Paul Quinn College will be the first school to host a town hall meeting with Dr. John Wilson, executive director of the White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities.  The town hall will take place this Wednesday, August 11, 2010 in the Grand Lounge of the Cottrell Student Union Building beginning at 7 p.m.

The event will be an extended discussion surrounding the value of HBCUs to our nation. The discussion will also explore some of the most pressing and provocative issues connected to the preservation and revitalization of the nation’s HBCUs.  Paul Quinn College President Michael Sorrell will be part of a discussion that will be moderated by James Ragland of the Dallas Morning News.

Department of Education on White House Initiative on HBCUs

In 1980, President Jimmy Carter signed Executive Order 12232, which established a federal program “… to overcome the effects of discriminatory treatment and to strengthen and expand the capacity of historically black colleges and universities to provide quality education.”  On Feb. 12, 2002, President George W. Bush signed Executive Order 13256. This executive order transferred the White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities to the Office of the Secretary within the U.S. Department of Education. Previously, the White House Initiative was housed in the Department’s Office of Postsecondary Education.  President Obama signed an executive order renewing the White House Initiative on HBCUs in February of this year.