stories about the good old days. Celebrate your HBCU loudly and unapologetically.
Imagine thousands of alumni contributing $25, $100, $500, $1,000, or whatever reflects their ability. Collective giving could support scholarships, emergency assistance, undergraduate research, technology, athletics, academic programs, and transformational student experiences. And giving is not limited to money. Mentor a student. Offer an internship. Hire an HBCU graduate. Speak to a class. Serve on an advisory board. Support a student entrepreneur. Make an introduction.
activity, and the dollars flowing to Black- owned businesses.
Why?
But before you leave, do something for someone who is still becoming.
Because data creates leverage.
Meet a student. Share your story. Make an introduction.
If an HBCU Homecoming generates millions of dollars for a city or region, institutions should use those numbers when engaging municipalities, tourism agencies, chambers of commerce, corporations, hotels, restaurants, and other stakeholders. The question should be simple: Our institution is helping generate this economic activity. How are you investing in our university and our students? That leverage should translate into sponsorships, scholarships, internships, infrastructure improvements, corporate partnerships, and new opportunities for students.
Offer an internship. Become a mentor. Support a Black-owned business.
Write the check. Open the door.
Because the greatest tribute we can pay to the institutions that gave so much to us is to ensure they remain strong enough to give even more to the generations that follow.
Sometimes the greatest gift is access.
HOMECOMING IS BIG BUSINESS HBCUs must also recognize and leverage the enormous economic impact of Homecoming. When thousands of alumni descend on Tallahassee, Greensboro, Washington, Baton Rouge, Huntsville, Jackson, Tuskegee, Orangeburg, and other HBCU communities, hotels fill, restaurants are packed, transportation companies benefit, vendors thrive, and local businesses experience significant economic activity. HBCUs should document it. Institutions should conduct annual Homecoming economic-impact studies measuring visitors, hotel occupancy, spending, tax revenue, local business
Homecoming is about remembering where we came from.
But it must also be about investing in where we are going.
Communities should not simply benefit from HBCU Homecomings.
That is Homecoming with purpose. That is family. That is legacy in action. That is HBCU pride. And that is Black excellence on full display.
They should invest in the institutions that make them possible.
HOMECOMING WITH PURPOSE So come home.
Wear your colors. Walk the Yard. Dance to the band. Attend the game. Take the pictures. Laugh with old friends. Tell the
HBCU TIMES FALL ISSUE 2026 | 1 5
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