RESPONDING TO THE NEEDS OF HISTORICALLY 

BLACK COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES 

IN THE 21ST CENTURY

HEARING

BEFORE THE 

SUBCOMMITTEE ON 21ST CENTURY COMPETITIVENESS 

AND THE 

SUBCOMMITTEE ON SELECT EDUCATION 

OF THE 

COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND 

THE WORKFORCE 

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

ONE HUNDRED SEVENTH CONGRESS

SECOND SESSION

HEARING HELD IN WASHINGTON, DC, SEPTEMBER 19, 2002 

Serial No. 107-78 

Printed for the use of the Committee on Education 

and the Workforce

83-027 pdf 

For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office 

Internet: bookstore.gpo.gov Phone: (866) 512-1800; DC area (202) 512-1800 

FAX: (202) 512-2250 Mail: Stop SSOP, Washington, DC 20402-0001 
ii

 COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND THE WORKFORCE 

 JOHN A. BOEHNER, Ohio, Chairman 

THOMAS E. PETRI, Wisconsin GEORGE MILLER, California 

MARGE ROUKEMA, New Jersey DALE E. KILDEE, Michigan 

CASS BALLENGER, North Carolina MAJOR R. OWENS, New York 

PETER HOEKSTRA, Michigan DONALD M. PAYNE, New Jersey 

HOWARD P. “BUCK” McKEON, California PATSY MINK, Hawaii 

MICHAEL N. CASTLE, Delaware ROBERT E. ANDREWS, New Jersey 

SAM JOHNSON, Texas TIM ROEMER, Indiana 

JAMES C. GREENWOOD, Pennsylvania ROBERT C. “BOBBY” SCOTT, Virginia 

LINDSEY O. GRAHAM, South Carolina LYNN C. WOOLSEY, California 

MARK E. SOUDER, Indiana LYNN N. RIVERS, Michigan 

CHARLIE W. NORWOOD, JR., Georgia RUBEN HINOJOSA, Texas 

BOB SCHAFFER, Colorado CAROLYN McCARTHY, New York 

FRED UPTON, Michigan JOHN F. TIERNEY, Massachusetts 

VAN HILLEARY, Tennessee RON KIND, Wisconsin 

VERNON J. EHLERS, Michigan LORETTA SANCHEZ, California 

THOMAS G. TANCREDO, Colorado HAROLD E. FORD, JR., Tennessee 

JIM DeMINT, South Carolina DENNIS KUCINICH, Ohio 

JOHNNY ISAKSON, Georgia DAVID WU, Oregon 

BOB GOODLATTE, Virginia RUSH D. HOLT, New Jersey 

JUDY BIGGERT, Illinois HILDA L. SOLIS, California 

TODD RUSSELL PLATTS, Pennsylvania SUSAN DAVIS, California 

PATRICK J. TIBERI, Ohio BETTY McCOLLUM, Minnesota 

 RIC KELLER, Florida 

 TOM OSBORNE, Nebraska 

JOHN ABNEY CULBERSON, Texas 

JOE WILSON, South Carolina 

 Paula Nowakowski, Chief of Staff 

 John Lawrence, Minority Staff Director 

 

 SUBCOMMITTEE ON 21st CENTURY COMPETITIVENESS 

 HOWARD P. “BUCK” McKEON, California, Chairman

JOHNNY ISAKSON, Georgia, Vice Chairman PATSY MINK, Hawaii

JOHN BOEHNER, Ohio JOHN F. TIERNEY, Massachusetts 

MICHAEL N. CASTLE, Delaware RON KIND, Wisconsin 

SAM JOHNSON, Texas RUSH D. HOLT, New Jersey 

LINDSEY O. GRAHAM, South Carolina DAVID WU, Oregon 

MARK E. SOUDER, Indiana LYNN N. RIVERS, Michigan 

FRED UPTON, Michigan BETTY McCOLLUM, Minnesota 

VERNON J. EHLERS, Michigan ROBERT E. ANDREWS, New Jersey 

BOB GOODLATTE, Virginia RUBEN HINOJOSA, Texas 

TOM OSBORNE, Nebraska 

 SUBCOMMITTEE ON SELECT EDUCATION 

 PETER HOEKSTRA, Michigan, Chairman

PATRICK TIBERI, Vice Chairman TIM ROEMER, Indiana

THOMAS E. PETRI, Wisconsin ROBERT C. “BOBBY” SCOTT, Virginia 

JAMES C. GREENWOOD, Pennsylvania RUSH D. HOLT, New Jersey 

CHARLIE W. NORWOOD, JR., Georgia SUSAN DAVIS, California 

BOB SCHAFFER, Colorado BETTY McCOLLUM, Minnesota 

VAN HILLEARY, Tennessee LORETTA SANCHEZ, California 

TODD RUSSELL PLATTS, Pennsylvania
iii

 TABLE OF CONTENTS 

TABLE OF CONTENTS...............................................................................................................iii 

OPENING STATEMENT OF CHAIRMAN HOWARD P. “BUCK” MCKEON, 

SUBCOMMITTEE ON 21ST CENTURY COMPETITIVENESS, COMMITTEE ON 

EDUCATION AND THE WORKFORCE, U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, 

WASHINGTON, D.C..................................................................................................................... 1 

OPENING STATEMENT OF REPRESENTATIVE ROBERT C. “BOBBY” SCOTT, 

SUBCOMMITTEE ON 21ST CENTURY COMPETITIVENESS, COMMITTEE ON 

EDUCATION AND THE WORKFORCE, U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, 

WASHINGTON, D.C..................................................................................................................... 3 

OPENING STATEMENT OF CHAIRMAN PETER HOEKSTRA, SUBCOMMITTEE ON 

SELECT EDUCATION, COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND THE WORKFORCE, U.S. 

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, WASHINGTON, D.C.......................................................... 4 

STATEMENT OF DR. MICHAEL L. LOMAX, PRESIDENT, DILLARD UNIVERSITY, 

NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA .................................................................................................... 8 

STATEMENT OF DR. MARIE McDEMMOND, PRESIDENT, NORFOLK STATE 

UNIVERSITY, NORFOLK, VIRGINIA ..................................................................................... 10 

STATEMENT OF DR. WILLIS B. McLEOD, CHANCELLOR, FAYETTEVILLE STATE 

UNIVERSITY, FAYETTEVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA.......................................................... 12 

STATEMENT OF DR. ELSON S. FLOYD, PRESIDENT, WESTERN MICHIGAN 

UNIVERSITY, KALAMAZOO, MICHIGAN ............................................................................ 14 

STATEMENT OF MR. STEVE STEPHENS, II, PRESIDENT, STUDENT GOVERNMENT 

ASSOCIATION, LANGSTON UNIVERSITY, LANGSTON, OKLAHOMA .......................... 16 

APPENDIX A -- WRITTEN OPENING STATEMENT OF CHAIRMAN HOWARD P. 

“BUCK” MCKEON, SUBCOMMITTEE ON 21ST CENTURY COMPETITIVENESS, 

COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND THE WORKFORCE, U.S. HOUSE OF 

REPRESENTATIVES, WASHINGTON, D.C. ........................................................................... 27 
iv

APPENDIX B -- WRITTEN OPENING STATEMENT OF CHAIRMAN PETER HOEKSTRA, 

SUBCOMMITTEE ON SELECT EDUCATION, COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND THE 

WORKFORCE, U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, WASHINGTON, D.C. ................... 31 

APPENDIX C -- WRITTEN STATEMENT OF DR. MICHAEL L. LOMAX, PRESIDENT, 

DILLARD UNIVERSITY, NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA...................................................... 35 

APPENDIX D -- WRITTEN STATEMENT OF DR. MARIE McDEMMOND, PRESIDENT, 

NORFOLK STATE UNIVERSITY, NORFOLK, VIRGINIA .................................................... 41 

APPENDIX E -- WRITTEN STATEMENT OF DR. WILLIS B. McLEOD, CHANCELLOR, 

FAYETTEVILLE STATE UNIVERSITY, FAYETTEVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA.............. 49 

APPENDIX F -- WRITTEN STATEMENT OF DR. ELSON S. FLOYD, PRESIDENT, 

WESTERN MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY, KALAMAZOO, MICHIGAN................................... 61 

APPENDIX G -- WRITTEN STATEMENT OF MR. STEVE STEPHENS, II, PRESIDENT, 

STUDENT GOVERNMENT ASSOCIATION, LANGSTON UNIVERSITY, LANGSTON, 

OKLAHOMA ............................................................................................................................... 67 

APPENDIX H -- WRITTEN DOCUMENT SUBMITTED FOR THE RECORD BY 

REPRESENTATIVE MAJOR R. OWENS, COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND THE 

WORKFORCE, U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, WASHINGTON, D.C. ................... 71 

APPENDIX I -- WRITTEN STATEMENT SUBMITTED FOR THE RECORD BY 

REPRESENTATIVE RUSH D. HOLT, COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND THE 

WORKFORCE, U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, WASHINGTON, D.C. ................... 87 

APPENDIX J -- WRITTEN RESPONSES TO QUESTIONS SUBMITTED FOR THE 

RECORD BY REPRESENTATIVE RUSH D. HOLT, COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND 

THE WORKFORCE, U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, WASHINGTON, D.C............ 91 

APPENDIX K -- WRITTEN STATEMENT SUBMITTED FOR THE RECORD BY 

REPRESENTATIVE DONALD M. PAYNE, COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND THE 

WORKFORCE, U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, WASHINGTON, D.C. ................... 99 

APPENDIX L -- WRITTEN STATEMENT SUBMITTED FOR THE RECORD BY 

CHAIRMAN JOHN A. BOEHNER, COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND THE 

WORKFORCE, U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, WASHINGTON, D.C. ................. 103 

APPENDIX M – STATEMENT SUBMITTED FOR THE RECORD BY DR. JOHN E. 

