With just 35 students, Morris Brown remains open
Morris Brown College lost its accreditation in 2003. They also lost most of their student population.
But during a time when the future of many HBCUs remains unclear, the institution remains open with just 35 students.
Most buildings on this silent campus are boarded up and abandoned. […] Almost overnight, most fled out of fear their degree would carry no weight. Today, there are just 35 students. Joquala Walker is one of those students. The 26 year-old aspiring singer is the only student in a class called “Promotions in Recorded Music.”
I ask her, “Why Morris Brown?”
“Why not Morris Brown?” she responds. “It deserves a chance just like everybody else does. They want to help.”
Jaquala’s instructor is Makisha Funderburke, who wants to help so badly, she teaches without pay. “I just think Morris Brown should be given a chance,” says Funderburke. “And it’s been done pretty well surviving 10years. A lot of people are wondering ‘Why and how’?”
Morris Brown is in a particularly vulnerable position. It has to survive. If not, its land could go to nearby Clark-Atlanta University, the school that originally donated the land.
Stanley Pritchett, who serves as president for Morris Brown, says “we are upholding a great tradition of former slaves, of people in the early 1900s [who] struggled to make sure this institution will remain open.”
Morris Brown currently needs $30 million to get out of debt.
Should Morris Brown close its doors?
Sound off below!