editor’s notes Intrinsic Value, Transformational Investment
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n an editorial published in The Chronicle of Higher Education, President John Silvanus Wilson Jr. ’79, then executive director of the White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities, recounted the story of how Booker T. Washington, an exslave, delivered a $350-million speech in New York’s Madison Square Garden Concert Hall on April 14, 1903. He went on to explain that because of Washington’s appeal on behalf of historically black colleges, Andrew Carnegie, who was among a handful of the wealthiest philanthropists in the country at the time, responded by raising Tuskegee Institute’s endowment by $600,000—or the equivalent of nearly $350 million today. Wilson called this gift a transformational investment, saying: “While African American wealth, if properly cultivated, could help make a meaningful difference for HBCUs, the unmet challenge of fundamentally transforming some of the more investment-worthy colleges requires a multiracial coalition of American philanthropists who recognize the value of those institutions to our shared American future.” Yet, we know that in the philanthropic community, one of the key indicators of a college’s investment worthiness is the caliber and diversity of its current supporters. In this issue of Morehouse Magazine, we highlight two recent gifts that underscore the value of a Morehouse education, while providing scholarship support for deserving students. Morehouse is the first HBCU to partner with the Stamps Family Charitable Foundation, one of the nation’s most renowned merit scholarship programs. For the next four years, six Stamps Scholars will be chosen in the spring to receive full-tuition and room-and-board scholarships, along with a $10,000 enrichment fund that can be used for study abroad; research, academic, or co-curricular conferences; research or non-profit internships; and computer or research equipment purchases. Foundation founders Penelope W. Stamps and E. Roe Stamps IV attribute Morehouse’s “commitment to global leadership training and service learning” as mission-driven attributes that make the College a good-fit partner institution. The gift from the Stamps Foundation totals more than $2.1 million. (See story on page 22.) This year, 10 South African young men from Burundi and Zimbabwe joined the Morehouse freshman class as Andrew Young International Scholars on fully funded four-year scholarships provided by benefactor Zimbabwean entrepreneur and Morehouse trustee Strive Masiyiwa. Funded through Trustee Masiyiwa’s social investment subsidiary, Capernaum Trust, for the next five years, his commitment of $6.4 million will make it possible for 40 South African students to matriculate at Morehouse. (See story on page 24.) Trustee Masiyiwa said that he expects to see each of these young men return to Africa as a “much more confident, self-assured, more complete young man who is not struggling to find out who he is in the world.” As we prepare to welcome President Barack Obama as the 129th Commencement speaker on May 19, Morehouse can proudly pronounce that for nearly 150 years, what Trustee Masiyiwa expects and what the Stamps recognize and support is what continues to make Morehouse Morehouse and indeed worthy of investment.
Toni O’Neal Mosley Executive Editor Note: You can read President John Silvanus Wilson Jr.’s editorial, “Wealthy Americans, Meet Historically Black Colleges, Again,” at http://chronicle.com/article/Wealthy-Americans-Meet/135536/.
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Morehouse Magazine
John Silvanus Wilson Jr. ’79 President Willis B. Sheftall ’64 Interim Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs Phillip Howard ’87 Vice President for Institutional Advancement Toni O’Neal Mosley Executive Editor and Director of Public Relations Vickie G. Hampton Editor Add Seymour Jr. Communications Writer
contributors Contributing Writer Christian L. Saint-Vil In the News Elise Durham Class Notes Julie Pinkney Tongue Contributing Photographers Philip McCollum James Robinson Add Seymour Jr. Graphic Design Glennon Design Group Administrative Assistant Minnie Jackson Web Manager Kara Walker Morehouse Magazine is published by Morehouse College, Office of Communications, Division of Institutional Advancement. Opinions expressed in Morehouse Magazine are those of the authors, not necessarily of the College. Letters and Comments: Letters must be one typed page in length and signed. Please include complete contact information. Send to: Morehouse Magazine Editor, Morehouse College, Office of Communications, 830 Westview Dr., S.W., Atlanta, GA 30314 E-mail: morehousemageditor@morehouse.edu Fax: 404-215-2729 Change of Address and Class Notes: http://giving.morehouse.edu/NetCommunity Morehouse College is the nation’s largest liberal arts college for men. The College is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools and is a member of the Atlanta University Center consortium of four schools. Morehouse does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, age, handicap, or national or ethnic origin in the recruitment and admission of its students, in the administration of its educational policies and programs, or in its staff, as specified by federal laws and regulations.
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