Educators On Why Fewer Black Men Enrolling at HBCUs?

Historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) are renowned for prioritizing post-secondary education opportunities to all Black students, but a recent report says that enrollment rates for Black men at those schools are suffering.

The New York Times reports that Black men only account for 26 percent of the students at HBCUs. That’s even lower than the previous number of 36 percent in 1976, according to numbers gathered by the American Institute for Boys and Men. The story also states, “there are now about as many non-Black students attending HBCUs as there are Black men.”

Antoine Hardy doesn’t teach at HBCUs himself, but he has personally seen decreasing numbers of Black men in his classrooms. He’s an assistant professor at Borough of Manhattan Community College, and an adjunct professor at New York University’s Clive Davis Instutute of Music. He told The Root that he had five to eight Black or afro-latino men in his courses in 2018 and 2022 at both schools, respectively, and that he only has two to three Black men in those courses this semester.

After having conversations with high school students about the issue over the years, Hardy attributes multiple factors to account for the dwindling numbers of Black men in college. He says that some of these men are disenchanted after seeing their siblings struggle with college loans and job placement, and that the variety of vehicles to learn online decreases the allure of college for them. “The anti-intellectual/entrepreneur rhetoric has been loud since middle school for them,” he says. “Influencers and successful people celebrate dropouts and being self-taught, and this media and algorithm is geared to male consumers.” He adds that men deal with societal impatience for them to make money.

“College is framed as a feminine thing, and girls have more patience. Men [have this perception of] ‘I need money now,’ mixed with this idea that being broke as a man is the worst and that a ‘real man’ can hustle,’” Hardy continued. He also adds that some men have dealt with low expectations from people around them. “Whether at home or school, no one has believed in them, and their school doesn’t push college.”

Eugene Lee-Johnson is a tenure track assistant professor of political science at his HBCU alma mater, Southern University in Baton Rouge. He wasn’t surprised by the New York Times report: he says that he’s been surrounded by women students and professors, both while receiving his education and in his teaching career. Through his experiences as a mentor for young men and research he’s found, he mirrored Hardy’s comments about societal expectations for men.

“There’s a trauma that comes with Black male patriarchy. Men need to provide, men need to protect, and a lot of our young men internalize these things rooted in our oppression. I even experienced it myself,” he said. “If I don’t work, I don’t eat, so to speak. When you think about the way Black boys are disciplined, educated, and mentored, it doesn’t always look the same as it does for women. We see sports, music, and even drug dealing as a means to an end. It’s one of the ways we experience gender differently. Black girls face their issues as well, but their pathways look different.”

“Black women shape their priorities differently. Being doubly-disadvantaged, and for some Black women even more, Black women understand that they have to be twice as good,” Lee-Johnson continued. He emphasizes that despite being rampantly underpaid by way of gender pay gaps, “Black women understand that education is a ticket to a better life. Also, education is a form of civic engagement for them.”

Hardy and Lee-Johnson both say that colleges have done a poor job of reaching out to Black men, but the latter says that it’s not all HBCUs’ fault. He explains that most HBCUs don’t have large endowments, so that they have fewer resources to work with. He says that even though they’re pivoting to maximize the way that social media pages like WatchTheYard, HBCUBuzz, and HBCUPulse showcase the dynamic HBCU atmosphere, that they’re still lagging behind financially.

“The historic underfunding definitely comes into play. I’ve worked in recruiting at a PWI (predominantly white institution), and we went on monthly recruiting trips to high schools, community colleges, Black Greek Letter Organization conferences, and even detention centers across the country and some internationally,” he said. “We created pamphlets, mailers, and digital infographics to send to everyone, including alums. HBCUs don’t have the money to do those things consistently.”

On the bright side, Hardy says that BMCC has seen a slight increase in Black enrollment this spring, and that his Black male students there are doing well, with some of them returning to school after taking a few years away to work. But he knows that with the anti-intellectual tones of the manosphere, he’s fighting an uphill battle.

“For me, it’s tough. I like teaching fellow Black men, but it’s been on decline for a while despite a slight uptick in the late 90s. And I truly believe college is not the only option,” Hardy said. “But I also don’t know how you counter so much content and discourse that reinforces that college is a scam.”