fringe of the University of Minnesota campus, then the largest in the nation. I went to Gopher sports events, and our football team played home games in their stadium. But for Stan Humphries, I’d have drowned in the Olympic-sized swimming pool in Williams Arena. Not sure I ever said thank you, Stan… thanks!
