Episode 15: "Hillman or Harvard?" - A Conversation About HBCUs and PWIs w/ Drs. O'Rear


With her powerful and entertaining Coachella performance celebrating HBCU culture, Beyonce recently reinvigorated the HBCU versus PWI debate that resurfaces every few months on black twitter. In this episode, we’ll add to that conversation by interviewing Dr. Eric O’Rear, a HBCU graduate and research economists and Dr. Jennifer Elegbede a black PWI graduate and product development scientist. We each begin by discussing our decision to attend our respective schools (21:36) as well as the bright spots (27:57) and drawbacks (33:10) of HBCU/PWI life. We also tackle the controversial questions of whether HBCUs are still necessary in the 21st century (51:22), whether HBCUs and PWIs are equally rigorous (1:00:15), and whether either type of institution is better able to prepare graduates for the “real world”(1:14:15). We close on a lighter note by discussing HBCU vs. PWI homecomings (1:21:10) and greek life at both institutions (1:24:38).

Other Topics Include:

00:30 - Catch up with Ty and Daphne

2:00 - BhD "Oh Lawd " News Segment

14:10 - Clip from "A Different World"

15:05 - Introduction of the Topic

16:58 - Learn more about our Jennifer and Eric

45:33 - Fundraising at HBCUs and whether black alumni should give more

48:46 - The HBCU graduate school experience

56:40 - HBCU and black success

1:08:05 - Would you choose a PWI or HBCU for your child?

Resources:

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