Rep Yo HBCU!

Have you ever pondered about the unique experiences and cultural richness of historically black colleges and universities? Join me, KC Carnage, as I take a nostalgic trip back to my college days alongside special guests, Kiana Haywood and Alicia Crooks. We reminisce about our transformative journeys at HBCUs, the indelible first day impressions, the empowering environment and how these invaluable experiences have shaped our lives.


Host KC Carnage (@iamkccarnage), Kiana Haywood (@kiana.haywood_) and Alicia Crooks (@downtoearthali)

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

I was on campus when Obama was president.

Speaker 2: 0:02

Right, thank you.

Speaker 1: 0:04

It was like and it was so funny, like just the culture on there, like I don't think it would have been the same if I would have went somewhere else. People were running out of the dorms and it was just like a big celebration and I don't think I would have experienced something like that elsewhere.

Speaker 2: 0:18

Did you cry your freshman? I feel like all the suburban kids freshman year they had this like come to Jesus moment around the same time where they just started crying about being like this is their first time being in a black space.

Speaker 1: 1:05

What up, what up, what up. Welcome to, that's it. That's All you know who I am, KC Carnage, and today we're going to be talking about HBCUs, because guess what month it is Homecoming and I could not, could not, could not go by this month without talking about my loves, about HBCUs. And I also got some guests here who's going to represent their HBCUs? We have Keana Haywood and Alicia Crooks, and I don't know if any of you guys know what HBCUs are, but they're, historically, black colleges and universities that are public and private institutions established before the Civil Rights Act of 1964 in the United States. Before their inception, hbcus gifted black people with access to education, which was denied to them during slavery and segregation. Now let's take a little. Cheers y'all, cheers. Thank y'all for coming. Thank y'all for coming. Cheers, cheers.

Speaker 1: 1:56

No I can't read you. But here we go. The air cheers. The reason why I thought this was so important to me? Because I honestly didn't know what an HBCU was until I went to my HBCU. Me too, wow, me too, no idea.

Speaker 1: 2:11

Well, I grew up in the suburbs, so like I didn't like they weren't talking about like go to an HBCU. It was like my family, like I was in my immediate family, I was the first person to go to college, so they weren't talking about like the difference between they, just like go to college. Why do you think it was important for you to go? Is this something that you already wanted to do?

Speaker 3: 2:30

Yeah, I think it was definitely my family, like you know, and starting something new. Like my mom didn't go to an HBCU, she went to a PWI, as to what we call it, and so I mean, of course she didn't finish, but I mean that's neither there. But you know, I was like I'm going to go to an HBCU, I want to be around people that look like me, like period, I want to have fun, I want to get my education and still like learn about what HBCU stands for, like what that means to you know for everybody. So I thought it was pretty dope. How about you, ali?

Speaker 2: 2:59

Well, I'm from Detroit. So if you know anything about the motor city, motown, whatever the D, basically Detroit is black as hell. So when I decided on Howard or I was deciding to go to school, I wanted to just like take that energy that I had from my city and just be in school with it, basically. So I didn't know the most about HBCUs but I knew a little bit. I applied to you know, like the top whatever the top five were for our time and I just picked Howard because it was in DC and I was like, ooh, I like.

Speaker 1: 3:32

DC. Well see, I didn't even apply to HBCU. To be like I said, I did not even know Boogie State was an HBCU until I got there, right, and we're talking about it. I applied to a couple of different schools and my first choice was actually University of Hartford in Connecticut and my uncle lived in Maryland and I already knew Boogie. Boogie is my second home, like my mom, and my aunt was the only two that had kids, so we that was just what I knew. So I was like I can either go to the snow or I can go and my aunt's 20 minutes away, and I got somewhere to like crash. But it definitely exchanged my life and I wouldn't have changed it in the world. Now, do you think it's important to talk to our black children about going to HBCUs? Absolutely.

Speaker 2: 4:17

I can't imagine not talking to kids and my own, like my little cousins, my nephews about Howard. All I do is talk about Howard or I'm like okay, you don't like Howard when else in the US that's an HBCU.

Speaker 3: 4:31

can I get you to? Because you going somewhere, because you going somewhere.

Speaker 2: 4:34

That's HBCU.

Speaker 1: 4:35

Exactly, no-transcript. What was it like your first day stepping on that campus?