MAUPIN, JR., PRESIDENT, ASSOCIATION OF MINORITY HEALTH PROFESSIONS 

SCHOOLS AND MEHARRY MEDICAL COLLEGE, NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE ............ 109 
v

APPENDIX N – STATEMENT SUBMITTED FOR THE RECORD BY DR. EARL S. 

RICHARDSON, PRESIDENT, MORGAN STATE UNIVERSITY, BALTIMORE, 

MARYLAND ............................................................................................................................. 115 

TABLE OF INDEXES ............................................................................................................... 123
vi
1

HEARING ON RESPONDING TO THE NEEDS OF 

HISTORICALLY BLACK COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES 

IN THE 21st CENTURY 

________________________________________

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 19, 2002 

SUBCOMMITTEE ON 21st CENTURY COMPETITIVENESS, 

JOINT WITH SUBCOMMITTEE ON SELECT EDUCATION, 

COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND THE WORKFORCE, 

U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, 

WASHINGTON, D.C. 

 The subcommittees met, pursuant to notice, at 10:30 a.m., in Room 2175, Rayburn House 

Office Building, Hon. Howard P. ``Buck'' McKeon [chairman of the Subcommittee on 21st 

Century Competitiveness] presiding. 

 Present: Representatives McKeon, Boehner, Johnson, Upton, Ehlers, Osborne, Tierney, 

Holt, McCollum, Hoekstra, Scott, and Davis. 

 Also present: Representatives Watts, Payne, and Owens. 

 Staff present: Alexa Callin, Communications Staff Assistant; George Conant, Professional 

Staff Member; Patrick Lyden, Professional Staff Member; Deborah Samantar, Committee 

Clerk/Intern Coordinator; Kathleen Smith, Professional Staff Member; Jo-Marie St. Martin, 

General Counsel; Heather Valentine, Press Secretary; Liz Wheel, Legislative Assistant; Cheryl 

Johnson, Minority Counsel; James Kvaal, Minority Legislative Associate/Education; Maggie 

McDow, Minority Legislative Associate/Education; Joe Novotny, Minority Staff 

Assistant/Education; and Suzanne Palmer, Minority Legislative Associate/Education. 

OPENING STATEMENT OF CHAIRMAN HOWARD P. “BUCK” MCKEON, 

SUBCOMMITTEE ON 21ST CENTURY COMPETITIVENESS, COMMITTEE 

ON EDUCATION AND THE WORKFORCE, U.S. HOUSE OF 

REPRESENTATIVES, WASHINGTON, D.C. 
2

Chairman McKeon. The Subcommittee on Select Education and the Subcommittee on 21st 

Century Competitiveness will come to order. I apologize for our late start, but we were told there 

was going to be a vote at 10:00, and so that's probably why some of our members aren't yet here. 

 I would like to thank my colleague from Michigan, the Chairman of the Subcommittee on 

Select Education, for agreeing to hold this joint hearing on Responding to the Needs of Historically 

Black Colleges and Universities in the 21st Century. 

 So that we can get to our witnesses, we've agreed to limit the opening statements to the 

chairmen and to the ranking minority members or their designees of each subcommittee. If other 

members have statements, they will be inserted in the hearing record. With that, I ask unanimous 

consent that the record remain open 14 days to allow members to insert extraneous materials into 

the official hearing record. Without objection, so ordered. I will now read my opening statement. 

 Good morning. Thank you for joining us for this important hearing to hear testimony on 

minority-serving institutions. This is the fourth in a series of hearings as we continue this 

committee's effort to learn about the unique role that historically black colleges and universities 

play in providing a post-secondary education for our students. 

 I want to start by welcoming our witnesses here today and thank them for joining us for this 

important hearing. I look forward to the light that your testimonies will shed on the issues before 

us.

 For more than one and a half centuries, historically black colleges and universities have 

played an integral role in educating one of our nation's most underserved communities. Most were 

formed during a time when African-Americans did not have access to post-secondary education. 

Throughout their histories, HBCUs have graduated leaders in all fields of academia who have gone 

on to vastly improve America. 

 HBCU graduates include Mary McLeod Bethune, educator and founder of BethuneCookman College; Charles Drew, physician and medical researcher; W.E.B. DuBois, sociologist 

and educator; Martin Luther King, Jr., civil rights leader and recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize; 

Christa McAuliffe, first educator in space; Thurgood Marshall, Supreme Court Justice; Leontyne 

Price, world-renowned opera soprano; and Louis Sullivan, Secretary, U.S. Department of Health 

and Human Services. 

 Even this modest list of HBCU graduates is indicative of the profound impact these 

institutions make on American culture. 

 When you do the numbers, the impact of historically black colleges on American culture is 

even more profound. The 105 HBCUs in America make up only 3 percent of the nation's two- and 

four-year institutions, yet they are responsible for providing 28 percent of all bachelor's degrees, 15 

percent of all master's degrees, and 17 percent of all professional degrees earned by AfricanAmericans. 
3

 Since 1995, Congress has recognized the importance of these institutions by drastically 

increasing support. Between 1995 and 2002, funding for HBCUs increased by 89 percent and 

support for historically black professional and graduate institutions increased by 150 percent. 

 Earlier this year, President Bush continued and strengthened this support when he submitted 

his budget that calls for an increase in funding for the programs that strengthen HBCUs, including 

those programs that support graduate institutions, by an additional 3.6 percent. 

 In 1998, Congress passed the Higher Education Amendments, which made improvements 

to programs designed to aid HBCUs in strengthening their institutions and graduate and 

professional programs. These changes included allowing institutions to use federal money to build 

their endowments and to provide scholarships and fellowships for needy graduate and professional 

students.

 Next year this committee will, once again, begin the process of reauthorizing the Higher 

Education Act, where our main focus will be on examining federal policy that provides access to a 

high quality and affordable college education. 

 As Congress begins this process and continues to make efforts to bridge the educational 

divide for America's underserved communities, it is important for us to continue this dialogue and 

continue our work on evaluating ways to build on the academic excellence of students attending 

historically black colleges and universities. 

 Thank you, again, for joining us here today to discuss this important topic. 

Mr. Scott, would you care to make an opening statement now? 

WRITTEN OPENING STATEMENT OF CHAIRMAN HOWARD P. “BUCK” MCKEON, 

SUBCOMMITTEE ON 21ST CENTURY COMPETITIVENESS, COMMITTEE ON 

EDUCATION AND THE WORKFORCE, U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, 

WASHINGTON, D.C. – APPENDIX A 

OPENING STATEMENT OF REPRESENTATIVE ROBERT C. “BOBBY” 

SCOTT, SUBCOMMITTEE ON 21ST CENTURY COMPETITIVENESS, 

COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND THE WORKFORCE, U.S. HOUSE OF 

REPRESENTATIVES, WASHINGTON, D.C. 

Mr. Scott. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank you for holding this important hearing today. And 

I want to extend my gratitude, as well, to each of the witnesses that have joined us today. 

 America's historically black colleges and universities have provided millions of Americans 

from all backgrounds with rich and enduring higher education opportunities. They have developed 

innovative academic strategies, supported cutting edge research, and launched careers of millions 

of today's leaders, including scientists, doctors, teachers, lawyers, artists, entrepreneurs, and 
4

community and religious leaders, several of whom you mentioned specifically today. 

