Adams, HBCU Caucus Lead 5th Successful HBCU STEAM Days of Action
Media assets to assist with HBCU STEAM Day coverage are available below.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Congresswoman Alma Adams (NC-12) and the Congressional Bipartisan Historically Black Colleges & Universities (HBCU) Caucus celebrated the conclusion of a 5th successful HBCU STEAM Days of Action.
Over the course of five days, hundreds of participants spent a total of over 40,000 minutes on Zoom engaging with a bipartisan, bicameral group of legislators. In addition to the legislators, participants included HBCU presidents and leaders from across the country; representatives from HBCU Caucus Partnership Challenge companies; and non-profit leaders who advocate for HBCUs.
As co-chair of the HBCU Caucus, Rep. Adams also leads the HBCU Partnership Challenge, which was highlighted during HBCU STEAM Day. 7 new companies joined the challenge during HBCU STEAM Days of Action, bringing the total number of participants up to 94.
"Since 1837, HBCUs have secured for our communities that fundamental right, and have provided a pathway to good jobs and better lives for millions of students," said Adams during the "HBCU Partnership 101" panel on Thursday.
"They've been anchors of their communities, safe havens in times of trouble, and critical engines of commerce. For over 150 years, our schools have withstood underfunding and ignorance, and malice by those who would seek to harm us simply because of the color of our skin. We're here today because we understand that our schools are more than just institutions of higher education. Like the United Negro College Fund likes to say— ‘a mind is a terrible thing to waste, but a wonderful thing to invest in.'And I like to add: a Black mind is a terrible thing to waste!
"Let me be crystal clear: HBCUs aren't just our past— they're our present, and they're our future," Adams concluded.
Media assets to assist with HBCU STEAM Day coverage are available below.
Video/Visual Assets:
Video of "HBCU Partnerships 101" Panel
Selected Screenshots from STEAM Days meetings with Senators and Members of Congress, including House Leadership
Social Media:
#HBCUSTEAM Tweets
#HBCUStrong Tweets
@HBCUCaucus Tweets
@RepAdams Tweets
@RepFrenchHill Tweets
@RepBonamici Tweets
Agenda Recap:
• Rep. French Hill (R-AR), Co-Chair of the HBCU Caucus
• House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA)
• House Democratic Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD)
• House Majority Whip James E. Clyburn (D-SC)
• House Education and Labor Committee Chairman Bobby C. Scott (D-VA)
• Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee Chair Patty Murray (D-WA)
• Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture Chairwoman Tammy Baldwin (D-WI)
• Senate Agriculture Committee Ranking Member John Boozman (R-AR)
• House Agriculture Committee Chairman David Scott (D-GA)
• House Agriculture Committee Ranking Member Glenn "GT" Thompson (R-PA)
• House Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture Chairman Sanford Bishop (D-GA)
• House Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Rosa DeLauro (D-CT)
• Staff for House Financial Services Committee Ranking Member Patrick McHenry (R-NC)
• House Energy and Committee Chairman Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ)
• Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee Ranking Member Roger Wicker (R-MS)
• House Science, Space and Technology Chairwoman Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX)
• House Science, Space and Technology Ranking Member Frank Lucas (R-OK)
• House Armed Services Committee Chairman Adam Smith (D-WA)
Panel Participants:
Moderator: Julie Sills Molock, Chief Development Officer, EdFarm, The Propel Center
Rep. Alma S. Adams, Ph.D., Co-Chair, Congressional Bipartisan HBCU Caucus
Rep. French Hill, Co-Chair, Congressional Bipartisan HBCU Caucus
Rep. Suzanne Bonamici, Co-Chair, Congressional STEAM Caucus
Dr. Dietra Trent, Executive Director, White House Initiative on HBCUs
Karen Robinson, VP, AGC, Litigation & Intellectual Property, Adobe
Brent Swinton, VP for Institutional Advancement, Bowie State University
Terrance Bowman, Director, Diversity, Campus Recruiting, Capital One
Dr. Patrice Gilliam-Johnson, Dean, School of Graduate, Adult and Extended Studies, Delaware State University
Fernando Little, Chief Diversity Officer, Atrium Health
Tami B. Simmons, VP of Institutional Advancement, Johnson C. Smith University
Background
Sixty-seven percent of job seekers say a diverse workforce is important when considering job offers, and organizations that report higher levels of racial diversity bring in nearly 15 times more sales revenue than their counterparts. The Bipartisan HBCU Caucus believes that to achieve true diversity in our workforce, we must focus on the front-end of this conversation – our students and the schools they attend.
The impact of HBCUs on our workforce is clear. HBCUs produce:
• 27 percent of all African-American STEM graduates;
• 40 percent of all African-American engineers;
• 50 percent of all African-American lawyers;
• 50 percent of all African-American public-school teachers; and
• 80 percent of all African-American judges.
These statistics demonstrate a diverse and inclusive workforce requires HBCUs.
Congresswoman Alma Adams represents North Carolina's 12th Congressional District (Charlotte, Mecklenburg County). In 2015, she founded the first bipartisan Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) Caucus in Congress. She is a double graduate of North Carolina A&T, the largest HBCU by enrollment in the United States.
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