Cynthia Spence spoke to Duke faculty on November 1, 2018, tackling myths about HBCUs and their students, which she said hamper efforts to recruit students from more diverse backgrounds into Ph.D. programs at predominantly white institutions.
The Duke University Center of Exemplary Mentoring and the Duke Graduate School hosted two faculty conversations on November 1 with Cynthia Spence, director of the United Negro College Fund/Mellon Programs.
Spence, an associate professor of sociology at Spelman College, met with faculty in STEM as well as the humanities and social sciences. She discussed strategies for more effective outreach to and recruitment of undergraduates from historically black colleges and universities for graduate programs at elite, predominantly white institutions like Duke. Spence also tackled a number of myths about HBCUs that tend to hamper such efforts (see graphic below).
Visit The Graduate School website for a recap of Spence’s talk.
