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Howard Wants More Black Men in College

By Ayesha Rascoe
Black College Wire

Howard University plans to start a Black Male Student Initiative to address the underrepresentation of African American men on college and university campuses, according to university President H. Patrick Swygert.

Photo Credit: Howard University Women outnumber men about 2-to-1 among Howard University undergraduates.

The program will focus both on research and on implementing practical measures to increase the number of African American men attending college, he said.

"I intend to organize a group of students, faculty and administrators to really think through what research is telling us and then on the application side, what can Howard do," Swygert said.

The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education reported in December that 1,266,107 black women were enrolled in higher education, compared with 686,615 black men.

The publication also said it surveyed eight of the nation's most prestigious privately operated coeducational black colleges and universities and found that black women made up a majority of the student body at each.

At Dillard University, women were 78 percent of the student body. At Clark Atlanta and Xavier, women made up more than 70 percent of all students.

Patrick Swygart

"Even at Tuskegee University, which is known for its strong programs in the agricultural sciences (a discipline not considered to be a favorite course of study among women), women are now a majority of the student body," the publication said.

Sixty-five percent of Howard's undergraduates are female and 35 percent are male, Swygert said.

Last summer, Alpha Phi Alpha, Inc., the nation's largest black fraternity, said it was developing a national strategic plan aimed at addressing such problems as the low numbers of black males majoring in education and black men's disproportionate health issues.

As the fraternity celebrated its 100th anniversary, it held a symposium and "town meeting" on the state of African American men.

Howard Undergraduate Trustee Jabari Smith, who will be working on the initiative with Swygert and the vice provost of student affairs, Franklin Chambers, said he was excited.

"I think this black male initiative is so important because it's really going to engage students in an issue that is so prevalent," Smith said. He added that although the program is specifically focused on African American men, it is really about stepping up to the plate to deal with the disparities in education in the African American community.

Swygert made his comments in an interview with the campus newspaper, the Hilltop, in which he highlighted extensive plans for campus improvements, said he expected to announce completion of the most successful capital campaign ever at any historically black college or university, and denied rumors that he would be leaving in the immediate future.

"When you've been president any length of time, folks are always going to look at you like 'he's been here more than most and how long is he going to be here,'" said Swygert, who has been Howard's president since 1995.

Swygert said he hopes to move forward on several major construction projects this semester on the school's District of Columbia campus. There are plans to begin work on a new residence hall for men behind the Fine Arts Building. The dorm is expected to house 300 male students and would replace Drew Hall. Swygert said administrators understand the urgency of replacing that hall, which has been open since the 1960s.

In addition to the new male dorm, Swygert said plans should be finalized this semester for the construction of a new building for the John H. Johnson School of Communications. The building will be located in what is now a parking lot at Bryant and Fourth streets.

Another large project in the works is a proposed science center, apartment building and parking garage to be built on Georgia Avenue, where a parking lot is currently located. The construction site will extend through the parking lot to Georgia Avenue and V Street. Swygert said once these plans are approved by the Board of Trustees, the buildings on the site will be demolished and a tower will be built containing 300 apartments, 500 parking spaces and ground-level retail businesses, including a grocery store.

After the tower rises, construction is to begin on a science center that will house the College of Engineering, Architecture and Computer Sciences. The science center is to include the School of Engineering and Computer Sciences, as well as the School of Architecture and Design.

Swygert said it is not clear yet what will happen to the Howard H. Mackey and Lewis K. Downing buildings, where the schools are now.

Building projects are not the only goals on Swygert's agenda for this semester.

As the university enters its 140th year, the administration will celebrate the completion of Campaign for Howard, a fund-raising drive started on March 9, 2002, with a goal of $250 million. Swygert said he hopes he will be able to announce that the university has reached that amount, which he said would make Campaign for Howard the most successful capital campaign ever at any historically black college and university.

Ayesha Rascoe, a student at Howard University, is editor in chief of the Hilltop. To comment, e-mail [email protected]

Posted Jan. 29, 2007