By James O. Maxwell

It is difficult to find written in American History textbooks the great contributions that the historically black colleges have made to the well-being and leadership among blacks; in addition, black colleges have made significant contributions to the growth and development of our country as a whole. Most of the movements for the freedom and the human rights of African-American people have been led by those who were trained in part or in whole at predominantly black colleges. Even today, many of the well-known black leaders in our nation were trained in black educational institutions.

Many African-Americans and Caucasians do not know that black colleges were established as early as 1849, although some of those are not in existence today. Institutions such as Morgan State College and Rust College were established as early as 1866 by the Methodist-Episcopal Church. Fisk University was founded in the same year. Howard University was opened in 1867. Tuskegee Institute was founded with only thirty students in 1881. In 1884, Paine College was begun by the Southern Methodist-Episcopal Church. LeMoyne-Owen College and Tougaloo University were founded in 1869. Knoxville College and Bethune-Cookman College were founded in 1875, and Lane College was founded in 1882.

Today, there are approximately 117 historically black colleges, many of which were started in the 1900s. Wiley College, in Marshall, Texas, has been in existence close to a hundred years. A college that was not well-known, it has gained international acclaim because of its excellent debating team that defeated Harvard University’s debating team. The event was profiled in the highly esteemed movie, “The Great Debaters.”

Many clamoring voices from “the powers that be” and from myriad sources have been and are spreading doubt in the minds of the people of our nation, asserting that there is no longer a need for historically black colleges in the light of desegregation and what is termed “integration.” If predominantly black colleges have served a useful purpose during the days of Reconstruction, “Jim Crowism,” and segregation, the same purpose may be served in part or in whole today.

If there ever were a need for black colleges, the need is now.

There are approximately 837,000 inmates in federal and state prisons, of whom most are black. Black colleges can work effectively in curbing this destructive and demoralizing, and often inequitable, trend in our nation.

Desegregation and integration form a two-way street. Those of other races and cultures may attend qualitative predominantly black colleges as well as African-Americans, and other minorities may attend qualitative predominantly white institutions. I do not believe that African-Americans should have to close down their educational “shopping centers” because other educational “shopping centers” are open to them. In the words of an old clich/, we should not burn down the bridge that has brought us over the troubled waters. We need black colleges, which have contributed and continue to contribute to the greatness of all Americans, not to African-Americans alone.

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