National Historically Black Colleges and Universities Week, 2020

Proclamation 10075 of September 11, 2020

National Historically Black Colleges and
Universities Week, 2020

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

For more than 180 years, our Nation's Historically
Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) have exhibited
remarkable excellence in higher education and served as
engines of opportunity and advancement for thousands of
Black Americans. During National Historically Black
Colleges and Universities Week, we celebrate the
achievements of HBCUs and their students and pledge our
continuing support to the nearly 300,000 individuals
currently pursuing their dreams at HBCUs throughout the
United States.

For nearly two centuries, HBCU graduates have
profoundly shaped American life and culture. In science
and technology, HBCU graduates have led the way in
innovation, like engineer and inventor Otis Boykin, who
held more than 20 patents during his lifetime,
including for a wire precision resistor used in radios
and televisions, and for a control unit used in
pacemakers that helped save countless lives. From
thought leaders like Booker T. Washington and civil
rights heroes like Martin Luther King, Jr., to great
legal minds like Thurgood Marshall and renowned authors
like James Weldon Johnson, our Republic is more vibrant
because of HBCUs and their students.

My Administration will always stand beside these
wonderful colleges and universities as they pursue
their mission to provide their students with a high-
quality education. In order to further promote the
success of HBCUs in the years to come, I signed an
Executive Order in February of 2017 on the White House
Initiative to Promote Excellence and Innovation at
Historically Black Colleges and Universities. This
action established the President's Board of Advisors on
HBCUs, and as a result, 32 Federal departments and
agencies now have plans in place to help HBCUs secure
available Federal resources and opportunities.
Additionally, my Administration recently released a
Framework for the Development of a Federal HBCU
Competitiveness Strategy, further facilitating
productive partnerships between HBCU students and
faculty members and public and private-sector entities.

This year, National HBCU Week also coincides with the
150th anniversary of two of South Carolina's great
historically black institutions: Allen University and
Benedict College. Our Nation joins these schools in
celebrating this significant milestone and their
incredible legacies. Last year, at Benedict College, I
was proud to highlight an increase of more than 13
percent in Federal funding for HBCUs under my
Administration. In addition, I signed into law the
FUTURE Act, which reauthorized more than $85 million in
funding for HBCUs, securing permanent funding for our
Nation's historically black institutions and helping
ensure their financial security for future generations.

My Administration has also continued to prioritize
HBCUs during the coronavirus pandemic, and we remain
committed to helping them safely reopen for in-person
classes. As part of this effort, the Coronavirus Aid,
Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, which I
signed into law in March of this year, provided $930
million in higher education emergency relief funds for
HBCUs. During these challenging times, my
Administration is working to meet the needs of these
great institutions and their students

as they seek to safely reopen their doors. We know full
well the important role they will play in our ongoing
national recovery.

HBCUs help empower young Americans from all backgrounds
to achieve their American Dream. This week, we proudly
reaffirm our support for HBCUs and pledge to continue
to promote their success and provide support to their
vital educational mission.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the
United States of America, by virtue of the authority
vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the
United States, do hereby proclaim September 20 through
September 26, 2020, as National Historically Black
Colleges and Universities Week, and further proclaim
September 21, 2020, as National HBCU Colors Day. I call
upon educators, public officials, professional
organizations, corporations, and all Americans to
proudly don institutional colors and observe this week
and day with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and
activities that acknowledge the countless contributions
these institutions and their alumni have made to our
country. I call upon all Americans to observe this week
with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities
and to boldly, joyfully, and proudly don institutional
colors.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
eleventh day of September, in the year of our Lord two
thousand twenty, and of the Independence of the United
States of America the two hundred and forty-fifth.