White House Initiative To Promote Excellence and Innovation at Historically Black Colleges and Universities
This Executive Order creates a White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) located in the Executive Office of the President and led by an Executive Director chosen by the President. Its purpose is to strengthen HBCUs by increasing private-sector and philanthropic investment, improving institutional capacity and infrastructure, expanding workforce and professional-development links, and helping HBCUs compete more successfully for Federal research and other funding. The order also establishes a President’s Board of Advisors on HBCUs housed in the Department of Education to advise the President through the Initiative, requires annual reporting on Federal impact, and revokes a prior HBCU-focused Executive Order and an EPA advisory council. The Initiative coordinates Federal agencies, private employers, foundations, and educational partners to implement the goals in this order and to carry out aspects of the HBCU PARTNERS Act (Public Law 116‑270). Implementation is subject to existing law and the availability of appropriations; the order is advisory in nature and does not create enforceable legal rights.
Key Points
- 1Establishes a White House Initiative on HBCUs in the Executive Office of the President, led by a Presidentially designated Executive Director, to coordinate Federal and non‑Federal support for HBCUs.
- 2Two primary missions: (1) increase private‑sector and philanthropic roles in institutional planning, fiscal stability, infrastructure upgrades (including technology), and student professional development; and (2) enhance HBCUs’ ability to serve students by implementing the HBCU PARTNERS Act, promoting innovation and excellence, building public‑private research and program partnerships, improving information and best practices, and addressing student success and campus modernization.
- 3Directs agencies to assist the Initiative (consistent with law) and to bear their own participation costs; includes promoting HBCUs’ competitiveness for Federal research and development funding and removing barriers to Federal funding (in coordination with USDA and State governments).
- 4Creates the President’s Board of Advisors on HBCUs within the Department of Education (structured under section 5 of the HBCU PARTNERS Act), made up of leaders from philanthropy, business, education, finance, entrepreneurship, innovation, private foundations, and current HBCU presidents; DOE will provide administrative support subject to appropriations and applicable law.
- 5Accountability and changes: the Initiative’s Executive Director must deliver an annual progress report to the President; Executive Order 14041 (2021) is revoked; the EPA Administrator must terminate the Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Minority Serving Institutions Advisory Council within 14 days.