Somebody Has to Say It: Howard University's Wake-Up Call Is Bigger Than Howard

Somebody has to say it.

The news that more than 500 incoming freshmen were unenrolled from Howard University just weeks before the start of the fall semester should concern every person who loves Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Howard says students and families were notified for months about deadlines to pay tuition, establish payment plans, or report outside scholarships and financial aid before their enrollment was canceled. Some students, however, insist they had pending scholarship money, believed payment arrangements had been made, or were still trying to navigate the financial aid process. The university has since agreed to review disputed cases.

Regardless of who's right in every individual case, this moment exposes a much bigger problem.

Our HBCUs are under pressure from every direction.

First, let's acknowledge the reality. Colleges across the country—and HBCUs in particular—are operating in an increasingly hostile political environment. Federal funding is becoming less certain, higher education is under constant attack, and institutions that have historically depended on public investment are being forced to make difficult financial decisions. When resources tighten, everyone feels it. This is why voting matters. This is why civic engagement matters. When the question is, how does an election outcome impact me. This is the answer – one of them, at least.

Second, we have to have an honest conversation with ourselves.

Too many HBCU graduates disappear after commencement. We proudly wear the sweatshirts, celebrate homecoming, and remind everyone where we went to school. But how many of us write a check? How many of us make a recurring monthly gift—even if it's only $10 or $25? If our institutions helped make us, then we have a responsibility to help sustain them. Endowments don't build themselves. Scholarships don't appear out of thin air. Somebody has to invest.

Finally, we cannot lose the spirit that made HBCUs legendary.

There was a time when students arrived on campus with little more than a suitcase, determination, and faith. Faculty members, administrators, churches, alumni, and entire communities found ways to help students stay enrolled. Nobody is suggesting universities should ignore financial obligations or allow students to attend for free. That's unrealistic.

But there has to be room for grace.

There has to be room for a conversation when scholarship dollars are delayed. There has to be room for flexibility when a first-generation college student is trying to untangle a complicated financial aid process that no one in their family has ever navigated before. There has to be someone willing to pick up the phone, walk a student through the paperwork, or say, "Let's figure this out."

Because every student who falls through the cracks represents more than a tuition payment. They represent a future teacher, engineer, doctor, entrepreneur, scientist, or community leader.

Howard University remains one of the crown jewels of Black higher education. That's exactly why this story hurts. Excellence isn't measured only by who you admit. It's also measured by how hard you work to keep students on the path to graduation.

Let's hope this becomes more than a controversy. Let it become a catalyst—for better communication, stronger alumni support, more intentional student services, and a renewed commitment to the mission that has defined HBCUs for generations.

Our institutions deserve that.

Our students deserve it even more.