After seeing this news, which I first saw reported by Black Enterprise, I had an assortment of thoughts and emotions. Being an alumni of the White House Initiative on HBCUs Scholar program (formally known as the HBCU All-Star Program), I’m not surprised that they’ll be face-to-face with Trump on next Tuesday. During our tenure in 2017, we impromptuly met Omarosa and Betsy Devos. We encountered Omarosa several times too, as she simplify wouldn’t leave us alone! Plus, the election is right around the corner. What better way to get an easy photo-op with black people than to attend an event literally aimed at black people sponsored by the White House.
Black Enterprise reports:
President Donald Trump will deliver remarks at the 2019 National Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) Conference on Tuesday, Sept. 10, a White House official exclusively told BLACK ENTERPRISE Friday.
More than 1,800 people are expected to attend the conference, which is themed “Enhancing HBCU Competitiveness: Student Achievement. Quality Partnerships. Institutional Performance,” including representatives from each HBCU around the country. It will be held Sept. 8–10 in Washington, D.C. Sources did not specify where Trump will make his speech.
The Initiative’s history is bi-partisan in nature. The White House Initiative itself was created by Ronald Regan in 1981. President George W. Bush then moved it under the umbrella of the Department of Education. The HBCU All-Star Student Spotlight program (now known as the Scholars for HBCU Competiveness) was started in 2014 during the Obama administration. So far, 6 Cohorts Of students have been a part of the program and boast successful students that have gone on to do tremendous things on student leadership on their campus and landed respectable professions.
Next week, we will have exclusive coverage of the conference on our Instagram story feed courtesy of our Fort Valley State University Ambassador Rodesha Elam. Please stay tuned to all HBCU Pulse Social Media outlets as we plan to cover his visit to the Conference.