Speaker 2: 4:40

Um, I remember, like every first day of school since I was a kid right that feeling, that smell of fall, all that, all the change of the leaves and things, and I remember feeling like, what the fuck? I do not have anything to wear. I thought about, yes, I was like where did they get all their clothing from? Oh my god. I remember thinking, um, I was glad that my parents dropped me off, but I couldn't wait for them to leave. I remember thinking why are the men so fine?

Speaker 2: 5:18

Oh yeah, that was top four, for me definitely top four. I remember thinking did I pick the right major? A lot of that all the time. Like, is this the right?

Speaker 1: 5:26

like is this the right path for me. I feel like no one knows the right major until they actually graduate. I think beyond graduation.

Speaker 2: 5:32

I think it's like your year is fast. I got my degree.

Speaker 1: 5:34

So it's like I'm as good at at some point when you're deciding what your major's going to be to get to a point was like, okay, I have to finish school. I have to finish school so whatever we're here now, whether it's the third, the second time you tried it, this is where we're at now.

Speaker 3: 5:46

See, I think my experience was definitely opposite from both of y'all's because definitely mine was like sophomore year, so it all started as like a pre-law major and I was like, no, this ain't going to be it, like I need to change this, like right now, before I graduate. Oh, I'm a fail, I'm not going to graduate. I was like no, I need to like hurry up. I was going through everything, I mean like biology, teacher communication. I went through it all and I was like, okay, maybe PR will be my thing. So yes, that's the outrageous website.

Speaker 3: 6:15

Yes, so you know, I definitely know I couldn't wait till after I graduated. None of them. I'm almost like you need to get this up right now, Like stop playing it.

Speaker 1: 6:22

Yeah, I was a broadcast journalism major, but did not actually use it until this year.

Speaker 2: 6:29

Oh, that's what I'm saying.

Speaker 1: 6:30

I'm a musician, I sing, I sing, so that's what I was doing. You know what I mean. Like I went into like corporate America right after college for a few years and then I moved out to LA and I've been singing professionally and then, literally like the top of this year, I was like I looked at my, I looked at my degree, I was like I need to use you what's up. And then I was approached with opportunity to do this and I just kind of like this is what I was supposed to be doing in the first place, so is that okay?

Speaker 1: 6:56

So how do you think that you know like going to your HBCU changed your life?

Speaker 3: 7:01

Growth. It definitely matured me, yeah, definitely, and I you know from Maryland and well, I was living in Maryland at the time and then I did a whole transition to living in Miami, being away from my mom and my family. It definitely like built the maturity inside of me and I was like, oh yeah, because once my mom left, I was definitely homesick for like the first semester.

Speaker 1: 7:23

Yeah, See, I wasn't. I was always like I. Like I said, I grew up in the suburbs. Like you know, I'm used to like multi cultures. I mean like both my neighbors was why, like I've never been surrounded by that many black people in my entire life. So for me, when I went there, I was like, wait a minute, like you know, like I was, like I, you know I got judged by the way I spoke and you know, like things that I was into. But like it also like was one of the best experiences of my life because it was like I was home, like I felt like I was with my cousins, I felt like I was with my family, and it also taught me a lot about the world and how things were viewed. Like I was on campus when Obama was president.

Speaker 1: 8:03

Right so it was like, and it was so funny, like just the culture on there, like I don't think it would have been the same if I would have went somewhere else. Like I remember literally driving from. So my freshman year I lived on campus and then I moved off campus my freshman, my sophomore year, but my apartment was literally like a two minute drive, like we were the hangout, like we wanted to get off.

Speaker 1: 8:26

Like everybody had the party house yeah we had the party house, so literally we saw it. We were like we got to go to the campus and literally we parked and people were running out of the dorms and it was just like a big celebration and I don't think I would have experienced something like that elsewhere.

Speaker 2: 8:42

Did you cry, your freshman? I feel like all the suburban kids freshman year they had this like come to Jesus moment around the same time, where they just started crying about being like this is their first time being in a black space. And so all the city kids especially if they grew up in like in a major black city we were like why the fuck are y'all crying? It'll be in random classrooms, maybe the teacher says something so like poetic that really touched them and they were like, wow, I was really one of five, I was really one of two, and kids would just start crying in class.

Speaker 1: 9:17

I don't think I ever cried in class but I definitely had some come into Jesus moments like especially so, like, so, like for me, like, even though I was a communications major, the communications building was in the same building as the arts department, so I took all and I mean I grew up in musical theater and all that stuff, so I took all my electives was in that department, so I was in one building, the tire. Four years I was there, lucky you.

