On September 23, Michael L. Lomax was the guest speaker for Howard University's 144th Opening Convocation. As President of UNCF (United Negro College Fund) he stressed his goal to make college an affordable experience for minorities seeking higher education. Dr. Lomax expressed his concern for the number of bright minorities seeking options outside of HBCUs. He asserted that institutions such as Howard University need to make themselves more attractive and competitive for a better quality of student. In addition he believes Howard University should seek to acquire the best faculty and staff in order to improve its quality of education.
Dr. Lomax also challenged alumni and students to give back to their alma mater. He believes that investment from past generations is essential if HBCUs are to progress forward. According to the orator, only 11 percent of past graduates donate funds to Howard University. I find this to be a surprising statistic. I agree that HBCUs need to be come more attractive to students if they are to compete with other schools. One approach could be to offer greater scholarships. However this relates back to Dr. Lomax's point that alumni do not give back which hinders the amount of funding available. Overall I believed his presentation to be insightful on the current state of HBCUs.
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