[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 114 (Thursday, September 14, 2006)]
[House]
[Pages H6620-H6621]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       NATIONAL HISTORICALLY BLACK COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES WEEK

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentlewoman from Ohio (Mrs. Jones) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to join my colleagues 
today to recognize Historically Black Colleges and Universities during 
this newly established National Historically Black Colleges and 
Universities Week, September 10 through September 16. I share September 
10 with them because September 10 was my birthday.
  This year's theme, ``The Tradition Continues: New Successes and 
Challenges,'' speaks to how important HBCUs have been to the education 
of African Americans and minorities in this country and how we must 
continue to preserve these unique institutions of higher learning.

                              {time}  1815

  Though I did not attend an historically black university, I 
understand the importance these schools played in African American 
history and African American heritage. Many HBCUs were formed during 
Reconstruction following the Civil War to educate freed slaves and 
sharecroppers. H. Patrick Swygert, the President of Howard University, 
noted the significance of HBCUs in a speech in which he stated ``HBCUs 
provided the avenue for the descendants of sharecroppers to get an 
education in an environment that was sensitive to their special 
circumstances and one where their humanity would not be questioned. 
This

[[Page H6621]]

has always been, and continues to be, a defining feature of these 
colleges and universities in a society that in many ways remains 
hostile to people of color.''
  It is important to note that the founders of these institutions 
recognized the importance of educating African Americans long before 
the Supreme Court ruled on the groundbreaking Brown v. Board of 
Education. Additionally, many of those who were part of the legal team 
that won that case were educated and trained at Howard University right 
here in our Nation's capital.
  Were it not for HBCUs, many of the great black minds of our time 
would not have had access to higher education. And some of the famous 
graduates include orator Booker T. Washington; civil rights leader Dr. 
Martin Luther King; Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall; world 
renowned opera singer Leontyne Price; entertainer Oprah Winfrey; and 
former Members of Congress that have already been noted, Kweisi Mfume 
and Parren Mitchell.
  The great State of Ohio boasts two HBCUs, Wilberforce University and 
Central State University. Named in honor of the great abolitionist 
William Wilberforce, Wilberforce University was founded prior to the 
end of slavery in 1856 and is the Nation's oldest private African 
American university. Former Congressman Floyd Flake is currently its 
President. Central State evolved from what was once a State-funded 
department of Wilberforce University known as the Combined Normal and 
Industrial Department. In 1941 the department expanded from a 2- to a 
4-year program, and in 1947 it legally split from Wilberforce, becoming 
the College of Education and Industrial Arts at Wilberforce. The name 
was changed in 1951 to Central State College, and in 1965 the 
institution achieved its university status. I am the proud owner of an 
honorary doctorate degree from Central State University.
  I am proud to have strong connections to HBCUs. Many of my family 
members attended, including my late mother, Mary Looney Tubbs, a 
graduate of Alabama State University; my late sister, Mattie Browder 
Still, a graduate of Alabama State University; and my sister Barbara 
Walker, who attended Morris Brown College. Additionally, my cousin 
Essie Baldwin attended Alabama State and my cousin Joan Wilson attended 
Morris Brown. Four of my staffers attended HBCUs. District Director 
Betty Pinkney and my health liaison are proud graduates of Central 
State. My Communications Director, Nicole Williams, a proud graduate of 
Spelman College; and my Scheduler, Lalla King, a proud graduate of 
Morgan State University.
  As we continue to celebrate our HBCUs this week, it is my hope that 
we will begin to look at ways in which we can increase funding and 
resources for these historic institutions. Sadly, many of the HBCUs 
remain underfunded in comparison to their predominantly white 
counterparts. Today I call upon both the Federal and State governments 
to increase funding to HBCUs so that they can remain competitive and 
continue to educate the leaders of tomorrow. They are not only part of 
African American history, they are part of American history, and the 
treasures they hold should be preserved for generations to come.
  Mr. Speaker, I celebrate Eddie Bernice Johnson for her leadership in 
bringing this bill to the floor.

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