Speaker 2: 9:41

It was one building.

Speaker 1: 9:42

It was one building and it was the arts. It was the education to see. Like to see that many black professors that's what the common Jesus was like to for me to see, like so many black educators. And because, like where I was from, we had like two. It was the music and it was like the stuff that, like they wouldn't want us for the music sports, like you know, maybe there was a math teacher, but for the most part, most of my teachers were white. So, like my coming into Jesus mode was like, oh my God, there are like real ed, like educated black people that are teaching us and are, like you know, expounding our minds and stuff. So that was definitely a change moment for me. Now, what was your favorite moment in college Too?

Speaker 2: 10:24

many now, girl, I definitely think the Obama getting elected, that second kid, second term was powerful because we did just where Howard's located. We literally walked to the White House and it was everyone in the streets I mean everybody in DC were just mobbing to the White House, had a party, it was a drum circle. That was just like inspirational. Whatever it made my heart sing. Even right now thinking about it, I'm getting chills. I think my favorite moment in college is I want to say, graduation.

Speaker 3: 11:02

But it's been a great time, oh girl.

Speaker 2: 11:05

I don't even know.

Speaker 3: 11:06

Everything was just on go mode you were just being on go mode all the time. I can definitely say like one of my like funny moments, you know, homecoming like everybody alumni come back pulling up the food, the drinks, the fraternity sororities on campus.

Speaker 1: 11:23

I can agree with you on that one. I can agree with you on coming and the professors were like what are you doing in class?

Speaker 2: 11:29

This is a formality. Y'all should be outside.

Speaker 1: 11:32

And they encouraged it. They encouraged it. I think it was a camaraderie thing. It was definitely a camaraderie thing, like go be with your people, like this is the time for celebration. I definitely think that, like that is a distinct like attribute to HBCUs. Like they're going to make us celebrate us, yeah.

Speaker 1: 11:49

I mean they're going to make us celebrate accomplishments and they're not going to overlook it or bypass it, because they understand it. I guess one of my favorite things like you said, homecoming, but more so where I come from, we didn't like the biggest black celebration I guess we would say we had. We used to have a heritage parade and it was always around my birthday in June and it was one day. It was a-.

Speaker 2: 12:14

Not.

Speaker 1: 12:14

Juneteenth, no, juneteenth, no, no, no, no, no, no, juneteenth Like I ain't going to hold you, I didn't either.

Speaker 3: 12:20

I know nothing about no.

Speaker 1: 12:21

Juneteenth. I didn't know nothing about Juneteenth, really Nothing about, no Juneteenth.

Speaker 2: 12:24

I mean, I learned a Howard, but yes, no.

Speaker 1: 12:26

I mean nothing about no Juneteenth, but we had an African-American festival that used to happen once a year and it would have the parade. So that would be the only thing that I can say that, like we were, we were, we got the chance to celebrate our wedding. So, homecoming, I was like what is going on? What is happening? I love it here. Woo, like Woo. I'm like what is happening. It was like food everywhere, like you said, the fraternities, the sororities, you know. Like I wanted to play it. I didn't get a chance to, but like it was a, it was a. It was definitely a change of. It changed my life.

Speaker 1: 13:00

I feel like I say, is that it changed my life? What? What outside influences have you had? Like? Any like? Okay, let me. Let me ask this question what is your favorite form of media? And like whether that represents HBCUs or colleges, like whether it's a show, whether it's a that?

Speaker 3: 13:21

represents us. Yeah, what's that show? Bill Cosby's Spin-Off.

Speaker 2: 13:25

Oh, a Different World, yes, that was definitely, but like what's a new?

Speaker 3: 13:29

I don't know like a new age. All American, hong Kong, all American, hong Kong, all American. That is actually a really good one.

Speaker 2: 13:34

Mine was school days. Oh yeah, mine was school days.

Speaker 1: 13:37

Mine was school days, but what's but, but, but, but, but I think it's about school days. I liked it because it would actually remind me of my school when.

Speaker 2: 13:43

I watched it.

Speaker 1: 13:44

Like when I watched it I was like this is like we had, because our school, my school, was pretty small. Like, but we, but we now is legit. Like, but we when I was there, it was like we was in the grassroots edition.

Speaker 2: 13:55

We was in the grass, I didn't even notice. Y'all were that close to us.

Speaker 1: 13:58

We're so close.