 Today these institutions face new challenges as they help prepare a new generation of 

Americans for the 21st century. To ensure that all Americans have access to high quality 

education, you must ensure that all students have the financial assistance and support to start and 

stay in college. We must ensure that all higher education institutions have the resources to perform 

vital research, succeed and prosper. I have joined 119 of my colleagues in sponsoring H.R. 1162, 

The 21st Century Higher Education Act, which was introduced by ranking member George Miller. 

That bill will substantially expand college opportunities through student aid and early intervention 

efforts, double resources to strengthen the infrastructure of minority-serving institutions, and 

harness the strength of minority-serving institutions to prepare teachers and the high tech 

workforce of tomorrow. 

 I also hope that we can hold hearings on Representative Clyburn's bill, H.R. 1606, to 

provide for the preservation of historic buildings and structures at HBCUs. As was said at the 

February hearing, I was disappointed to see the President's fiscal year 2003 budget, and I'm 

concerned about the pending Labor-HHS bill. Not only did they include the smallest increase in 

direct aid to HBCUs in recent history, but they also have level-funded and cut many programs that 

provide valuable dollars to HBCUs indirectly through student aid. 

 Colleges cannot survive if students do not have adequate resources to enable them to attend, 

and I was very disappointed in the low level of funding of Pell Grants, Work-study, Leveraging 

Education Assistance Partnerships, TRIO, and GEAR UP. 

 I hope that this hearing and others like it can convince our colleagues and the administration 

that it is important not only to increase direct aid to HBCUs, but that it is also important to provide 

more opportunities for HBCU students by increasing student aid. I look forward to hearing from 

today's witnesses on how we can help HBCUs and their students. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Chairman McKeon. Thank you, Mr. Scott. Now we'll hear from Mr. Hoekstra, Chairman of the 

Subcommittee on Select Education. 

OPENING STATEMENT OF CHAIRMAN PETER HOEKSTRA, 

SUBCOMMITTEE ON SELECT EDUCATION, COMMITTEE ON 

EDUCATION AND THE WORKFORCE, U.S. HOUSE OF 

REPRESENTATIVES, WASHINGTON, D.C. 

Mr. Hoekstra. Thanks, Buck. You know, there are four things that I would like to just briefly talk 

about. The first is the progress that we've made in making this a bipartisan issue which is now a 

priority item for Republicans and Democrats on the Hill to make sure that we address the needs of 

historically black colleges and universities. That is a significant change and I think a significant 

improvement. It allows us to work together much more than we have in the past. 

 The second thing I want to do is acknowledge the contributions of our colleague, Mr. Watts, 

who will be here later on, and the work that he has done in raising the profile of this issue and 
5

giving it the attention that it needs here on Capitol Hill and helping to break through that logjam 

and make it a bipartisan issue. 

 Thirdly, some of the things that Buck and Bobby have both talked about is the success that 

we've had over the last number of years in significantly increasing the resources available to 

historically black colleges. We're not quite sure exactly how this year's budget numbers are going 

to play out, but regardless of what the number will be this year, over the last five years there has 

been a significant increase in the resources. We recognize that while it is a challenging year for 

you and your budgets back home due to some of the conditions that we're facing, we're also having 

some difficult challenges here developing the final spending plans for 2003. 

 What we also talked about on Tuesday night, was that as we increase funding and our 

commitment to HBCUs and as you go about doing the work that you need to do at your colleges 

and at your universities, we also hope that it provides a framework and some opportunity for us to 

address the needs of K through 12 education for African-Americans, not only in our urban centers, 

but also in our rural areas. It is a problem and an issue that we've not made enough progress on and 

it keeps eating away at us. I hope that we can form a relationship that says we've addressed some 

of the needs of historically black colleges. Now let's take this opportunity in this relationship and 

address another key problem that faces the country today. 

 At this point Buck, the other thing that I'd like to do is to introduce Dr. Elson Floyd. The 

reason we're not going to hold is because I have to go to the Intelligence Committee. We've got the 

joint inquiry on September 11th. If I could say a couple of words about Dr. Floyd, maybe you can 

finish it out. But the reason, as I stated earlier, was that we were told we were going to have a vote 

and then we were told we're not going to have a vote. Now we're having a vote. The way we run 

things around here is without plans. 

Well, the plan is that our fourth witness today will be Dr. Elson Floyd. Dr. Floyd is the 

president as well as a professor of education at Western Michigan University. I guess budget cuts 

now require you to do double duty, huh? 

WRITTEN OPENING STATEMENT OF CHAIRMAN PETER HOEKSTRA, SUBCOMMITTEE 

ON SELECT EDUCATION, COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND THE WORKFORCE, U.S. 

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, WASHINGTON, D.C. – APPENDIX B 

Dr. Floyd. I'm doing double duty. 

Mr. Hoekstra. Doing double duty. He has served as executive vice-chancellor and clinical 

professor of education at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and currently serves on a 

number of boards, including the Rotary, United Way of America and Greater Kalamazoo, and the 

board of the Health Alliance. You know, I'm not sure how we'd keep Kalamazoo and Western 

Michigan moving if you ever decide to go anywhere else. He is a great friend of his congressman, 

Fred Upton, and mine, but I think the entire Michigan delegation is doing a great job for Western 

Michigan and for the state of Michigan. Dr. Floyd, welcome, and we're glad that you're here. 
6

Dr. Floyd. Thank you very much for having me. 

Mr. Hoekstra. Thanks, Buck. 

Chairman McKeon. I understand you to say you're going to the Intelligence-- 

Mr. Hoekstra. I need to get over to the joint intelligence hearing, the public hearings, after this, so 

thank you. 

Chairman McKeon. We will recess now so that we can go vote, and then we'll come back and 

introduce the rest of our witnesses and get on with the hearing. Thank you very much. 

 [Recess.] 

Chairman McKeon. Okay, we're back in session and hopefully, we won't have a vote for a while. 

We have several distinguished witnesses. We've already had Dr. Floyd introduced. Now I will 

introduce Dr. Lomax. 

Dr. Michael Lomax is the president and chief executive officer of Dillard University in 

New Orleans, Louisiana, where he's also a professor of English and African world studies. Prior to 

his current position, he served as the president of the National Faculty, a non-profit organization 

that develops and implements content-based academic programs aimed at improving teacher 

quality in the classroom. 

Dr. Lomax is the founding chair of the National Black Arts Festival as well as a member of 

numerous boards, including Teach for America and the President's board of Advisors on 

historically black colleges and universities. He holds a Ph.D. in Philosophy from Emory 

University. Welcome, Dr. Lomax. 

 Now I would like to turn to Mr. Scott to introduce our next panelist. 

Mr. Scott. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and it's my honor to introduce the distinguished Dr. Marie 

McDemmond, who, since 1997, has been president of Norfolk State University in Norfolk, 

Virginia, the fifth-largest HBCU in the country and the largest of five HBCUs in Virginia, with 

over 7,000 students. 

 Not only has Norfolk State played a vital role in my district, it's also been indispensable to 

my office--my chief of staff, my former legislative director, who is now my counsel on the 

Judiciary Committee Subcommittee, and one of my staff assistants have all gotten degrees from 

Norfolk State. 

 In addition, each year we have a number of wonderful and bright interns in both my D.C. 

and district offices, so I plead to Dr. McDemmond to keep them coming. 

 Prior to her current position, Dr. McDemmond served as vice president for finance and 

chief operating officer for Florida Atlantic University. She has also held administrative positions at 
7

the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Emory University, and was also director of finance for 

the Massachusetts Board of Regional Community Colleges. She received her undergraduate 

degree at an HBCU, Xavier University in New Orleans, and received her master's and doctorate 

degrees from the University of New Orleans and the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, 

respectively. 

 More important than what she brings to Norfolk State is what she has done during her 

tenure. She has created programs to help community college students successfully transfer in, gets 

the students who dropped out to come back and finish their degrees and has strengthened the 

academics and academic-advising for all students. 

 She has been diligently working to make Norfolk State the leading science and technology 

university of the area by creating research centers like The Center For Excellence, The Center For 

Materials Research, and most recently, by securing funding for RISE, the Research and Innovations 

to Support Empowerment campus. 

 I would like to congratulate Dr. McDemmond and thank you on behalf of the committee for 

joining us today. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Chairman McKeon. Thank you. Our next panelist will be Dr. Willis B. McLeod. Dr. McLeod is 

the chancellor of Fayetteville State University, where he has served since 1995. Prior to his current 

position he was the superintendent of Richmond County School District One in Columbia, South 

Carolina.

Dr. McLeod serves as chairman of the board of the National Association for Equal 

Opportunity in Higher Education and is a member of the President's Advisory Council on 

Historically Black Universities and Colleges. He holds an education doctorate in school 

administration from the University of Virginia. 

