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By Melissa Noel ·Updated September 22, 2023
The Biden-Harris administration is set to host the 2023 National HBCU Week Conference in Arlington, Virginia, from September 24 to September 28.The five-day event will feature workshops, keynote addresses, and interactive exhibits connecting federal and private resources to the HBCU community.
And those resources are put to good use: forty percent of Black engineers and fifty percent of Black lawyers in America were graduates of HBCUs. Eighty percent of Black judges and seventy percent of Black doctors in this country are graduates of HBCUs.
“Historically Black Colleges and Universities have embodied leadership, excellence, and innovation for centuries, continually punching above their weight and producing barrier-breaking graduates in every field imaginable,” said U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona.
“President Biden’s support for HBCUs has resulted in record investments in these institutions, and our National HBCU Week Conference allows higher education leaders, public officials, advocates, and outside partners to build on this momentum,” he added according to a press release from the Department of Education (DOE).
The National HBCU Week Conference serves as an opportunity for higher education leaders, public officials, advocates, and partners to further support HBCUs and the students they serve, especially at a time when principles of equity, diversity, inclusion, and access to higher education are being challenged across the country.
This year’s conference theme is “Raising the Bar: Forging Excellence through Innovation & Leadership.” The event provides a platform for administrators, faculty, and students from HBCUs to engage with key leaders, including federal agency officials, financial executives, private sector representatives, business professionals, and financial aid executives.
According to the DOE, the conference will feature remarks from U.S. Secretary Cardona and senior administration officials and “offer valuable information to HBCU administrators and leaders on topics related to promoting educational excellence, innovation, and equity.”
“HBCUs have been critically important to providing educational opportunity for generations of Black Americans and broader communities of color,” said Dr. Dietra Trent, Executive Director of the White House Initiative on HBCUs.
The week will culminate with the 5th Annual National HBCU Week Conference Career and Recruitment Fair. The National HBCU Week Conference is coordinated by the White House Initiative on HBCUs in collaboration with the Executive Office of the President and the U.S. Department of Education.
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