By Dianne Anderson

Keeping the lines of communication open with parents is what makes good students.

As part of a Parent University Initiative, Dr. Elijah Sims recently spoke to about 150 parents at the Long Beach Unified School District workshops, one of their best and largest events, ever.

Families of color came out strong to talk about their concerns about the process of getting students through high school and college with a degree in hand.

“We focus on how we get in front of their parents, and make sure that when they go to their college and career center, and that we’re there every week,” said Dr. Sims, interim director of the Long Beach College Promise.

Commitment to parent workshops stems from an initiative with Long Beach Community College along with the city’s school district to promote direct parent engagement. There, parents can learn the ins and outs of college campus life, and how their students can receive more services to get college bound.

Along with creating career pathways for students to enter college with as few barriers as possible, he said strengthening parent and community relationships is the priority.

As ambassadors for higher education, Sims said it’s important to stay connected with LBUSD high schools, their largest and closest feeder schools, to share the message of the benefits of going to college.

“With community-based events, it’s how do we get students on the campus? Not just here, but on to college and for them to feel the energy of being in that space,” he said.

Data shows their institutional outreach and support is effective, he said, and if not for LBCC or CSULB campuses, many of their students would not be attending any college at all. For students who go to college, they see significant financial gains.

Next level higher education with HBCUs has also shown significant success, and it’s a seemingly natural pipeline from community colleges. With programs like Umoja Scholars, Sims said they try to get LBCC students invigorated around the HBCU experience, where they visit from 7-10 HBCUs per trip.

“Our [Umoja Scholars] program is specifically designed for African American male and female students. We intentionally create a trip with them across state lines to HBCUs so they can see what that experience is like, and encourage them to go there if they so choose,” he said.

However, he is concerned with the process of undergraduate transfer credits. One big challenge in the past has been that students going after HBCUs think that the 60 units from a community college are enough to make the cut, which isn’t always the case.

“Sometimes students get excited when they get accepted, then they find out some HBCUs don’t want to take 60 transferable credits, which is approximately half of what you need to transfer,” he said.

Aware of the problem, he said the community college chancellor has created a partnership through the HBCU initiative. Black colleges that sign on agree to take LBCC students’ undergraduate credits at 60 units. He feels that the plan is great for HBCUs, and for the students who can complete the program in two to three years.

Whether staying on local campuses or transferring to HBCUs, he said there are a lot of great options for higher education, and students must have choices.

“When you’re trying to educate them you have to educate their village too,” he said. “Now CSULB and LBCC are finding as many opportunities as they can to invite parents onto campus so they can be part of these conversations.”

Financial aid continues to be a well-kept secret, but he feels that families and extended family can help spread the word that education can be free or low cost. Everyone, parents, grandparents, extended family and friends should help share the message throughout the entire village.

“When they’re at home, to remind them, hey there’s a Cal Grant, a Pell Grant, a College Promise grant. If you’re only telling one person, it’s a missed opportunity,” he said.

Lucrative careers and more money are often great motivators, and recent statistics give hope for a brighter future for those attending HBCUs.

Last year, the Biden/Harris Administration reestablished an Executive Order for the White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities, noting that HBCU graduates support upward mobility for Blacks, producing 40% of all Black engineers, 50% of all Black teachers, 70% of all Black doctors and dentists, 80% of all Black judges. Also, the first woman and Black and South Asian Vice President of the United States.

Among several other supports and programs, the Biden-Harris Administration took historic actions, including investing over $7 billion in HBCUs.

Late last year the Annenberg Institute at Brown University found students enrolled in HBCUs were 14.6% more likely to earn a BA degree and have 5% higher household income around age 30 than those who do not enroll in an HBCU.

That report looked at Looking at 1.2 million Black SAT takers, and found HBCUs graduate 50%of Black lawyers, 80% of Black judges, 40% of Black engineers, 40% of Black Congressmembers, 50% of Black teachers at public schools, 50% of Black faculty at predominantly White research universities, and about 27% of the nation’s Black STEM undergraduates.

“These statistics not only demonstrate the breadth of HBCUs, but they highlight that HBCUs are potentially important sources of economic and social mobility for marginalized communities in furtherance of a more equitable America,” the report said.

For information, see:

LBUSD Parent University Workshops, see

https://www.lbschools.net/departments/equity-engagement-partnerships/parent-university/home

For HBCUs,

https://www.lbcc.edu/post/historically-black-colleges-universities

Free College,

https://www.lbcc.edu/post/long-beach-college-promise