Most senior leaders talk a good game. Many, of course, do more than talk. But I wonder, nevertheless, how many CEOs and other top executives have ever stepped foot on the campus of one of America’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) or Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs)?
Let’s start with some numbers:
· 107: The U.S. Department of Education identifies 107 colleges nationwide as HBCUs. (Others put the number slightly lower.) You’re probably familiar with at least a few—Howard University in Washington, DC; Spelman and Morehouse colleges in Atlanta, and Tuskegee University in Alabama. That leaves about 100 others. Check them out.
· 32: There also are nearly three dozen accredited TCUs. Few business leaders are likely familiar with them, including top-ranked Salish Kootenai College in Montana.
· 450: And, to fully widen the net, the Education Department also lists more than 450 Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs): two- and four-year colleges and universities, mostly in the West and Southwest, with enrollments that are at least 25% Hispanic.
· 9,500: That’s the approximate number of U.S. corporations with annual revenues of $500 million or more. That’s 9,500 CEOs; the number of senior executives and Board Members is some multiple of that.
So, let’s rephrase the original question: Looking only at America’s largest companies, how many of their CEOs and other senior leaders have personally visited an HBCU, TCU or HSI campus; how many have spent some serious time there talking with students, faculty and leaders; how many have become personally involved with any of these schools, and how many actively recruit on these campuses—especially the smaller, lesser-known schools?
Obviously, large corporations and their recruiters probably work closely with some of the better-known HBCUs and larger Hispanic-serving institutions (such as Arizona State University, Cal Poly Pomona, the University of New Mexico and Rutgers University), but what about the many HBCUs and TCUs located in small towns or second-tier cities where many of these colleges are located?
Why should busy corporate leaders spend their valuable time at such schools? You already know the answer: Because it might benefit their organizations and benefit them personally.
Do you realize, for example, that more than 50% of all African-American professionals in business, law, the arts and the STEM fields are HBCU graduates? If a company is really seeking diverse talent, it will probably find far more of what it’s looking for at the A&Ms (Alabama A&M in Huntsville, Florida A&M in Tallahassee, Prairie View A&M in Prairie View, Texas, and Southern University and A&M College in Baton Rouge), or at the Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute, than at all the Ivies combined.
Company leaders could not only make some great hires, but they might also meet an unheralded scientist or engineer just “this much” away from an important breakthrough in a critical field, discover some interesting people they’re unlikely to encounter elsewhere, give a struggling entrepreneur an insight that will help her move forward with her business plan, or just learn something new about our country, its people, higher education and themselves.
If “giving back to the community” also is important to the company, as many executives say it is, this is another area where these schools excel. Fayetteville State University in North Carolina, for example, a top-ranked HBCU located just a few miles from Fort Liberty—the huge Army installation formerly known as Fort Bragg—has tailored many of its academic programs to meet the special needs of military personnel, families and veterans. As many CEOs well know, there is almost no better leadership training than the military. And when it comes to logistics, the military services are second to none. When you combine such attributes with academics, as Fayetteville State does, you have a matchless combination.
Companies that actively recruit from HBCUs, TCUs and HSIs aren’t just doing the right thing—they’re making a smart business move.
But recruiting is just a baby step. Any big company can pay for a couple of mid-level headhunters to spend a few nights at a Days Inn in Tuscaloosa, Ala. (Stillman College), Lorman, Miss. (Alcorn State University), Crownpoint, N.M. (Navajo Technical College) or Alpine, Tex. (Sul Ross State University) so they can “participate” in a college job fair. That’s called going through the motions, not making a commitment.
Making a commitment requires companies and their top leaders to recognize the immense value of these schools and to forge serious partnerships with them. What would demonstrate commitment? Endowing a professorship in business strategy or leadership, for example, would be an appropriate undertaking; paying for company executives to spend a month, a semester, or a year in residence at some of the schools would send a strong signal; and sponsoring a lecture series on an appropriate topic would work. And I’m sure, if you put your mind to it, you could find many other ways to build meaningful connections.
But the best way to do that—certainly the most convincing—would be for senior leaders of America’s largest companies to personally contact some of the chancellors and presidents of the HBCUs, TCUs and HSIs and request personal campus visits and meetings, especially at some of the more out-of-the-way and lesser-known schools. In addition to the college leadership, they might consider meeting with Dean’s List students or with students in a particular program that aligns with the company’s interests.
These colleges and universities are important to your company’s and community’s future. They are essential to your DEI efforts. Treat them as such.
Talking a good DEI game and playing a good DEI game are two distinctly different activities. Which one describes your company?