 Let's see, Mr. Hoekstra already introduced Dr. Floyd. I wanted to mention one thin. He 

said that you're holding two positions, and it sounded like you're very busy. I met a school 

superintendent in my new district, a small district up in Northern California. He only has one 

school. He's the superintendent, the principal, and the bus driver. 

Chairman McKeon. So I welcome you. 

 We have a special guest here this morning, Mr. J.C. Watts, one of the leaders, our 

conference chairman. I sit with him on the Armed Services Committee. Mr. Watts has announced 

his retirement from Congress at the end of this term and I, personally, am going to miss him 

greatly, as our conference will miss him. I guess probably everybody in our conference tried to 

talk him into staying, but I went up and talked to him and he said, ``my family needs me.'' And the 

argument was over. I could not ask him to leave his family any more than he already has. But 

we're happy to have J.C. with us here today, and he will introduce our final panelist. 

Mr. Watts. 
8

Mr. Watts. Mr. Chairman, thank you very much. Thank you for holding this important hearing and 

giving me the honor and the opportunity to introduce a young man studying at Langston 

University, a historically black institution of higher learning in my home state of Oklahoma. 

 I commend the chairman and members of the subcommittees for your dedication to 

HBCUs, and my colleagues in the House for working to promote the rich culture and heritage that 

these schools provide. The House, yesterday, debated a resolution that my colleague from Texas, 

Eddie Bernice Johnson, and I sponsored, to recognize the importance and significance of HBCUs 

with the vote on the legislation expected today. It is good that we've showcased the colleges and 

the universities that place doctors, lawyers, legislators, educators, business owners, community 

leaders, and America's black middle-class into the mainstream of society. 

 Steve Stephens, II, is the son of Janice and Steve Stephens, Sr., of Tulsa, Oklahoma, 

graduating from Tulsa Central High School, the Tulsa Central Braves. Steve went on at Langston 

and played football there and was his class president during his freshman and junior years and was 

president of the Pan Hellenic Council. Currently, Steve is a member of the Phi Beta Sigma 

fraternity and Students In Free Enterprise. He is active in disease prevention efforts, belongs to 

scholar clubs, is the president of the Honda Campus All-Star Team, is an associate minister at the 

Coleman Heritage Chapel, and is the president of the student government association. 

 A student's perception and perspective will be a valuable asset to the committee, Mr. 

Chairman. As we discuss the future of historically black colleges and universities, it is my pleasure 

to present to the committee today Mr. Steve B. Stephens, II. 

Chairman McKeon. We will now begin with our witnesses. We will hear first from Dr. Lomax. 

You have those lights in front you. As you see those, the green means you have five minutes, the 

yellow means you have one minute, and the red means the world has just come to a halt. But 

perhaps we could begin first with Dr. Lomax. 

STATEMENT OF DR. MICHAEL L. LOMAX, PRESIDENT, DILLARD 

UNIVERSITY, NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA 

Dr. Lomax. I will talk fast and avoid the hook, Mr. Chairman. Thank you for giving me the 

opportunity to speak on behalf of historically black colleges and Dillard University, a private 

institution in New Orleans, Louisiana. 

 Like most of the nation's HBCUs, Dillard was established more than a hundred years ago 

and has become the life-blood of education for many African-Americans. 

Chairman McKeon. Is your microphone on? 

Dr. Lomax. I hope so. Every year HBCUs produce thousands of graduates whom form the 

foundation of this country's black educated professional and leadership class. We exist for 

individuals like Ruth Simmons, an alumna of Dillard University, who became the president of 

Brown University a year ago. Dr. Simmons is the first African-American woman to lead an Ivy 
9

League university. 

 But we also exist for the hundreds of thousands of alumni who may not reach fame in the 

literal sense, but who are figurative heroes in the minds and hearts of many people in our society. 

For instance, many of the teachers in our nation's schools and the nurses in our hospitals are 

minorities. 

 We also exist to fulfill the dreams of thousands of young African-Americans who graduate 

annually from our institutions, the majority of them first-generation college graduates. Whether 

they become professionals, business people, politicians, creative artists, high tech engineers, or 

white-collar workers, these are the citizens who are the foundation of America's middle class and 

represent a dream too long deferred for too many African-American citizens. 

 As institutions we are not dying out, but instead, reaching out to make our contributions 

even greater. Let me share a few examples: Dillard University's partnership with New Orleans 

public schools and the Greater New Orleans Education Foundation has allowed us to assist 

educational reform efforts in the public school system over the last five years. 

 I believe that higher education must play a definitive role in the elementary and secondary 

schools to meet the academic and accountability standards that federal and state governments are 

enforcing.

Dr. Kassie Freeman, our dean of education, is working with the National Academy of 

Education’s Committee on Teacher Education to rewrite guidelines for what teachers need to 

know.

Dr. Freeman is also spearheading a partnership project with other HBCUs to create a 

consortium to help improve teaching strategies in urban classrooms and to ensure that HBCUs 

provide the kind of exemplary teachers with strong command of subject matter and the skills to 

teach well that our inner-city schools and rural public schools need. 

 At Dillard, we are continuing to nurture these valuable associations and are looking to 

increase our private partnerships. One of our more recent successes has been with United Parcel 

Service, which funded, in part, our Center for Teaching, Technology, Literacy, and Culture. It is 

committed to improving teacher education, particularly the fundamental communication skills of 

reading, writing, and the use of technology. 

 Model programs such as this will allow HBCUs to become powerful partners in the 21st 

Century educational competitiveness. However, there are two fundamental barriers that impede us 

from fulfilling our promise and meeting the challenge of providing competitive educational 

opportunities consistently to our students. 

 First is the need for continued, increased financial support to assist our all too often low-tomoderate income families to afford an undergraduate education. That is why continued increases 

in Pell funding and thoughtful enhancements of loan programs are critical to all higher education 

and HBCUs, particularly where a disproportionately large number of our students are first-
10

generation college and low-income. 

 Second is the need for Congress to invest strategically in the capacity building at HBCUs.

This session of Congress has a particularly dramatic opportunity to make profoundly substantial 

investments in HBCUs through Senate bill 414, H.R. 1034, the NTIA Digital Technology Program 

Act; through the HBCU Historic Preservation Legislation referred to earlier by Mr. Scott, and the 

NSF Reauthorization Act. 

 Senate 414 provides predictable, recurring funding for technology at HBCUs, a technology 

Title III. This will enable HBCUs to close the digital divide and make substantial investments in 

infrastructure in our campuses and thus better prepare our students and serve them well. 

 The historic preservation legislation, building on earlier successes in this program, will 

continue to provide funding to modernize ageing plants suffering from staggering deferred 

maintenance and provide the contemporary facilities needed to teach our students. 

 The NSF reauthorization is an opportunity for Congress to focus that agency's attention on 

the critical work performed by HBCUs in science, education and research, and allow Congress to 

ensure that this national agency will dedicate meaningful resources toward the support of HBCUs. 

This is something it has woefully failed to do in the past. 

 Over my five years as president and 30 years as an educator, I have seen the powerful 

outcomes we can produce at HBCUs. In the past we've done that with minimal government 

support. At this moment of national mobilization and international crisis, we must invest in 

education generally, and HBCUs particularly, to ensure that all of America's human capital can 

grow, develop and contribute constructively to the nations of the world. Thank you. I think I'm 

within my time limit. 

WRITTEN STATEMENT OF DR. MICHAEL L. LOMAX, PRESIDENT, DILLARD 

UNIVERSITY, NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – APPENDIX C 

Chairman McKeon. The world didn't end. 

Dr. Lomax. No, it didn't, and I didn't get the hook. 

Chairman McKeon. Dr. Marie McDemmond. 

STATEMENT OF DR. MARIE McDEMMOND, PRESIDENT, NORFOLK 

STATE UNIVERSITY, NORFOLK, VIRGINIA 

Dr. McDemmond. Thank you so much and good morning, Mr. Chairman and distinguished 

members of the subcommittees present, and especially the distinguished gentleman from the Third 

Congressional District of Virginia, the Honorable Bobby Scott. 
11

 Norfolk State University was founded in 1935 and has remained steadfast in its 

commitment to providing affordable, high-quality education to an underserved population in its 

community, its state and the nation. Norfolk State students, or 87 percent of them, are on some 

form of financial aid, with an average family income of only $23,000. 

 We have worked hard to make sure that our students remain eligible for financial aid, and 

since coming to Norfolk State have dropped our direct student loan default rate from 27.1 percent 

to 6 percent. 

