Contact: Crystal Drake, Office of Strategic Communications
Dr. Mark A. Brown, president and CEO, was the guest speaker for a virtual thought-leadership chat during UNITE @ Noon, a conversation convened by the United Negro College Fund’s (UNCF) Institute for Capacity Building ahead of its fifth annual
UNITE Summit July 19-23 in Atlanta.
The Summit is an annual gathering of presidents, chancellors, faculty, staff, policymakers, philanthropic leaders, students and strategic partners organized around five guiding pillars—Institutional Excellence, Student Success, Research and Innovation, Economic Mobility and Systems Change – and Dr. Brown’s insights highlighted the urgency of this unique conversation for HBCU leaders and advocates focused on what it will take to move HBCUs forward in today’s landscape.
“We rise together and this is a forum for us to grow together,” said Dr. Brown. “Our destinies and abilities to compete are tied to our ability to collaborate and to capitalize on the wealth of intellectual and financial capital represented at this UNCF event.”
Dr. Brown also emphasized the importance of igniting institutional growth because, overall, HBCU endowments remain significantly smaller than those of predominately white institutions (PWIs), trailing PWI endowments by at least 70%. He noted the success of UNCF’s
shared endowment model.
“We can be stronger together. For all of us – this is about the capital,” he said. “We need to raise the money, increase our endowments, to support the infrastructure of our schools and keep our students out of debt so that once they complete college they can enjoy the fruits of their labor and not be burdened by student loans with high interest rates.”
UNCF’s Institute for Capacity Building has stewarded more than $150 million in philanthropic and corporate investments to strengthen the fiscal viability of HBCUs. the five-day convening will feature a signature opening gala and commencement address, dynamic breakout sessions, pre-summit workshops and curated special events—intentionally designed to bring leaders together to exchange ideas on innovation in higher education, build meaningful partnerships and collaboratively advance the future of HBCUs.
© 2026 Tuskegee University
