Grant funding for HBCUs that received bomb threats available
28th March 2022 · 0 Comments
By Ryan Whirty
Contributing Writer
The U.S. Department of Education joined with Vice President Kamala Harris on March 16 to announce that historical Black colleges or universities that received bomb threats recently are eligible for grant funding to bolster their campuses’ response to such threats of violence.
Two New Orleans universities, Dillard University and Xavier of Louisiana, were among the dozens of HBCUs across the country that were victimized by bomb threats beginning in January and peaking in February, which is Black History Month.
According to media reports last week, law-enforcement investigators have identified several suspects in the case, all juveniles, who investigators believe were racially motivated in their actions.
Institutions that received bomb threats are eligible for grants through the Project School Emergency Response to Violence (Project SERV) programs. According to the DOE, Project SERV grants are available in amounts from $50,000 to $150,000 per school, but funding is limited.
“The recent bomb threats experienced by HBCUs have shaken students and fractured their sense of safety and belonging, which are critical to their academic success and wellbeing,” said U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona in announcing the grants. “We, at the Department of Education, recognize how these threats evoke a painful history of violence against Black Americans in this country that is especially traumatizing to HBCU students, faculty and staff. Today’s announcement will improve access to Project SERV grants for HBCUs as these institutions work to address students’ mental health needs, shore up campus security, and restore learning environments so that they can get back to doing what they do best – educating the next generation of great leaders.”
Representatives from Xavier and Dillard welcomed the news of possible financial assistance to help their respective campuses tackle the traumatic effects of bomb threats.
Xavier University of Louisiana President Dr. Reynold Verret told The Louisiana Weekly that his school plans on applying for the grants.
“We are grateful for the opportunity that Vice President Kamala Harris and the U.S. Department of Education, and other members of the administration have extended to Xavier and to other HBCUs that were recently affected by threats seeking to disrupt our mission of educating future changemakers,” Verret said.
“If granted funding through Project SERV, we will be able to explore new avenues to safeguard and secure our campus communities and to ensure educational excellence and expanded resources for mental health and healing for our students, who are indeed a blessing to the nation,” he added.
Dillard University Vice President for Institutional Advancement Dr. Marc A. Barnes said DU is definitely interested in the Project SERV grants and that the funding has the potential to assist Dillard following the bomb threat it received.
“Dillard University is pleased that the Biden administration is taking the HBCU bomb threats seriously,” Barnes said. “We look forward to learning more about the grant opportunity announced by Vice President Harris and we hope that HBCUs will be able to secure funding to better protect its campuses.”
Mattie Harris, the president of the Dillard University Student Government Association, said DU’s student body has been struggling to come to grips with the bomb threats. Harris, a senior majoring in Social Work, said Dillard students are “upset, confused and frightened” by the threat Dillard received, adding that she and other Dillard students have been upset the lack response to the bomb threats, especially by the media.
Harris said that although Dillard has “a very resilient student body” in the face of both the bomb threat and the failure of those in power to adequately respond to such traumatic crimes, she said that general society’s indifference has also been painful.
“Students are remaining steadfast in their academics, seeking counseling services and relying on fellowship with friends to cope and balance life, college and the recent threats on our community,” Harris told The Louisiana Weekly. “Though frightening, we were not surprised at the bomb threat as many of our sister institutions had received them. Nevertheless, it still hurts and makes us feel unsafe at our university. We and other HBCU students across the country are ready for the threats to end.”
Harris said that the announcement of the Project SERV grant program comes after a series of recent governmental actions that finally start to address the systemic racism that enables violence, and threats of violence, against African-American institutions.
Since the beginning of the year, both chambers of Congress at long last passed federal anti-lynching legislation, and the U.S. House of Representatives approved the Crown Act, legislation that prohibits discrimination against someone based on hair texture or hairstyle associated with a race or ethnicity.
Harris said those two acts “display the desperate need for public condemnation and support for consequences for horrendous acts of prejudice,” calling the bills “just a few of many small victories that are occurring in society to help people of color coexist.”
Harris said that such positive steps, along with the Project SERV grant program, are certainly encouraging and providing hope to students at Dillard about their futures, and the future of the country.
“In terms of hope, hope has always been at the forefront of any case or situation where bigotry exists,” she said. “Hope for a better future, a different outcome or a world where it’s easy to coexist.” However, Harris added, there’s still lots of work to be done, even after such encouraging achievements.
“We still have a ways to go when we delve deeper into social, economic and political issues such as poverty, food [and] technology insecurities, gentrification, infrastructure [and] low funding for public school systems,” she said.
“As a society, we can work to resolve these issues that are adversely impacting people of color and those from historically underserved communities. Real change will come when there is equitable access and opportunities for all people to have a chance at the ‘American dream,’” Harris said.
This article originally published in the March 28, 2022 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.
