Mississippi HBCU Merger Proposal Finds Behind-the-Scenes Support
In its continuing expose’ on Jackson State University President Ronald Mason Jr’s effort to spark dialog on merging Mississippi’s HBCUs, the Clarion-Ledger Newspaper has obtained more than 100 e-mails to Mason expressing support for the concept. The emails were relinquished after the university initially denied any emails existed on the subject.
The Clarion-Ledger received copies of more than 150 e-mails Mason sent between October 2009 and early February regarding potential merger talks.
The newspaper recently obtained the e-mails through a public records request. JSU initially said no e-mails existed regarding HBCU mergers.
In addition to positive messages, Mason also fielded disapproving e-mails but was candid, regardless.
“You want your daughter to go to a strong, highly competitive Black school. Is the name so important? Isn’t a HBCU named after a Black Man who is an example of our people’s ability to overcome better than one named after Andrew Jackson,” Mason wrote to JSU alum Kelly Gills.
“Black folk didn’t create Alcorn and Valley; white folk created them to keep us out of their schools,” Mason wrote to JSU alum Robin Gallagher.
Short URL: http://www.hbcudigest.com/?p=7433
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