CollegeCandy.com runs a regular feature where they have young college students write about their different experiences in order to give others an opportunity to walk in their shoes. Recently they ran a post by Khalea Underwood, a sophomore at Howard University in DC. Check out this excerpt:
At home, I was made fun of for my dark brown skin; I was always the “blackest” girl in my classes. But here, everything is so different. I feel so comfortable when I’m on campus. I see people who look like me every day. Every shade of brown, different hair textures, and black women and men in all shapes and sizes are represented. I never knew that one group of people could be so diverse.
As Bison, we’re the best and brightest of our hometowns. Everyone wants stand out to be the best. The competition is cutthroat. There are only a few spots for young, black professionals in the career world, and all of us are fighting for them. And because of the existing legacy, it’s our job to expand it. Every day, I walk the same ground that Thurgood Marshall, Toni Morrison, Phylicia Rashad and so many other notable figures have before and I remember that I’m not just here to earn my degree, but also to expand upon Howard’s amazing legacy.
For the full article you can click here…
BMWK family, did you attend an HBCU? Why or Why Not? What was your experience like if you did?
Anonymous says
I wanted my son to attend an HBCU, I fought long and hard…. but he really wanted to go to a big state school where he’s be a nameless, faceless student. We have a couple of good ones in our area, and even toured a few out of state, but I couldn’t sway him.
Fast foward 4 years later, and he’s struggling (but I think he’ll make it through graduation) and he’s told me several times he wishes he’d listened to me and gone to an HBCU. He’s tired of being a nameless, faceless student (insert “I told you so!” here), but more importantly he misses feeling like part of a community, like he did in high school. I’m hoping he’ll choose an HBCU for his graduate work.
Moneymonk says
I love going to an HBCU, I just made 18yrs old and I never seen so many educated people all in one place that looked like me. I instantly had a group of mentors. I said to myself…Life is good 🙂
I connected to new friends, new hobbies and open myself to new cultures
Rae @ Rainbows and Dragonflies says
I went to an HBCU (AWWWW HU!) and I wouldn’t trade the experience for the world. There were a lot of frustrating experiences but they truly prepared me for the real world.