Spotlight

Delaware State University and the Thurgood Marshall College Fund have announced the creation of the TMCF-DSU Joint Center for HBCU Non-Traditional Completion. The center will be housed on the campus of Delaware State University.

The center will take lessons learned from a three-year pilot program serving near completers and adult learners, and support other HBCUs in their efforts to recruit and support adult learners who have some college but who have not earned their degrees. In addition to non-traditional students, the center will bring together lessons on non-traditional college completion pathways, including online completion and stacked credentials.

“Since HBCUs serve a more diverse group of students, we have a collective knowledge about how to support first-generation students, adult learners, and students whose journey to graduation is different from what the education system considers to be a traditional student,” said Harry Williams, president and CEO of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund. “The secret is that HBCUs have always served these students. This Joint Center for HBCU Non-Traditional Completion will bring together best practices and provide consultative services from within the HBCU community – to support other HBCUs.”

“As a network of schools, HBCUs must support each other with lessons learned and innovative strategies,” added Tony Allen, president of Delaware State University. “Many HBCU students in the past have stopped out of college, yet consider themselves part of the HBCU community. Our goal is to help them get across the finish line and earn their degrees, so that they can increase their earning potential and advance in their careers.”