Email Article

Printable Page

700 A&T Students Lobby N.C. Legislature

By Chad Roberts
Black College Wire

Photo Credit: Chad Roberts, N.C. A&T Alma Adams, an A&T alumna and Guilford County representative; Rashad Hoggard, an A&T student, and Mozelle Weston, senior associate director of admissions at A&T, were part of a huge contingent that lobbied the state legislature on behalf of the university.

Concerns about the state budget drove a massive group of North Carolina A&T supporters to lobby legislators on their own behalf at the state Capitol in Raleigh on June 2. At least 700 students, faculty, staff and alumni flooded the halls and offices of the legislative building, attempting to persuade lawmakers to vote for several bills relating to the historically black university�s economic well-being.

At a time when budget shortfalls have led to spending freezes and even givebacks, the A&T supporters wanted to be sure the university�s needs weren�t overlooked in the competition for funds. �This is the first time that I know of a campus having this large of an event, where you have students, faculty, staff, chancellor �- everybody involved,� said chief Mark Fleming, chief lobbyist for the University of North Carolina.

The A&T contingent traveled from Greensboro by way of six capacity-filled buses, along with several dozen supporters who drove their own vehicles. The delegation arrived at the Capitol wearing blue-and-gold A&T paraphernalia.

Although most of the student body was away on summer break, the lobbying trip managed to draw representatives from the university�s student government, athletic teams and clubs and organizations.

Whitney Mack-Obi, a sophomore engineering major and a student government officer, said the trip was a good way to take part in the democratic process.

�You have to go where the laws are made in order to make a difference,� Mack-Obi said. �This directly affects us.�

Founded in 1891 as a land-grant institution for African Americans, A&T is the largest of five historically black universities in the 16-member UNC system. Alumni of the school include former presidential candidate Jesse Jackson; astronaut Ronald McNair, who died in the space shuttle Challenger explosion; and the Greensboro Four, the A&T freshmen who in 1960 started the sit-in movement that quickly spread to other colleges in the region and helped spur integration of public facilities in the South.

The university has struggled to gain support from the state government in recent years because of overall budget constraints. In 2002, the entire UNC system was forced to endure a freeze on hiring and equipment purchasing. In 2001, Gov. Mike Easley ordered the university to return $1.2 million to help ease a $486 million budget shortfall.

Still smarting from these and other recent cuts, A&T officials collaborated with Fleming to organize the 90-minute trip from Greensboro to Raleigh.

�It was very successful. I�m very pleased,� Fleming said.

According to Colleen Grotsky, executive assistant to Chancellor James C. Renick, the purpose of the trip was to raise awareness of the university at the state legislative level. �Higher education is at a rather critical junction in this state. While some of the university�s needs are being noticed, others are not,� Grotsky said.

The A&T delegation got the attention of the state�s lawmakers. Upon their arrival, the blue-and-gold mass filed into the Capitol Auditorium and heard brief welcoming speeches from several lawmakers, including House Co-Speaker James G. Black, D-Mecklenburg, and the chairman of the North Carolina Legislative Black Caucus, William Wainwright, D-Craven.

Black immediately addressed one of the biggest issues on the A&T agenda, recurring funding for its namesake agricultural department. Under the current arrangement, N.C. State, the only other land-grant institution in the UNC system, is guaranteed $78 million annually. By comparison, the A&T program must request funding each year. The request for the upcoming academic year is $2.2 million. �It�s appropriated automatically to N.C. State, but it is not automatic to North Carolina A&T,� Black said. You all have been on bended knee every year to get that money and we are going to fix that.�

As the crowd filtered out of the auditorium to seek out individual legislators, the university pep band, which also made the trip, burst into a rendition of the school fight song. The A&T delegation happily joined in to sing the chorus, and the sound reverberated through the Capitol. �I loved hearing the band playing upstairs, and the legislators I talked to really liked it,� Fleming said. �It was a really good public relations move.�

Though many A&T supporters said they were unsuccessful in finding the legislators they were looking for, Fleming said that just the presence of so many people on behalf of one school would help to sway lawmakers.

�The visit had a lot of influence,� Fleming said. �I met with some of the key Senate leadership today and I feel very confident that they are going to support that funding.�

At a time when black universities are finding it harder to survive, A&T has spent two years to get halfway to its capital campaign goal of $100 million. By comparison, UNC-Chapel Hill, the flagship university of the UNC system, creeps steadily closer to its fundraising goal of $1.8 billion. The week that A&T lobbied for votes in the state legislature, Chapel Hill raised more than $950,000. Still, Grotsky said, the outpouring of support showed by the A&T family proves that a historically black university can not only survive, but thrive in the business of higher education.

�When alumni will take time from their jobs and other activities, when staff will take vacation time to go to express their opinions, when faculty will take their classes on the trip, and when students care enough to volunteer their time, it says that we are an engaged university that is alert and ready to respond proactively when there is a need,� Grotsky said.

Chad Roberts is a student at North Carolina A&T State University.

Posted June 22, 2004