DSU Holds 4th Annual HBCU Symposium

Delaware State University recently hosted its fourth annual HBCU Philanthropy Symposium under the theme of “A Consortium at Work.” 

The July 22-24 symposium once again brought together development and advancement professionals to discuss the myriad of challenges faced by HBCUs – and particularly public HBCUs – regarding philanthropy. One of the goals of the symposium is to develop a consortium among public HBCU institutions that will lead to a sustainable model of funding for each of the institutions. 

A major topic of discussion was student philanthropy and how to get students involved in the process of giving back to their university. This was the first year a pre-symposium workshop was conducted in which participants worked on a joint proposal to address potential funding opportunities to more effectively make students more aware of the significance of philanthropy to their university. A joint presentation was made by CASE (Council for Advancement and Support of Education) and Prairie View A&M University to show different trends other institutions are doing to promote student philanthropy. A strategic planning session was also presented by Dr. Michael Boone of Delaware State University.

During the day and a half symposium, participants engaged in dialogue to learn more effective ways to increase funding in areas of corporate giving, annual giving, campaigns, and major gifts. They also learned new ideas of measuring their data to show important trends within their institutions. 

Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., CEO & president of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund, and William F.L. Moses, managing director for education programs at the Kresge Foundation, were the keynote speakers. The symposium concluded with a presentation from Alicia Crittendon of CFRE International on the benefits of having a CFRE certification.

The schools in attendance were: Bowie State University, Cheyney University, Delaware State University, Fort Valley State University, Morgan State University, Mississippi Valley State University, Norfolk State University, Savannah State University, Tuskegee University, University of Maryland Eastern Shore, and University of the District of Columbia.