HL 019: The Crisis at South Carolina State University

A crowd of students, alumni and supporters rally behind South Carolina State University. Photo credit: Jonathan R.Whitfield (@AlwaysPrayin) via Twitter.

This special edition of the HBCU Lifestyle Podcast is dedicated to South Carolina State University as the state’s only public HBCU fights for its survival. Upon South Carolina lawmakers’ proposal for temporary closure due to a reported $17.5 million debt, students, alumni, and supporters are rallying to save S.C. State.

Dr. Charlie Nelms, a frequent contributor to HBCU Lifestyle, joins the podcast to give his perspective on the crisis and how alumni and supporters can help secure the future of the university. Dr. Nelms is a higher education consultant whose career includes a successful stint at North Carolina Central University. It was there that he implemented admission standards that helped raise the average freshman GPA from 2.7 to 3.2 in five years. He also guided the establishment of the first and only Ph.D. program to be offered on campus in 50 years and under Dr. Nelms’ leadership, North Carolina Central achieved specialized accreditation in six programs including membership in the Association of American Law Schools. He is an alumnus of the University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff.

SUPPORT SOUTH CAROLINA STATE

We urge you to consider supporting the students, academic programs, and/or programs of your choice at S.C. State. To do so, please visit the university’s giving page today.

NEWS

“Panel OKs big changes but keeps S.C. State open” (Feb. 19, 2015) | The Times and Democrat

“South Carolina State University Stakeholders Must Get on the Right Side of History, Together” (Feb. 18, 2015) | Huff Post Black Voices

“House committee votes for replacing SC State’s leadership” (Feb. 18, 2015) | The State

“Did South Carolina Sabotage Its Public Historically Black College?” (Feb. 17, 2015) | NPR

Subscribe to the podcast

Subscribe to the podcast through iTunes or via our RSS feed. Be sure to rate the podcast and leave a comment on iTunes.

Download the podcast

Download this episode (right click and save)

2014 Top 10 Podbean Podcast

We’re excited to announce that our HBCU Lifestyle podcast was one of the 10 Most Popular Podcasts in our category for 2014. You can see our podcast featured among the winners at Education.

We want to thank all of our listeners and partners for their support and part in our success. We look forward to continued success in 2015 and welcome your input and feedback.