Negro Digest - Freedom Archives

with American education, period.
However, as always in a society
which-being racist by natureassigns
opportunities and rewards
according to race and color, those
people suffer most who are regarded
least, and those people in
the American society are black
people ." The general validity of
this observation should not be a
bar to repetitive assertions until all
those who are responsible for and
involved in education, at whatever
level, in our country not only recognize
the deficiencies in our total
educational system but are engaged
upon meaningful programs
to correct what needs to be corrected
. The important question is :
How can the system best be
changed? For black children and
young adults in the United States,
this question takes on some particular
connotations .
Since 1865, the traditionally or
predominantly black colleges and
universities have borne the brunt of
the responsibility for educating the
black leadership of this country .
Many of these schools have compared
favorably, and still do, with
other schools of similar size with
more resources and stronger faculties
. In many instances, these largely
segregated schools did superior
jobs with their student-products
despite the problems inherent in
black higher education, not the
least of these problems being the
NEGRO DIGEST MarcF 1969
necessity for combatting and remedying
the deficiencies of our general
educational system so far as
black students were concerned .
The increasingly complex nature
of our society and government beginning
with the Great Depression
of the 1930's, the technological advances
which began with the necessity
for a more efficient war machine
during the 1940's, the acceleration
of these developments
following the launching of Sputnik
I in 1957, and the ensuing age of
cybernation have effected basic
changes in our society . These
changes-involving environmental
conditions, manpower requirements,
and individual and societal
attitudes-have created new challenges
and opportunities for all
segments of our society . These
challenges and opportunities demand
a fundamental and continuing
re-appraisal of courses of study
in institutions of higher education .
It occurs to me that the necessity
for a changed role for the predominantly
or traditionally black colleges
and universities must be
viewed at least partially within this
context.
This suggests an awesomely dual
responsibility for the predominantly
or traditionally black schools of
higher education-i.e ., (1) a relevance
and validity with regard to
black students and black communities,
and (2) a relevance and validity
with regard to the society in
which black students and black
communities will exist . Inherent in
both responsibilities is the neces-
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