How The Thurgood Marshall College Fund Uplifts Black HBCU Students

After Texas banned diversity, equity and inclusion programs at public universities in 2023, many colleges and universities nationwide have since followed suit and cracked down on DEI within the past year. Additionally, Black enrollment has dipped among so-called elite universities in the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision to end affirmative action. Despite these apparent attacks on Black students pursuing higher education, one nonprofit remains more committed than ever to ensuring they are able to thrive.

The Thurgood Marshall College Fund has been advocating for students at historically Black colleges and universities, as well as predominantly Black institutions, for over 30 years. Founded in 1987 by longtime education advocate Dr. N. Joyce Payne, the organization has awarded students over $500 million in scholarships and placed them in positions to network with top employers to secure internships and careers.

Despite a boom in prospective student interest in HBCUs and predominantly Black institutions after affirmative action was outlawed, decades of chronic underfunding and smaller endowments due to the racial wealth gap have made it difficult for these schools to cater to as many students as they would like. Couple that with a coordinated attack on diversity and rising white nationalism, the TMCF is ready to ramp up its own efforts to support Black institutions and students, not slow down.

Dr. Harry Williams, the president and CEO of the organization, said it embraces the fight to protect Black universities and their students.

“Look at who we are. Look at the name Thurgood Marshall,” Williams said, invoking the first Black Supreme Court justice for whom the nonprofit is named after. “You think he was afraid of a fight?”

The TMCF “is all about making sure that our students, when they graduate from our HBCUs, are getting a fair shot at being a part of America,” said Williams, who’s also the former president of Delaware State University. “We are creating opportunities for students that come from communities where they may not have a champion to support them.”

Black students already face myriad challenges in higher education. Enrollment for Black men, in particular, has sharply fallen over the last five decades, according to a report from the policy think tank American Institute for Boys and Men. These students…