Public funding is the life blood of higher education, specifically from financial aid, grants and contracts. Advocacy often determines not only how much public funding an institution will receive, but whether its concerns and those of its students will be taken into account as federal and state policies, programs and contracts are being developed.
In the 1980s, advocating on behalf of historically Black colleges was the main province of one organization: the National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education (NAFEO). The organization focused on meeting with and educating policymakers, hosting networking and skill-building events for institutional leaders and pushing for policies and programs that benefited their member institutions. Occasionally, NAFEO mobilized alliances to advance a piece of legislation or to protest an injustice.
These days, there are more higher education advocates and the scope of advocacy work is broader. Besides meeting with policymakers to educate them about the needs and concerns of underrepresented and first-generation students, advocates initiate and help shape policy; train institution leaders to be their own advocates at the federal, state and local levels; track and intervene in judicial matters; and even reach out to alumni and faculty.
To be an effective advocate, an organization must develop strong relationships with traditional media; be able to collect, analyze and use data to support their messaging; cultivate partnerships and alliances with similar and non-similar individuals and organizations; understand how to use social media; and take control of the public narrative about underrepresented students and their institutions.
The importance of advocacy became clear in the fall of 2012, when the U.S. Department of Education tightened the underwriting standards for its Parent PLUS loan (PPL) program. Historically Black and predominantly Black institutions (PBIs) were hit especially hard since many of their students rely on government aid to help pay for college. Under the new revisions, thousands of PPL applications were denied, prompting last-minute dropouts at dozens of institutions, thereby decreasing enrollment and costing the institutions millions in expected income.
HBCU advocates immediately sprang into action. They collectively admonished the Obama administration for not alerting HBCU leaders about the policy change beforehand, and demanded prompt action to redress the effects of the administration’s actions. Education Secretary Arne Duncan apologized for the way the change was handled. Although the Education Department has not reversed the new policy, it has been working with HBCUs to find ways to repair the damage — both to students and the institutions. This spring, for instance, HBCU advocates are participating in a new round of negotiated rulemaking for the PPL program.
Of the hundreds of organizations dedicated to advocacy in Washington, D.C., today, three focus on the interests of HBCUs/PBIs and the students they serve: NAFEO, the United Negro College Fund (UNCF) and the Thurgood Marshall College Fund (TMCF). Along with the Congressional Black Caucus, the White House Initiative for Historically Black Colleges — which advocates for these institutions within the Department of Education — and a handful of consultants and other allies on Capitol Hill, these organizations help steer billions in public resources to institutions that serve African-Americans and other underrepresented groups.
