North Carolina Senate Bill 873 has its eyes set on potentially eradicating a few Historically Black Colleges and Universities in the state. The “Access to Affordable College Education Act” is an ambitious piece of legislation that if enacted will reduce the tuition at Elizabeth City State, Fayetteville State, UNC Pembroke, Winston-Salem State and Western Carolina. Three of the campuses that the bill targets are Historically Black Colleges and Universities.
Tuition would be reduced to $500 dollars per semester and $2,500 per semester for out-of-state students. The idea behind the legislation is to help with low enrollment and the rising cost of higher education, though opponents say there’s more to the fine print. According to the Charlotte Observer, the measure would “render these institutions unsustainable as four year institutions and foretells their transformation into community colleges”.
The bill has a dual purpose, seeking to rename four of the five campuses listed.
North Carolina Senate Bill 873 states, “The University of North Carolina General Administration shall evaluate what effect, if any, the current name of each constituent institution has had on that institution with regard to the number, academic strength, and diversity of student applications and how any prior name changes may or may not have affected the institution.” The research and possible recommendations would be presented to the board byJanuary 15, 2017.
The Charlotte Observer finds that the sole purpose of the bill is to obliterate HBCU’s in the state of North Carolina and has offered up potential options regarding name changes. The article poses that if there are name changes they should reflect the founders of the illustrious institutions, maintaining the rich HBCU history of them. Although the bill mentions two predominantly white institutions, many believe that this bill’s sole purpose is to destroy the legacy of North Carolina’s HBCUs.
North Carolina Senate Bill 873 also includes a merit scholarship covering tuition, student fees, room and board and other expenses at NC Central and NC A&T University. If approved, the law goes into effect for the 2017-2018 school year.
As graduation season comes to a close, hopefully this won’t be the last year we see these HBCU’s carry the torch and longstanding history of black excellence in the state of North Carolina.
