I am a current student at A&T and I feel like A&T is a good school the way it is, but for whatever reason the administration is trying to convert the school into something it's not: a white school. Maybe not a white school, but I thought the whole point of a HBCU was to cater to the needs of Negroes, so why is it that the administration is continuously seeking non-blacks to come to the school? There was a student body meeting this month and they said that the school was planning on raising tution atleast a thousand dollars so that they can build new buildings, get more televison stations, and accomodate to the needs of non-blacks.
First of all, I do have to admit that the new buildings do look nice, but do we not need to preserve our history? Why tear down buildings that are structually sound and have been designed by previous A&T students? As for Barbee, it is not one of the best dorms, but that building and Haley were both designed by past students. Would it not be cheaper to just renovate rather than tear down?
Also, I don't see the need to get more televison channels. Nobody actually sits down and watches tv until the prime time hours and most of the time they watch DVDs.
Accomodating minorities is my biggest problem. The purpose of HBCUs was to educate newly freed Negroes who were not allowed to attend white institutions. The struggle of our ancestors to implement these instituions was a long and hard struggle and I feel by actively recruiting minorities is defeating the purpose of their struggle. My whole academic career I wasn't sure where I wanted to go to school, but within my junior year of high school I decided that I wanted to attend an HBCU because nothing about my history was ever taught to me unless it was from my mother. I wanted to attend a school where I could be taught by my own people, where I could learn with my own people, where I could have a role model of my own race rather than continuing to admire somebody who doesn't understand what I'm going through. If I wanted to attend a school with a lot of white people, I would have attended a PWI.
I understand that the administration wants to put A&T on the map, but why not put it on the map for really understanding their students and attending to their needs? Why not for being a successful HBCU without conforming to the ways of the white President? Why not for being a school that stands up for what it was intentionally founded for? If the fouders of the Institution came back today and anaylyzed the school would they be happy with what they found? I just want A&T to stand for what they believe in and continue to be for the good of Negroes and not worry about what the white people are saying. I want future generations to continue to go to A&T and say this is what my ancestors fought so long and hard for; to provide me knowledge of my past and to help me to get where I need to be. I just don't want A&T to end up like West Virginia State University a HBCU with only 18% black people. I fear that if we don't get together now and stop what's going on that that's where the future of this university is headed.
Alumni I just want to point out that you responded very quickly with the situation with Coach Small and the football team, so if you can respond so quickly to the athletics program can you also do the same with the future of your alma mater? Everybody who has graduated from a school needs to give back in some way even if you can't do it with monetary value.
