Chapter 7: Practical Strategies: Leading HBCU During Challenging Economies

Our rapidly changing and unpredictable world influences all aspects of our lives. In a little over a decade, since I became president of Philander Smith College, we have witnessed a number of foundational shifts. The United States suffered through a great recession and elected its first Black president. Social media exploded, making Twitter, Instagram, Periscope, and Snapchat not only new platforms for communication but also, for many people, part of their daily activities.

This past decade also has seen an extremely unstable higher education landscape. State governments have continued the rapid defunding of higher education, causing large increases in public tuition. Private colleges and universities also experienced rising costs that outpaced the rate of inflation. Notably, those concerned about cost have failed to take into account the many cost drivers that have an impact on colleges and universities.