'A weight lifted:' How Black students find community on campus

Move-In Day Mafia supports youth aging out of the foster care system by helping them transition to college life at HBCUs, from assisting them with dorm move-in to providing customized interior design for their rooms and delivering monthly care packages to help them cover household essentials. So far, the organization has supported more than 100 students across 26 universities.

To better attract and support Black students, California State University Long Beach launched several initiatives tailored to Black students’ needs, including a Black Resource Center that hosts events, coordinates mentorship, and offers internship and employment opportunities. Since 2019, Black student enrollment has risen by roughly 30%, an increase the university attributes to combined efforts to improve outreach and engagement programs like the BRC.

The Muckleshoot Cohort is an Indigenous-led doctoral program in educational leadership that is built around Indigenous culture and knowledge. The initiative, which encourages students to reclaim their Native identities and tackle generational trauma related to the colonized education system, graduated 10 students in its inaugural class.

Tribal colleges like Tohono O’odham Community College provide an accessible route for indigenous students to pursue higher education, with tuition waivers available for students from federally-recognized tribes. Tohono O’odham’s enrollment has grown from about 700 in 2019 to more than 1,200 last year, but funding for tribal colleges is in jeopardy due to proposed federal budget cuts.

Through the Inside-Out program, traditional college students and students who are incarcerated share the same classroom, coming together for quarter-long courses. All participants receive college credit and students from both groups say learning together helps them break down barriers and understand new perspectives.

The Freedom Schools program in Seattle, which is modeled after the Civil Rights-era movement of the same name, offers summer programming designed to promote literacy skills and delve deeper into topics that may not be covered comprehensively during the school year, including Black history and civic advocacy.

Community schools such as Paige Academy and Roxbury Roots build on a long legacy of independent schools that sprouted as a way to better serve Black students who were often left behind by the public school system. Families say their children are able to be more engaged and at ease in a culturally competent environment that pays close attention to students’ needs.

The Indigenous Teacher Education Program at the University of Arizona trains budding educators to better support students in Tribal communities, with the goal of increasing the number of Indigenous teachers in the school system. Since launching in 2018, the program has produced more than 50 graduates.

By offering mentorship opportunities, multicultural support, increased academic support, and more resources to address food and housing insecurity, colleges such as the University of Colorado Boulder and University of Northern Colorado have improved student retention rates, with 89 percent and 74.5 percent of freshmen, respectively, staying enrolled for their second year in 2023.

The student-led SzKTP program provides peer mentorship and application help to high school students interested in attending Corvinus University, with the goal of improving higher education opportunities for students from low-income and disadvantaged areas. Once they’re accepted to Corvinus, students in the program continue to receive support and guidance, as well as a stipend to help lessen the burden of university-related costs.