Students Hear From HBCU Alumni at Montgomery Blair HS
For the Black Lives Matter at School Week of Action, the staff of Montgomery Blair High School (MCPS) planned a range of activities including talks on "The Role of Black LGBTQ Activists in Freedom Struggles" a "From Student to Activist Discussion," and a Double Dutch contest. Teacher Rebecca Hughes organized a panel discussion of ten Blair HS staff who are alumni of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) on Friday, February 10.
The HBCU alumni, most of whom graduated in the early 1990s, responded to a series of questions from the moderator, teachers, and students. The panel included alumni from Hampton University, Howard University, North Carolina Central University, Bowie State University, and South Carolina State University.
The moderator began by asking why each person chose to go to an HBCU. The responses included:
To liberate myself.
To read books where I could see myself and that did not start my history with slavery
So I could be in a place where I was in the majority from top to bottom (administration, professors, and students). It made me realize how white people must feel all the time.
To learn about the world and the world behind that one
Because my parents are HBCU graduates and I grew up watching A Different World.
My mother went to Howard, I did, and my son is going there now. Three generations.
I went to a majority white high school. Watching A Different Word made me want to have that same feeling.
When asked about the benefits of going to an HBCU, panelists pointed to having professors who believe in and support you, strong academics, a nurturing environment, and making friends for life.
There was good natured rivalry, with Howard University alum (including the moderator) reminding everyone that it is called "The Mecca." Kenneth Smith noted to students that while their conversation may sound like sibling rivalry, that if anyone who is not a HBCU alum is critical of HBCUs, they all stand firmly as a family together.
The session not only provided students an introduction to the benefits of attending an HBCU, it also opened the door for further conversations since the panelists are staff at the school. In fact, 24 Blair staff members are alumni of HBCUs and represent 15 different HBCUs.