 Norfolk State has a unique mission in educating African-American professionals in the 

sciences and technology. We have increased our enrollment in computer science over 116 percent 

and our enrollment in computer technology over 32 percent. In addition to that, we have internally 

reallocated our resources so that we have gone from 600 computers in campus-space student labs to 

1400 computers, and every student has an e-mail account through the university and every faculty 

member has a desktop computer and Internet access. 

 We also are working hard to continue to attract new businesses to our community. Norfolk 

State University sits in the middle of a HUBZone, an Enterprise Zone, an Empowerment Zone, and 

a Hope VI Community. We are a community doing a lot toward revitalization. The Research and 

Innovation to Support Empowerment Center that Congressman Scott spoke of earlier is our effort 

at a public-private partnership to increase the tax base of our city of Norfolk, Virginia, as well as to 

work on workforce development, technology, and additional research efforts. 

 We believe at Norfolk State that we must build on our strengths; we have centers of 

excellence that we have carved out. One center is our strength in teacher education. Norfolk State 

has long produced a high number of teachers. The BEST Lab, Bringing Education and Science 

Together, is our effort to make sure that teachers being prepared today, particularly for elementary 

schools, are prepared to teach students math and science. 

 We know that once a student is turned off in the second or third grade to math and science it 

is hard to rekindle that excitement in them. This BEST Lab, working with our pre-service teacher 

institute, which is a NASA-funded program, has worked long and hard to work with pre-service 

teachers to make sure that they are prepared. The program has been so successful at NASA that it 

has been extended to NASA Stennis in cooperation with Xavier University, and with NASA 

Marshall in cooperation with Oakwood College. 

 The Federal Government has funded our Center for Materials Research since about 1994.

We have received over $16 million to begin our work on nanotechnology, which produces organic 

photovoltaic materials for solar cells, powder laser materials for military and security identification 

and photonics materials with potential for data storage, switching and other optical and 

communications applications. 

 In addition to that, our new programs coming through the Office of Civil Rights Agreement 

with the Commonwealth of Virginia are allowing us to add a bachelor's degree in optical 

engineering as well as a master's degree in optical engineering, and to be able to expand our 

electronics engineering bachelor's degree and adding a master's there, as well as in our fully 
12

accredited computer science program. 

 We have a partnership through the Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation, the 

outstanding National Science Foundation Program that has produced over 200,000 minority 

participants in the math, science and technology with bachelor's degrees throughout this country. 

 We see this as a pool to replace the 175,000 foreign workers that are coming into our 

country now to hold down the qualified jobs in science and technology for which we have no 

Americans being trained. 

 Our students on our campus are clearly patriotic and they are eager to learn. We must work 

together in passing House bill 1034, as Dr. Lomax has referred to, and to make sure that particular 

bill provides the technology infrastructure we need. 

 I ask that you consider increasing that bill to a $250,000 level, as it was first introduced in 

Senate 414 by Max Cleland, co-sponsored by Senator Allen, Senate bill 414. 

 We also want you, as you begin your work on deliberations on financial aid, to make sure 

that financial aid is available to all students. Over 80 percent of our students graduating with a 

bachelor's degree have some form of loans, and the average loans of our graduating seniors is 

$15,869. Thank you very much. 

WRITTEN STATEMENT OF DR. MARIE McDEMMOND, PRESIDENT, NORFOLK STATE 

UNIVERSITY, NORFOLK, VIRGINIA – APPENDIX D

Chairman McKeon. Thank you. 

 Dr. McLeod. 

STATEMENT OF DR. WILLIS B. McLEOD, CHANCELLOR, 

FAYETTEVILLE STATE UNIVERSITY, FAYETTEVILLE, NORTH 

CAROLINA

Dr. McLeod. Thank you, sir, and good morning, distinguished chairman and members of the 

panel. I am Willis McLeod, chancellor of Fayetteville State University, one of 16 constituents of 

the University of North Carolina. Currently I serve as chairman of the board of the National 

Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education. I am also speaking to you on behalf of the 

more than 100 predominately and historically black colleges and universities that NAFEO 

represents. 

 I appreciate this opportunity to provide some information about Fayetteville State 

University because our experiences provide a snapshot of the vital role HBCUs have played and 

continue to play in meeting many of the needs of our nation's most important population. 
13

 Our experiences at Fayetteville State University also highlight the crucial role that federal 

funding has played in helping HBCUs carry out their respective educational missions. 

 One of the most distinctive features of FSU and HBCUs generally, is the supportive 

environment we provide for our students. Federal funding has been the backbone of many of these 

efforts. Student Support Services, for example, which is one of the TRIO programs, has made a 

critical difference for many of our students in achieving academic success. 

 Students in this program have persisted and graduated at higher rates than their 

counterparts. Federal support has also enabled Fayetteville State University to support the 

educational aspirations of pre-college students and non-traditional students through programs such 

as GEAR UP, Educational Talent Search, Upward Bound, and The Educational Opportunity 

Centers Program. 

 Fayetteville State staff and students provide hundreds of hours of tutoring and mentoring to 

students who might otherwise be denied higher educational opportunities. The results of these 

programs are amazing, as each year 70 to 80 percent of the graduates of our Upward Bound 

Program enter colleges and universities. That's significant. 

 Title III funds have enabled us to enhance information technology resources, present faculty 

development opportunities, develop institutional assessment strategies, strengthen academic 

support and provide many other services and resources. 

 However, at the same time, we are gravely concerned about the rising cost of higher 

education for so many of our students entering higher education. Even though tuition and fees are 

among the lowest at our university, 80 percent of our students receive financial aid. Pell Grants 

alone are insufficient to cover the total cost of their education. 

 I'm sure that I speak for all the chancellors and presidents of HBCUs as I commend you 

first and ask for your continued support to provide adequate financial aid for our nation's most 

needy students. FSU, as many of our sister HBCUs, began as a teacher training institution. And so 

we are especially concerned about the shortage of teachers that has reached crisis proportions. It's 

not rocket science that the quality of our public schools is directly related to and affects the quality 

of our higher education system. 

 We're concerned about the shortage of teachers, and most especially, the decline of 

minorities in the teaching profession. Currently in North Carolina, African-Americans comprise 

approximately 21 percent of the population, though only 14 percent of public school teachers are 

African-American. And this gap is widening. 

 Most of us have developed a number of innovative initiatives such as partnerships with 

community colleges and special programs for teacher assistance, but we need your help in that 

regard.

 Information technology is very, very important to improving our infrastructure. 

Fayetteville State University exemplifies another important function of HBCUs. We have, through 
14

HUD, received funds that have helped tremendously with economic development. We need more 

money in undergraduate as well as graduate education because you have empowered us to help 

solve the health and human service problems of the populations that we serve, and we have the 

commitment and willingness to do that. 

 We thank you for this opportunity, and as I close I would like to leave a few 

recommendations: increase Title III, B, support the programs I mentioned earlier, and we also ask 

that you support the Freshman Computer Enhancement Initiative that has been addressed in my 

larger text. 

 Thank you very much. 

WRITTEN STATEMENT OF DR. WILLIS B. McLEOD, CHANCELLOR, FAYETTEVILLE 

STATE UNIVERSITY, FAYETTEVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA – APPENDIX E 

Chairman McKeon. Thank you. 

Dr. Floyd. 

STATEMENT OF DR. ELSON S. FLOYD, PRESIDENT, WESTERN 

MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY, KALAMAZOO, MICHIGAN 

Dr. Floyd. Good morning, most esteemed Members of Congress and eminent colleagues. It is an 

honor to have been asked to testify today about the work that Western Michigan University is 

doing as we continue to engage with our nation's HBCUs. I appreciated receiving the invitation to 

testify from Chairman Hoekstra, my friend from Michigan and a strong advocate for HBCUs. I 

also appreciate residing in the district of Congressman Fred Upton. Thank you for your leadership, 

as well, Chairman McKeon. 

 Colleges and universities across the country continue to rely on collaborative partnerships

to augment existing financial resources, to facilitate community engagement and to extend research 

programs for our faculty. Partnerships with business and industry have helped Western Michigan 

University become one of the nation's premier student centered research universities. But 

collaborations work both ways. What we've done in securing the best research labs for our students 

we can now offer the to students from HBCUs to enhance higher education in the nation as a 

whole, and to promote diversity among the ranks of future graduate students. 

 Federal funding from the National Science Foundation and other federal agencies has 

allowed Western Michigan University to expand the reach of our facilities and increase the 

potential for future partnerships. Today, on behalf of the 30,000 students and the entire faculty at 

Western Michigan University, I wish to describe to you several unique and crosscutting 

partnerships my university shares with several HBCUs and the Federal Government. 

 WMU has developed a number of partnerships and initiatives with historically black 

colleges and universities. These beginning programs have been focused on continuing to encourage 
15

minority students' interest in careers in the sciences, in providing synergies between our faculty and 

faculty at other universities, and in expanding cultural diversity among our graduate students in 

biological sciences and social work. 

