[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 185 (Wednesday, September 23, 2020)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 59647-59648]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-21126]


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  Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 185 / Wednesday, September 23, 2020 / 
Presidential Documents  

[[Page 59647]]


                Proclamation 10075 of September 11, 2020

                
National Historically Black Colleges and 
                Universities Week, 2020

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                For more than 180 years, our Nation's Historically 
                Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) have exhibited 
                remarkable excellence in higher education and served as 
                engines of opportunity and advancement for thousands of 
                Black Americans. During National Historically Black 
                Colleges and Universities Week, we celebrate the 
                achievements of HBCUs and their students and pledge our 
                continuing support to the nearly 300,000 individuals 
                currently pursuing their dreams at HBCUs throughout the 
                United States.

                For nearly two centuries, HBCU graduates have 
                profoundly shaped American life and culture. In science 
                and technology, HBCU graduates have led the way in 
                innovation, like engineer and inventor Otis Boykin, who 
                held more than 20 patents during his lifetime, 
                including for a wire precision resistor used in radios 
                and televisions, and for a control unit used in 
                pacemakers that helped save countless lives. From 
                thought leaders like Booker T. Washington and civil 
                rights heroes like Martin Luther King, Jr., to great 
                legal minds like Thurgood Marshall and renowned authors 
                like James Weldon Johnson, our Republic is more vibrant 
                because of HBCUs and their students.

                My Administration will always stand beside these 
                wonderful colleges and universities as they pursue 
                their mission to provide their students with a high-
                quality education. In order to further promote the 
                success of HBCUs in the years to come, I signed an 
                Executive Order in February of 2017 on the White House 
                Initiative to Promote Excellence and Innovation at 
                Historically Black Colleges and Universities. This 
                action established the President's Board of Advisors on 
                HBCUs, and as a result, 32 Federal departments and 
                agencies now have plans in place to help HBCUs secure 
                available Federal resources and opportunities. 
                Additionally, my Administration recently released a 
                Framework for the Development of a Federal HBCU 
                Competitiveness Strategy, further facilitating 
                productive partnerships between HBCU students and 
                faculty members and public and private-sector entities.

                This year, National HBCU Week also coincides with the 
                150th anniversary of two of South Carolina's great 
                historically black institutions: Allen University and 
                Benedict College. Our Nation joins these schools in 
                celebrating this significant milestone and their 
                incredible legacies. Last year, at Benedict College, I 
                was proud to highlight an increase of more than 13 
                percent in Federal funding for HBCUs under my 
                Administration. In addition, I signed into law the 
                FUTURE Act, which reauthorized more than $85 million in 
                funding for HBCUs, securing permanent funding for our 
                Nation's historically black institutions and helping 
                ensure their financial security for future generations.

                My Administration has also continued to prioritize 
                HBCUs during the coronavirus pandemic, and we remain 
                committed to helping them safely reopen for in-person 
                classes. As part of this effort, the Coronavirus Aid, 
                Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, which I 
                signed into law in March of this year, provided $930 
                million in higher education emergency relief funds for 
                HBCUs. During these challenging times, my 
                Administration is working to meet the needs of these 
                great institutions and their students

[[Page 59648]]

                as they seek to safely reopen their doors. We know full 
                well the important role they will play in our ongoing 
                national recovery.

                HBCUs help empower young Americans from all backgrounds 
                to achieve their American Dream. This week, we proudly 
                reaffirm our support for HBCUs and pledge to continue 
                to promote their success and provide support to their 
                vital educational mission.

                NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the 
                United States of America, by virtue of the authority 
                vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the 
                United States, do hereby proclaim September 20 through 
                September 26, 2020, as National Historically Black 
                Colleges and Universities Week, and further proclaim 
                September 21, 2020, as National HBCU Colors Day. I call 
                upon educators, public officials, professional 
                organizations, corporations, and all Americans to 
                proudly don institutional colors and observe this week 
                and day with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and 
                activities that acknowledge the countless contributions 
                these institutions and their alumni have made to our 
                country. I call upon all Americans to observe this week 
                with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities 
                and to boldly, joyfully, and proudly don institutional 
                colors.

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                eleventh day of September, in the year of our Lord two 
                thousand twenty, and of the Independence of the United 
                States of America the two hundred and forty-fifth.
                
                
                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 2020-21126
Filed 9-22-20; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3295-F0-P