Speaker 2: 14:00

We're so close and then they go.

Speaker 3: 14:01

I'm telling you, FFR.

Speaker 1: 14:03

Didn't even know. That was like 20 minutes.

Speaker 3: 14:06

Yeah, I knew she didn't know.

Speaker 2: 14:09

I'm like what do you mean? Bowie and Morgan is down the street, they right down the street, they ain't crazy they use.

Speaker 1: 14:14

Morgan Bowie was very close, but also too like I don't find too many shows now Like I felt like there was a time that, like HGCU's were, were pushed, not only in movies, I mean, like Spike Lee used to do it all the time, like you know he was definitely spearheading it the most.

Speaker 2: 14:30

All American Homecoming is the closest like new age version Right.

Speaker 1: 14:34

I don't know any new, newer movies, but like I think that, like, like, like you said, a different world, like that's my show. I just I just actually just rewatched it, like two months ago yeah, it's.

Speaker 2: 14:46

And all the black shows always had like their gear on Living single. They always had Martin, martin, chris and Belair.

Speaker 1: 14:55

It's like I feel like the nineties and early 2000s did a great job with that kind of representation where I like, I wish they would bring back now, but it's like that's why this was so important. I was like, if I want to do episode, we come in our Preferra Fidelia. We're going to do what we got to do, but also to like what, what, um, what was some of your biggest takeaways from your school?

Speaker 2: 15:15

I think I think I learned the most after I left Howard. The impact of everything, like all the information that I learned from my professors or different experiences that I have flooded me once I left Cause I mean, detroit is so black Howard, ndc at that time was really black Now is phasing out because of gentrification. But then I moved out of that space and I moved to Orange County and if you know anything about Orange County is white as hell. So when I left, by that time I was about like 25, 26. That's when all the experiences, like what everything the professors, my parents prepped me for, came to work.

Speaker 2: 15:59

You know, just really being comfortable in my skin, um, maintaining my confidence in spaces, knowing that I'm supposed to be in certain spaces, uh, based on like, yeah, like everything about me, my intelligence, my character, what I have to bring when I'm working in corporate spaces it just really made me feel outspoken. But I didn't have that energy until I left. I feel like when I was there I was comfortable, I was in my bubble. Even in DC I was just like it's a bubble. It felt like a bubble at the time, but when I left I had to really like you know what?

Speaker 1: 16:36

Nah you got me messed up.

Speaker 2: 16:38

You got me messed up, I'm like I'm not educated, I'm in myself Right in space.

Speaker 3: 16:42

Yeah, everything in which you just said for real being at that at HBCU and then taking that with you literally like all right, let me show the world what I can do, just having that impact. I definitely like to show you and what's been great.

Speaker 1: 16:58

What's been great, too, is that more and more HBCUs are now being accredited, because my school wasn't accredited. It's accredited now, but it wasn't accredited. So when I got out of school it took a while for me to get up and running, because, although we were institutionally I mean also too we were the third HBCU Like we're at the top of HBCUs that came out, so we were a smaller school. Now people are flooding money. Like I went to go visit, I was like this ain't some shit. I said I grew up in the wrong year.

Speaker 2: 17:28

I mean they got everything. I mean it's state of the art. The HBCUs are still underfunded. Did you see the recent stats on it? I don't know if you guys saw it recently, but it came out this week or last week that we're still missing $2 billion of funding towards HBCUs alone.

Speaker 3: 17:46

Now you know, black people and money don't get along. Ok, they won't do it. They won't do it.

Speaker 1: 17:52

There's a lot of private investors Like Kevin Duran, I believe, just got. He just funded our school they just named. Is he from Maryland? Yes, they just named our gym after him, so that's dope. I hope I didn't miss quote that. I hope it was Kevin Duran. I probably should have looked that up before I said it, but I'm pretty sure it's right. If it's wrong, guys you guys can tip Duran, Duran Kevin.

Speaker 3: 18:14

Duran, and you know what you just said about the accredited. You know that's how the school in Atlanta, what's the Clark Atlanta?

Speaker 2: 18:22

No, I know what you're talking about. It's.

Speaker 3: 18:25

Morehouse Spelman Clark. Atlanta is the last one Morehouse With the band yeah Purple and. White Morris Brown. Yes, morris Brown. They lost their accreditation. I thought they gained it back. Well, in the beginning, I mean, they had it, lost it for a long period of time and they just got it back.