 In 1999, Western Michigan University launched a three-year project as part of a National 

Science Foundation Research Experience for Undergraduates grants in the amount of $152,000. 

This program enabled students with experience in conducting research in the physical sciences to 

work one-on-one with faculty mentors. Student research projects included experiments that may 

lead to new cancer and diabetes treatment, as well as work to determine the effects of genetically 

altered corn pollen on insects; and research that looks at brain cells and immune response 

capabilities and ways to protect eyes against retinal diseases. 

 In the third year of the program, 11 students participated in the program. Five were from 

historically black colleges and universities. In the summer of 2001, students came from Oakwood 

College in Alabama and Tougaloo College in Mississippi. The initial grant has been renewed to 

allow Western to continue this relationship with HCBUs. The four students who participated in the 

summer of 2002 came from Jackson State University in Mississippi as well as Oakwood and 

Tougaloo.

 A similar initiative through the National Science Foundation is taking place in our College 

of Engineering. With the award of $139,000, Western Michigan University will develop a teaching 

laboratory that will offer students online access to actual laboratory work. Targeted for eventual 

national dissemination, this effort was showcased by the National Science Foundation in June 

2001, at its annual meeting of the American Society of Engineering Education in Albuquerque, 

New Mexico. 

 With a grant from two of our professors in our Department of Electrical and Computer 

Engineering, they have developed a remote wiring and measurement laboratory that will allow 

students to physically build electrical circuits and to perform real measurements of outputs through 

Internet access. The software is configured to allow for complex circuitry that requires multiple 

wiring decisions and will enable students to click and drag components into place. The directions 

that students provide via the computer will be transferred and physically made in an actual 

laboratory setting. If students blow a fuse, for instance, the lab can be reconfigured to 

automatically reset the fuse. An extension of this project could result in a Web-based electrical 

engineering course that will allow students to benefit from the same hands-on lab experimentation 

that they would experience if they were physically on campus. 

 In 2002, two of our professors did an additional testing by working with engineering faculty 

at Tuskegee University in Alabama. These faculty members are on the cutting edge of change and 

we will continue to forge collaborative relationships to make sure that the resources that are 

entrusted to us are used in ways that will deploy to all of our collective best interests. 

 In order to expand the cultural diversity amongst our graduate students, our graduate 

college has established a partnership affiliation with several historically black colleges and 

universities.
16

 We will continue these relationships. We feel that this is the only way that we can add 

absolute and complete value to the educational product that we're delivering. Through an active 

partnership, through grants from the Federal Government, and the collaboration that we have with 

HBCUs, Western Michigan University is establishing what I refer to as demonstrated best 

practices. There are ways in which we can fundamentally add value to the educational equation if 

we work together in collaboration and in partnership. That's what my university is engaged in and 

hopefully the work that we are focused on will send a signal to the other predominantly black 

institutions in this nation to do precisely this type of collaboration. Thank you very much for 

having me here today. 

WRITTEN STATEMENT OF DR. ELSON S. FLOYD, PRESIDENT, WESTERN MICHIGAN 

UNIVERSITY, KALAMAZOO, MICHIGAN – APPENDIX F 

Chairman McKeon. Thank you. 

Mr. Stephens. 

STATEMENT OF MR. STEVE STEPHENS, II, PRESIDENT, STUDENT 

GOVERNMENT ASSOCIATION, LANGSTON UNIVERSITY, LANGSTON, 

OKLAHOMA

Mr. Stephens. Good morning. On behalf of all HBCU students across America, let me begin by 

expressing my thanks to this esteemed committee for your time and desire to keep issues pertaining 

to HBCUs central to your discussions. Although there are many leaders on this front, I want to pay 

special tribute to Congressman J.C. Watts from my home state of Oklahoma for his leadership, 

vision and courageous efforts to ensure that Republicans and Democrats alike will address HBCU 

issues with a passion as other domestic policy issues. Congressman Watts, I know that you are 

retiring, but my prayer is that you will not retire from your commitment to our nation's future, and I 

hope this HBCU summit continues. 

 My experience as a student attending a Historically Black College or University has 

assisted me in developing the skills necessary to succeed in life, such as preparation, organization, 

and the hunger for overall knowledge. 

 Attending Langston University gave me the tools to proudly maintain a tradition that started 

long before I arrived, a tradition of excellence. The overviews of students who attend HBCUs are 

deemed as ``real world'' views due to the fact that we are often not afforded the same luxuries as 

those who attend larger institutions of higher learning. Situations are presented to you and it is up 

to you how you deal with them. I'm not saying that all college students do not have problems, but 

an HBCU student might have different types of problems. However, in my opinion, the benefits 

far outweigh the challenges. 

 When I was asked to testify on my HBCU experience, I jumped at the chance. Our 

experience is one unlike any other in the world--a chance to be a part of the majority as African-
17

Americans and to meet and greet other students from the United States and all over the world. 

 I stand before you today as a proud, third-generation college student from an HBCU. My 

grandfather received his bachelor's degree in Education, my grandmother received hers in Early 

Childhood Development and my mother received hers in Speech Pathology. But what we all have 

in common is that we have all attended or graduated from HBCUs. My grandparents graduated 

from Fort Valley State and Albany State Universities in Georgia, and my mother, before graduating 

from Oklahoma State University, spent two years at Morris Brown College in Atlanta. I say that 

because HBCUs have been and continue to be the cornerstone of African-American education and 

we must support them. 

 Social organizations at HBCUs are second to none. There are numerous fraternities, 

sororities, and clubs to join. Through my experience, there is a family atmosphere at an HBCU that 

makes these clubs and organizations more accessible to the average student. These organizations 

foster the leadership training necessary to provide students with the tools they will need to get a 

head start on life when they leave their respective universities. When I became a member of Phi 

Beta Sigma Fraternity, Incorporated, a fraternity founded here in the nation's capital at Howard 

University, which is also a historically black university, I learned skills in team building, proper 

planning, and initiating leadership. These skills will afford me the chance of gaining employment 

once I leave Langston University. 

 Socially, HBCUs do more than create networking opportunities. They provide attributes 

needed to build a stable foundation for any college graduate. 

 One man defined education as the pursuit of knowledge and the development of keen 

judgment. By giving what I like to call the ``personal approach,'' we take education a step further.

Small classrooms and detailed learning help HBCU students in our daily education. Our professors 

do more than just lecture; they provide life lessons from one generation to the next. 

 While in high school, I dedicated my life to athletics. Being the son of a former professional 

football player, people often placed higher and sometimes unfair expectations on me. When I 

graduated from Central High School in Tulsa, Oklahoma, I had a 2.4 grade point average. During 

my first year at Langston University, with the help of my professors and faculty, I finished with a 

3.4 GPA while playing football for the university. I was able to do this because Langston, like 

other HBCUs, truly cares about its students and helps them to realize their full potential. I do not 

play football anymore, but I now receive academic scholarships from the Thurgood Marshall 

Foundation and NASA. 

 In conclusion, I say to Congress today, come to our nation's political stage and work 

diligently. Work diligently for HBCUs, work diligently for better funding; work diligently for 

better facilities; and work diligently for salary increases for all teachers and administrators; for my 

ultimate goal is to become an HBCU president, and I was always taught to leave something better 

than you found it. I would ask that you keep us in mind as we labor for the purpose of education. 

Thank you. 
18

WRITTEN STATEMENT OF MR. STEVE STEPHENS, II, PRESIDENT, STUDENT 

GOVERNMENT ASSOCIATION, LANGSTON UNIVERSITY, LANGSTON, OKLAHOMA – 

APPENDIX G 

Chairman McKeon. Thank you very much. I would like to begin by commending all of you for 

what you're doing. Our statistics show that, as I mentioned earlier, HBCUs comprise 3 percent of 

the nation's two-year and four-year institutions, but they serve 15 percent of African-American 

students, and 70 percent of the African-American graduates. Can you tell me why you think that 

is? I could maybe understand the higher percentages of students attending, but the way you're able 

to give so many more degrees, keep the students in school, and get them to graduate is tremendous. 

I'd like to hear how and why you think that is. 

Dr. McLeod. Sir, I would like to comment that clearly on our campus it's because of the 

tremendous support system we have. We do a tremendous amount of nurturing, particularly during 

the first year, the freshman year. We've begun what we call a Freshman Year Initiative and from 

the time a student chooses Fayetteville State University, we take that student and that family by the 

hand and we begin the process of helping them transition from high school to college. And we stay 

with them in a tremendous number of ways to ensure that they are successful not only 

academically, because we provide tremendous tutoring and mentoring services, and as I said, what 

you've been able to provide through a number of federal support programs has made a tremendous 

difference, Upward Bound, for instance. To that degree, our students persist. Our students 

graduate.

