The Secret’s Out

For those in the know, Claflin University (SC) has always been a bright spot in a landscape of bad news about dwindling resources, decreased state funding and declining enrollment at many colleges that predominantly serve black students.  To the uninformed, the private liberal arts institution in Orangeburg, S.C., is just one of many small, indistinguishable historically black colleges, or HBCUs, struggling to keep their doors open and remain relevant at a time when some question if such colleges, or at least as many of them, are still needed. (There are eight HBCUs in South Carolina alone.) Never mind that Claflin is financially secure, its enrollment numbers stable and its reputation strong.