Speaker 1: 18:44

Like literally, how are they just going to say you're not accredited, but you're going to still take people's money and tell?

Speaker 3: 18:48

them they're going to go to school. No, they weren't said that. Any students or anything.

Speaker 2: 18:51

It just made everyone's degree from there not valuable, which is messed up because they're not giving people's money back.

Speaker 3: 18:57

No, no, that's the game.

Speaker 2: 18:59

It's all wrong.

Speaker 1: 19:00

If you best believe, it couldn't have been me.

Speaker 2: 19:02

First of all, I didn't need to pay off the money in the first place.

Speaker 1: 19:06

No it couldn't have been me Let them have had my degree and say I couldn't use it or whatever. Y'all, give me my money back. I'm going to all the courts. I'm going on channel nine, I'm going channel 11. We talking to everybody but Fox, because we know Fox is propaganda. But we talking to everybody but Fox. But so, all in all your experience in your schools, like we all think, our school is the one where we graduate. But, what do you think made your school super special?

Speaker 3: 19:34

I got this one. I got this one, go ahead so y'all know the song Lift Every Voice. Yes, it came from Florida Memorial baby, Really it was a great fun thing.

Speaker 1: 19:45

It was a great fun thing. Yes, it was a great fun thing. Would you like?

Speaker 2: 19:49

to go Bowie, I'll go.

Speaker 1: 19:51

I was going to say Tony Braxton graduated from.

Speaker 3: 19:54

Bowie State University.

Speaker 1: 19:55

I'm going to go to the New York University, but also too, I think, what made our school very special, because we were smaller, so I think that it was very intimate. It was very personal, like we had real relationships.

Speaker 3: 20:07

Yeah, family-oriented. Yeah, it was real relationships.

Speaker 1: 20:10

A lot of our network has been very strong, the alumni has been very strong and then also, too, because it was so small and you see somebody from Bowie, it's like different vibes.

Speaker 3: 20:19

Like it's like you went to Bowie High School, that's what.

Speaker 1: 20:21

I think it made it special.

Speaker 2: 20:23

OK, well, let me tell you about VHU. Ok, here we go.

Speaker 1: 20:27

We got the first one of them on the show Right.

Speaker 2: 20:29

Not only are we the best HBCU oh god, here you go, here you go. What can you say about Howard? I feel like Howard is such a well-known school that people I don't know. I don't know why people is confused with Harvard.

Speaker 1: 20:47

But I sometimes I just say it, but they do say Harvard, they do say Howard is the Harvard of Black Virgin Right.

Speaker 2: 20:53

Sometimes I just say it and see if they know what I'm talking about, or just let their mind wander. But you already know Kamala Harris.

Speaker 1: 21:00

Yeah, the VHU, y'all got a list, we got a list A crazy ass list.

Speaker 2: 21:07

I think that just not the alumni, but the way that Howard is in the center of DC and you get that political, that personal political experience and the way that the professors drive that experience for you. We were always protesting for the good of the community, all the time, putting ourselves, putting our bodies getting locked up on the front lines in the heart of America.

Speaker 3: 21:33

Damn it, especially with the Trayvon Martin situation that happened. Trayvon Martin's mom went to my school and so we did a really big thing and we really supported her and she supports the school like hands down. So when that happened, that was very traumatic Because it was just like.

Speaker 2: 21:51

Didn't she run for counsel recently, did she?

Speaker 3: 21:55

Oh, I don't know about that, like what could happen after that, but she did, she was there she was there.

Speaker 2: 21:59

She was there. My support from you. She's there.

Speaker 1: 22:03

All in all, one thing that I thought was very important to talk about it, because people don't talk about it enough, and also, too, I think people that go to HBCUs don't talk about HBCUs enough unless you're in a community Like of HBCUs.

Speaker 1: 22:14

I can definitely do that If you were somebody that says I'm from HBCU, then we're talking about HBCUs. Are most people right? But most people are discussing, or maybe it's not necessarily at the forefront. And I feel like, because it changed my life, especially being from a suburb who weren't around a lot of black people I think that I'd be completely a different person Because I just wasn't exposed to it. But I do believe that it's for us, we should go, it's for us by us.

Speaker 1: 22:43

It's for us by us and we should go, and there's nothing saying that you won't get that top to your job. There's nothing saying that you won't make those six figures, there's nothing about it. But what's going to happen is that it is specialized and specific for our needs, our way of life, and giving, like you said, ali, giving us the know how to be able to stand strong in those spaces that are not that don't look like us. That four years is real.

