Underfunding of HBCUs by Foundations Begins in the C-Suite

Data Shows Few Foundation Leaders Are People of Color

 

MEDIA CONTACT: David Thompson, dlthompson@bowiestate.edu, 301-860-4311

(BOWIE, Md.) –  Susan Batten, president of the Association of Black Foundation Executives (ABFE) says data shows foundations are woefully behind the curve in hiring people of color as  senior executives which she believes is a major factor in HBCUs receiving low funding from the organizations.

Batten, a guest speaker at Bowie State’s College of Business (COB) this week, believes the university’s Philanthropy Fellowship program is creating a pipeline of professionals poised to assume leadership roles at non-profits across the nation while helping to diversify the industry.

An annual survey by the Council on Foundations found that minorities (i.e. African Americans, Latinos, and Asian Americans) make up only 10% of foundation CEOs.

“There is a direct correlation between the small percentage of people of color in leadership roles at foundations and the huge giving gap experienced by HBCUs,” said Batten. “Bowie State’s philanthropy fellowship program is unique – a first of its kind anywhere in the nation. ABFE will continue to work with the university on the program to support its expansion and continued growth.”

Bowie State launched its philanthropy fellows program last year with a cohort of 3 graduate students under the guidance of Dr. James Hyman in the College of Business. The program has more than doubled in one year and will have eight new fellows, working in six organizations in the second cohort that begins in June. According to Dr. Hyman, providing the students with exposure to the world of philanthropy will yield major benefits.

“The philanthropy fellowships enable our students to gain valuable knowledge and to practice the skills that will put them on track to enter positions of executive leadership in philanthropy,” said Dr. Hyman. “This, in turn, will increase the likelihood that voices of black and brown peoples and communities will become more prominent in the nation’s philanthropic circles.”

ABFE and Candid Research recently published a study showing the average HBCU received 178 times less funding from foundations than the average Ivy League school, and that giving to HBCUs has declined significantly in recent years.

“The level of disparity is shocking,” said Batten. “The median size of foundation gifts to HBCUs was only $11,000 during the time Candid and ABFE worked on the report. That’s why having skilled professionals in decision making positions at foundations is critical for HBCUs, and why this philanthropy fellows program at Bowie State is so vitally important.”  

HBCUs account for 3% of all colleges and universities in the United States and they educate the largest number of Black professionals who are in critical fields such as medicine, law and engineering. Students who earn a bachelor’s degree from an HBCU are more likely to enroll in graduate programs than non-HBCU graduates.

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