 I'm pleased to say that the class of 2000 at Fayetteville State University graduated 71 

percent of the students who entered that first year. 

Chairman McKeon. How many students do you have? 

Dr. Floyd. We have 5,300 students at Fayetteville State University. We've grown by 1200 over the 

last six years. And by the way, we are the second most diverse university of the University of 

North Carolina. 

Chairman McKeon. Thank you. 

Dr. Lomax. Mr. Chairman, there are three reasons why students fail to persist at any academic 

institution, two of which are uniform across all institutions and one of which I think is unique to 

historically black colleges. 

 Students have to make a social transition. They have to be psychologically, emotionally, 

and socially prepared for the educational experience in which they are about to engage. Second is 

the academic experience. They have to be able to meet the academic standards of the institution. 

The third is that they have to be able to meet the financial requirements of the institution to remain 

there.
19

 I think all of us at historically black colleges work intentionally to ensure that our students 

are able to meet the three challenges. 

 At Dillard University, we've introduced a program for our first-year students called The 

Jubilee Scholars' Program, which works directly with all of our first-year students to help them in 

that transition, and we've gone from a 50 percent retention rate in our freshman class to this year to 

a 78 percent retention rate. I will just tell you it requires us to individualize each of those students, 

not to treat them as a number or a statistic but as an individual student who is having to make the 

emotional and social transition, the educational transition, and who has to face an enormous 

financial challenge in order to remain in that school. 

 And you know, I will tell you that the resources that we have are spread thin, but our 

determination is very strong, and maintaining that focus is what keeps those numbers high. 

Chairman McKeon. What is your enrollment? 

Dr. Floyd. Our enrollment today is 2225, up from 1500 five years ago. 

Chairman McKeon. Great, is there anyone else? 

Dr. McDemmond. Well, I would just second what my colleague has said. I think it's the nurturing. 

I think it's the understanding that a young person going off to college for the first time does not just 

have to adjust academically, but also socially and have to have role models. They see often in our 

administration and our faculty, those role models that they need. 

 Having spent most of my life in majority institutions of higher education, in my graduate 

work and as an administrator, I know that often nurturing is not there for the minority students on 

those campuses. Often the size, 20 to 30,000 students, from the University of Massachusetts at 

Amherst to Florida Atlantic University down in Boca Raton, is also one of the reasons why a lot of 

the African-American students don't persist. 

 Norfolk State is slightly different, though. Our average age is 27, so we have a very urban 

population and a returning population for our students. We are working hard on our retention and 

graduation rates. We are working hard to make sure they get the tutoring and the mentoring on 

their campus, on our campus, that they need. 

Chairman McKeon. Well, you're doing a great job. My time is up. Thank you. Mr. Scott. 

Mr. Scott. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Dr. McDemmond, you mentioned a dramatic reduction in 

the default rate. How did you do it? 

Dr. McDemmond. How did we do it? Well, we worked with setting up the kind of administrative 

structure to make sure that the students understood their obligations. We started with an entrance 

conference, and we eventually do an exit conference, even for those who leave during the time and 

do not graduate. We also make sure that we are following the administrative procedures. Are there 

ways we can consolidate loans? It is very important to note that once you put effort on reducing 
20

the default rate, it can be done. We were very pleased this week at the Historically Black College 

Week. One of the officials from the Education Department announced that there were no HBCUs 

on the watch-list with default rates over 25 percent this year, for the second consecutive year. 

Mr. Scott. That's remarkable because a few years ago when we started looking at default rates, I'm 

not sure there was any HBCU that wasn't on the list. 

Dr. McDemmond. That's right. But it's learning the process, Congressman, and it is also letting it 

be known at the highest levels, from the President's office down, that defaulting will not be 

tolerated because it will put us in jeopardy for students and financial aid. 

Mr. Scott. Thank you. Dr. McLeod and Dr. Lomax mentioned the nurturing. Does that add 

administrative expense to the university? 

Dr. McLeod. It absolutely does, and fortunately in North Carolina we have a very sensitive 

president of the system who understands and responds to those needs of HBCUs and has worked 

with our legislature to help access additional dollars for us to use for these purposes. The 

Freshman Initiative, for instance, allows us to hire additional staff, additional individuals for 

counseling services, and it has allowed us to establish a very comprehensive career advisory 

services center and to maintain the level of intimate contact that we need to, especially with first 

year students. 

 The research shows that if they will stay, if we can keep them the first semester, and they 

are having academic and otherwise success, then the chances are we will keep them. If we keep 

them the first year, then we've generally got them hooked. So absolutely, it does cost money to 

provide these additional services, and that's why TRIO, for instance, and GEAR UP, especially, 

have made such a tremendous difference on our campus this year. We hope you will look for ways 

to provide more GEAR UP kind of access activities across all of the colleges and universities. 

Mr. Scott. We're trying. 

Dr. Lomax, very briefly. 

Dr. Lomax. Very briefly, these programs are expensive. They are worth the investment, but not all 

of us have the kind of capital to be able to put into them. We've used Title III funds, for example, 

to underwrite our freshman year program in which we hire about eight recent Dillard graduates to 

be assigned directly to groups of freshmen to teach them how to be college students, how to 

manage their time effectively, how to study, and how to interface with their counselors. It's really a 

process that, for many of these kids who are first-generation, is a totally new exposure. We also 

have to work closely with their families and make them understand that they can't just drop them 

off and pick them back up. 

 So the amount of investment we have to make is significant. Of course, the dollars that we 

put into retention are dollars that we take away from direct instruction and other vital activities of 

the college. 
21

Mr. Scott. Let me ask you a couple of quick questions about students' abilities to pay. But first, 

what portion of the total costs of the university is paid by tuition? 

Dr. Lomax. About 50 percent or less. 

Mr. Scott. And so how do students pay their portion? I'm sure parents, because of your clientele, 

are less likely to be contributing a lot. 

Dr. Lomax. Well, the reality is that we have to put together some of the most torturous financial 

packages imaginable for each of our individual students which are composed of the Pell funding 

that's available to them, any state funding that may be available to them, the federal loans, and then 

private loans are taking up an increasingly large percentage of this. 

 We have to convince our parents and our families that this is an investment, though it is, 

that is going to pay significant dividends in the future. Dillard, this year, was ranked among the top 

comprehensive colleges in the South. We're also ranked as one of the highest institutions for the 

amount of debt that our students graduate with. I think Dr. McDemmond was referring to that as 

well. A disproportionate amount of this burden is now being placed on the backs of our students in 

the form of federal loans and private loans. 

Mr. Scott. Thank you. My time has expired, Mr. Chairman, but I just want to remind the 

committee of the hearing we had just a couple of weeks ago that pointed out that Pell Grants used 

to cover about 85 percent of the student tuition and you could work 15 hours a week to make up the 

rest. The package wasn't that difficult to put together. But now, what's it down to? 40 percent 

covered by the Pell Grant? 

Dr. Lomax. Yes. That's right, of tuition. 

Mr. Scott. The Pell Grant is 40 percent, so the package they're having to put together is heavily 

laden with loans and other kinds of aid, and people working much more than 15 hours a week. So 

this is going to be a very difficult challenge for us to deal with. 

Dr. McLeod. Mr. Chairman, can I just make one quick, final comment if you are in the process of 

wrapping up? 

 You have the full text with the recommendations from NAFEO, which represents all of the 

historically black colleges and universities. However, in this audience, as we talk about access and 

leveling the playing field for our historically black colleges and universities, we have asked for a 

set-aside in Title III that would provide computers, laptop computers, for students who cannot 

afford them on the HBCU campuses. 

 To improve our technology infrastructure, it is very, very critical to our ability to compete, 

virtually and otherwise, with other institutions. While we have a historical mission as HBCUs, we 

also at the same time want to respond in a diversified way in the future and be able to compete with 

our Western Michigan Universities just as all other schools do. 
22

Chairman McKeon. Thank you. 

Mr. Ehlers. 

Mr. Ehlers. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I apologize to you and to the witnesses for missing the 

testimony. Unfortunately I have a horrendous schedule this morning. I especially apologize to my 

colleague from Michigan, Dr. Floyd, who is providing excellent leadership at Western Michigan 

University. It's just one of those days where I arrived late, and in order to make up for that, I'm 

going to have to leave early for other things I have scheduled. 

 But I did want to make two comments. First of all, Dr. Lomax, I agreed heartily with your 

comments about how essential it is to acclimate students to the college atmosphere and it's a 

quantum leap--not just at your colleges. I have 22 years of teaching experience at colleges and 

universities. In general, the students who are prepared for that leap do well right from the start.