Speaker 3: 23:10

Like that four years is real and even afterwards. It's like you step into the real world like, oh, you competing up against somebody that went to Harvard versus Howard or, you know, bowie or whatever, and you know, we competing for the same job and they looking like, okay, I heard of this PWY, but I never heard of this. Like, what school is this? And it's just like we have the same education. Like you know, I did a four year, he did a four year, whoever you going up against, and it just felt like we just got to break down that barrier, like literally, like we got to be confident, stand strong. Like, yes, we both got the same education. Like you know, we did the same major or whatever cause we wouldn't made it this far, competing with one another. So like, don't try to downplay me in where I went to. Like you know, yeah, we may have a different experience. You know I went to an HBCU with somewhere else, but we still got our education.

Speaker 2: 23:56

I think that's just the whole idea of black people have to do like work five times as hard as anybody else. Even if we had the same experience of going to school or any higher education institution. I think what I struggled with, what I struggled with leaving Howard, what's about to say something? Leaving Howard specifically was like meeting other black people that went to PWYs and maybe them feeling self-conscious about who they were.

Speaker 2: 24:25

Cause when you say you go to HBCU, there's a kind of there's a pride and there's a pride in it, yeah, and they're like oh you, the real black person, and not for nothing.

Speaker 1: 24:34

I mean on the other end of it, not for nothing. You do kind of like, even if you don't do it on purpose there is a subconscious eyes like you ain't got no HBCU. Like it's like California. Like you, you don't know HBCU. Like I, went to the HBCU, I know what was popping over here so like I can get that like it is, isn't that?

Speaker 1: 24:54

funny though it is that duality of like, kind of doing everything in your power as black people in America and as black women in America, to make sure that we are not only showing up in these spaces as a black person, but also understanding what that means. You know what I mean, because all of the stereotypes that are surrounding around us, it's really your individuality, it's really how you are cultivating yourself and showing up and the president is showing up, and I do believe that HBCUs help you do that, and I do believe that it helps you cultivate a community and, more so, a community. Yeah, yeah, because I've been like. I like my community, my college community is unmatched, like it's unmatched. I didn't leave with a lot of people that I still get connected to, but the few that I do, it's always love, it's always you know they're doing amazing things and it's important. I believe that it's important to keep pushing that conversation and keep talking about it and letting our children know about it, letting our young ones know about it, because it's nothing like it.

Speaker 2: 25:58

Yeah, it's nothing like it. And then holding that connection, so like wherever we are in our careers and our life, being able to provide that grant, like funding scholarship to kids and our family, our friends, kids, whatever, so that they can link right back to the school, but following the money trail so we don't get lost at the school.

Speaker 3: 26:17

Okay.

Speaker 1: 26:18

Okay, that's like really weird to be talking about that, okay, because we don't know what those, we don't know what those are. Love not jokes. Go with jokes, okay.

Speaker 3: 26:27

Like that wait, y'all had a scandal, honey, we did. We had a whole scandal about that.

Speaker 2: 26:32

And I was there during that time and my mom stayed at the admin office going off, like, where is the money? Yeah, what am I waiting on? Like. And then they really this is so funny they would go to the back, stay there for whatever amount of time, come out and be like oh okay, we took care of your tuition. Yeah, I swear, every time you had to show up custom out waiting line custom out, because if you weren't gonna say nothing, they was gonna say nothing.

Speaker 3: 27:01

Exactly, and they wouldn't even gonna do nothing.

Speaker 1: 27:03

But they couldn't risk you saying something to get blown up.

Speaker 2: 27:07

So they had to be like oh, she, not the one. It used to be a thing every semester. It was like oh, I gotta go to the, I gotta go to the. I didn't show you, okay, so let's talk about that let's talk about like I wonder.

Speaker 1: 27:18

this is a question I want y'all to answer and literally please respond to it. In PWIs, right White institutions, are y'all financial aids fucked up Like we?

Speaker 1: 27:28

need to know, like we need to know, like for real, cause I swear, every semester somebody's class was dropped. My last semester a lady fucked up too. And if it wasn't, if I was not, and I pray, let me, let me, let me restock it, cause it made me emotional. Because if I did was not a great student. I was on a Dean's list every semester, except for the first semester I was there. And because I was done with some dusty boy that got me all fucked up. But like my my great point.

