The Northwest African American Museum (NAAM) will host its HBCU Sunday on Mar. 17 from 2:00 pm to 6:00 pm. The event, which is tailored for middle to high school age students and their families to get important information about HBCUs as premier college options for local students, will be held at NAAM located at 2300 S. Massachusetts Street in Seattle.
Atlanta-based celebrity consultant Brandi Mitchell will be the special guest speaker. She is a notable FAMU alumni and produced the acclaimed feature film “Point and Drive,” about HBCU marching bands. Mitchell is the author of the accompanying book, Point and Drive for Life: The Marching Band Factor – 10 Principles for Playing Big in Life and Achieving Your Goals One Step at a Time, which will be available for purchase and signing following the screening of the film.
Along with the film feature and book signing, HBCU Sunday will showcase HBCU info tables, tours of museum galleries, lightening-speed panel discussions featuring local HBCU alumni, a photo booth, vendors, refreshments, music, and more.
Keely Brown, a proud alumnus of Florida A&M and honorary chair of the event, is excited about this year’s event.
“As an HBCU Alumni, I am excited NAAM is bringing many of the top HBCUs to Seattle,” said Brown. “This will be a time for our youth and parents to experience the pride, heritage, academic achievement and career success that HBCUs bring just as I did many years ago. I am a proud HBCU graduate standing alongside many of Seattle’s top leaders who are also HBCU graduates.”
HBCUs have a long and important history in the United States. Most of these colleges were founded during the Reconstruction era and have sustained a continuous tradition and narrative of leadership and uplift. Independent or church-affiliated black colleges were crucial to educating black leaders and forging black professional networks, particularly during the difficult days of Jim Crow. Some of today’s leading influential figures are graduates of HBCUs.
This long list includes U.S. Senator and presidential candidate Kamala Harris, Florida gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillam, Georgia’s gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams, Starbuck’s COO Rosalind Brewer, authors Toni Morrison and Alice Walker, and countless others. Historical black leaders such as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Thurgood Marshall, Booker T. Washington, Langston Hughes, and others were all graduates of HBCUs.
Partnering organizations include the United Negro College Fund Seattle, Urban League of Metropolitan Seattle, Seattle King County NAACP, One Hundred Black Parents of Seattle, and Northwest Black Pioneers College Tour. The Seattle chapters of HBCU alumni groups include Florida A&M University, Southern University, Spelman College, Tuskegee University, Tennessee State University, Dillard University, Howard University, Hampton University, Morehouse College, and Xavier University. Additionally, event partners include the sororities and fraternities of Seattle’s Divine Nine: Alpha Kappa Alpha, Delta Sigma Theta, Zeta Phi Beta, Sigma Gamma Rho, Alpha Phi Alpha, Kappa Alpha Psi, Omega Psi Phi, and Phi Beta Sigma.
“This youth-centered day brings the entire community together to celebrate the rich legacy of our historically Black colleges and universities,” said Executive Director LaNesha DeBardelaben. “HBCUs, like Black churches, have been pillars of help and hope throughout the generations. NAAM is honored to create a day celebrating these institutions and the Black brilliance they offer to our communities.”
The event is free and open to the public. Alumni to wear their colors to represent their HBCU on that day.