Those who are not prepared tend to feel they are totally outclassed when in fact, they aren't. They 

just have never learned some simple studying skills. I found that out from the other end because I 

was home-schooled due to illness. I had been through 12 years of school, teaching myself, in a 

sense, and it was trivial for me to go to college and learn how to study on my own. I had a 

roommate who had never had the experience of studying on his own and he became incredibly 

discouraged that it was so easy for me and difficult for him. He just didn't understand the 

backdrop. So you're absolutely right on that. 

 Also, with regard to the comment about loans, the advice I always gave to students was 

don't worry about those loans. I said when you get out of college you will buy a house and you will 

borrow far more money than you've put in loans for education. Now what's really more important? 

An education that's going to help you buy a better house and pay it off sooner, or just quitting and 

buying a house? Even if they quit and decide to buy a car they'll probably have more loan 

payments than if they stay in school. The students have to recognize that. You are borrowing for 

something that to them seems intangible. But it is a very, very valuable asset in their lives and 

probably one of the wisest loans they can ever take out. 

Dr. Elson Floyd, I just wanted to thank you for what Western Michigan does because I 

think it is essential for the better-paid, better-financed universities to help those institutions that 

don't have that. I don't care whether they are HBCUs or other small, struggling schools. 

 I will talk specifically about the sciences because I'm a scientist and I know what Dr. Floyd 

has done is aimed to a great extent toward science. 

 There are two critical stages in training a scientist. The first and beginning year, is getting 

them used to studying hard and learning tough material. But the next critical stage is for the 

scientists to be able to do some experiments while they are still an undergraduate. 

 In the college that I taught, I applied for an NSF grant, got the money to buy good 

equipment and we had our students involved in their own research projects, meaningful research 

projects, as juniors and seniors. They succeeded admirably in graduate school. If they don't have 

that experience, when they go to grad school, they have two strikes against them. So I really 
23

commend you, Dr. Floyd, for what Western is doing and I think we should expect every major 

university in this country to do that and partner with other institutions. 

 Mr. Chairman, I haven't asked a question yet because I don't have any questions about any 

of the testimony, but I wanted to reinforce this point, and particularly, I hope my colleagues on this 

committee will tune in to what I've said in these two cases because both of those are critical 

components of a successful program. For example, acclimating the students, financial aid, and the 

undergraduate research experience, whether it's in science or something else, prepares them well 

for life or for graduate school, or both. Thank you for what you gentlemen are doing. 

Dr. Floyd. Congressman Ehlers, thank you very much for your leadership. You're a very fine 

physicist and we greatly appreciate your acknowledgement of the collaborative efforts that we have 

in science. I know that it has continued to be a passion for you and we want to make sure that 

we're doing what we can to give back to that particular discipline and making sure that the doors 

remain open. So thank you very much, sir. 

Mr. Ehlers. Thank you. I yield back my time. 

Dr. McLeod. Congressman, you really hit a very hot point that's on NAFEO's agenda for your 

consideration. With regard to Title IV, we support increasing the Pell Grant and establishing a loan 

forgiveness program for African-Americans who enter the sciences, engineering and technology 

fields. We speak more specifically about a technology center that would be modeled after what Dr. 

Floyd and they are doing that could serve as kind of a command center, if you will. This would 

allow a number of us to access resources from our programs in the sciences and in technology so 

that we aren't all over the map and trying to find answers to solutions that are already out there. 

Mr. Ehlers. Thank you. Thank you, both of you, and I yield back the balance of my time. 

Chairman McKeon. Thank you. Mr. Payne for a unanimous consent? 

Mr. Payne. Thank you very much, yes. I will. 

Chairman McKeon. Excuse me. Excuse me. Mr. Owens. 

Mr. Owens. I'd like to ask unanimous consent that a report entitled Synopsis of Project Equality 

and Accountability, supposedly, be entered into the record. 

WRITTEN DOCUMENT SUBMITTED FOR THE RECORD BY REPRESENTATIVE MAJOR 

R. OWENS, COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND THE WORKFORCE, U.S. HOUSE OF 

REPRESENTATIVES, WASHINGTON, D.C. -- APPENDIX H 

Chairman McKeon. No objections. So ordered. Ms. McCollum. Or excuse me, Mr. Holt. 

Mr. Holt. She's next. 
24

Ms. McCollum. That's fine. 

Chairman McKeon. I had her next, but I thought you had worked out that you were going to--Mr. 

Holt.

Mr. Holt. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I'd like to ask unanimous consent to submit a statement and 

some questions for the record. 

WRITTEN STATEMENT SUBMITTED FOR THE RECORD BY REPRESENTATIVE RUSH 

D. HOLT, COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND THE WORKFORCE, U.S. HOUSE OF 

REPRESENTATIVES, WASHINGTON, D.C.-- APPENDIX I 

WRITTEN RESPONSES TO QUESTIONS SUBMITTED FOR THE RECORD BY 

REPRESENTATIVE RUSH D. HOLT, COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND THE 

WORKFORCE, U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, WASHINGTON, D.C.-- APPENDIX J 

Mr. Holt. But I guess I have one question that might seem rhetorical. But, you know, as I look at 

the failure of the President's budget request to keep up with inflation for HBCU, Title III A, the 

failure of Pell Grants to keep up with the costs of higher education in this year's budget request, and 

the failure of work-study to keep up with that, I'm just wondering whether you, whether any of the 

presidents here or the student believes that students will be able to go to college on good words 

alone? 

Mr. Stephens. Through personal experience of budget cuts, normally we, as students, have jobs at 

our university but currently there are a lot of students who don't have work-study jobs this year, and 

I am one of them. So it is definitely an effect to the budget cuts and cutbacks that we are 

experiencing. Our student government budget has even been cut, so the activities we provide for 

students have had a shortfall this year. I definitely think that there is something to be said about the 

budget shortfalls and cuts. 

Mr. Holt. Thank you. I would yield back the balance of my time so that Mr. Owens will have a 

moment. 

Chairman McKeon. Mr. Payne. 

Mr. Holt. So that my colleague, Mr. Payne, will have a moment. 

Mr. Payne. Since time is up I just would like to just commend the testimony. I have a lot of 

material here and just will enter into the record just some history about HBCUs and the fact that 

even during Reconstruction there were a hundred, I mean 1,000, black schools that were 

established under the Freeman's Bureau and the fact that so many outstanding Americans have 

gone to HBCUs, Dr. King and Thurgood Marshall, and also presidents of at least three African 

countries, Kwame Nkrumah from Ghana went to Lincoln, President Banda from Malawi went to 

Wilberforce, and the first president of Nigeria that went to Lincoln, also. There is a tremendous 

amount of history that goes even beyond the boundaries of this nation and so much of progress that 
25

we've seen around the world can certainly come back to the contributions of historically black 

colleges and universities. So with that, I'll yield back the balance of my time and ask that my 

statement be included in the record. 

WRITTEN STATEMENT SUBMITTED FOR THE RECORD BY REPRESENTATIVE 

DONALD M. PAYNE, COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND THE WORKFORCE, U.S. 

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, WASHINGTON, D.C. -- APPENDIX K 

Chairman McKeon. Without objection, so ordered. 

 As you can see, we have another vote that actually is a series of votes so that's why we're 

having to truncate this and speed up the process, but again, I want to thank you for being here, for 

the things that you're doing. The comment was made that with Mr. Watts leaving we hope we don't 

end these summits, and I will pledge to you that I will do all I can to make sure that we continue. I 

hope that, as several of you said that you teach, you have great teacher programs. If you don't 

already, I hope you will have nursing programs, also. We have great shortages of teachers and 

nurses and those are good areas. We have increased Pell Grants every year since I've been 

chairman of this committee and we'll continue to do so if it's within our power. 

 Thank you for being here. This committee now stands adjourned. 

 [Whereupon, at 11:36 a.m., the subcommittees were adjourned.] 
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TABLE OF INDEXES 

Chairman McKeon, 2, 4, 6, 7, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 19, 22, 23, 24, 25 

Dr. Floyd, 5, 6, 14 

Mr. Ehlers, 22, 23 

Mr. Hoekstra, 4, 5, 6 

Mr. Holt, 23, 24 

Mr. Lomax, 8, 10, 18, 20, 21 

Mr. McLeod, 12, 18, 20, 21, 23 

Mr. Owens, 23 

Mr. Payne, 23, 24 

Mr. Scott, 3, 6, 19, 20, 21 

Mr. Stephens, 16, 24 

Mr. Watts, 7, 8 

Ms. McCollum, 24 

Ms. McDemmond, 10, 19, 20