Speaker 1: 27:55

I graduated, but my last semester yes, my last semester I I was gonna gear gear it up and I lived there like I had an apartment there, so I never went home and had to like come back or whatever. But it was time to start my last semester before graduation and all my classes got dropped. And I know my mom. My mom is on top of stuff, so I know that financial aid came in. My mom drove all the way from Jersey and we're conscious Like we don't know what to do. My mom is wild and she was like no, I know my papers. I and my mom was one of those people that had like the the box and all the paper.

Speaker 1: 28:24

She bought her box. It was like this is the day I bought it. Where is these things? Where is these things? And they couldn't figure it out. I couldn't figure it out and I'm just crying.

Speaker 3: 28:31

I was like I just want to graduate. I'm not here Like I'm tired, okay, and it gets so stressful?

Speaker 1: 28:35

Yes, and then and then. So we get there and she was like well, you can talk to such and such as the guy we went upstairs to like some Dean's office. The secretary says that she was like um, what's your name? She pulls on my information and this guy comes out. I'm like what is going on? I just want them to tell me I got my glasses, all the stuff going on. And he goes she's good, we'll take care of her semester. My mom was like what it's like? I don't know what happened with your financial aid, but you're done. You like it's paid. I paid it, it's fine. Well, not he paid it, but yeah, he was like you're a good student, you haven't been in trouble. He's like your grades are immaculate. We got it and that was it. My mom's actually like, until they gave the refund to her back to financial aid, she didn't have to like all the stuff that she was gonna pay for that year.

Speaker 2: 29:17

They got rebated back to her and stuff, so like I was like look at God.

Speaker 1: 29:22

But like I really under like, but that's people looking out for you. Yeah, he really wanted me to win.

Speaker 3: 29:29

And that's what we got to stop thinking like. I mean, they always say that the perception of us like we're crabs in a barrel. And it's like well, some instance we kind of are, but like with that type of situation, like we can, definitely we got, if we got it you got it right so you know, it's just, we just need more that to go around.

Speaker 2: 29:47

I just want more stories to come out about PWIs and their financial aid office. We want to know.

Speaker 3: 29:55

I'm trying to tell you, because it's like when they say that, how we tighten it, they are even tighter.

Speaker 1: 30:00

They are when Johnny and all that somebody's.

Speaker 3: 30:07

Josh and D Well and they be paying, and that's why they're not gonna say nothing.

Speaker 1: 30:16

I know somebody might slip through the cracks I'm away for it, but I mean, all in all, I think we, you know, we had a great conversation about how we felt about our HBCUs and definitely want to Thank the ladies for coming on. I like to aim my shows with a message, so I'm gonna ask you guys to leave a message to either your younger self about Whether they want to attend an HBCU, or the next child that I'm looking to decide, to the next black child, to decide if they want to go to an HBCU or not okay, keanu, you can do it, you did it.

Speaker 3: 30:50

And when you get here You're gonna cry. It's gonna be some childhood relations, but stick it through, keep going and nothing is gonna hold you back, and I'm so proud of you.

Speaker 2: 31:04

Ali, you know yourself, you know who you are, trust in everything that God has given you and preparing you for You're going to love every experience about being around your own people, learning other cultures we did not talk about that, but learning other cultures at this, at at Howard, at an HBCU, is going to help you understand the world around you, to be an advocate. It's gonna help you to conceptualize what it means to be a black person, and I love you.

Speaker 1: 31:38

Yes. Well, there you have it, y'all. If y'all have any questions or anything that you want to talk about. As far as the top is concerned, again I'm gonna say go. If you're a black child and you're deciding whether to go to this one or that one, go to the one where your people are going to be, go to the one where your heart is gonna tell you and go to the one where you're gonna be seen and celebrated at all Times. Yes, if you have any questions or comments concerned, don't hesitate to drop a line on us or just join the conversation Like subscribe, share, do all the things and that's it. That's all. That's it. That's all.

Speaker 1: 32:16

Is written by me, kc carnage, and produced by myself and Rick barrio dill. Associate producer, Brie Corrie, assistant producer, larissa Donna, audio and video engineering and studio facilities provided by slap studios LA, with distribution through our collective for social progress and cultural expression, slap the network. If you have any ideas for a show you want to hear or see, please email us at info at slap the power. Calm and, as always, go to. That's it, that's all. Calm and sign up there to make sure you will never miss a thing. See you next show.