Historically Black College Leadership & Social Transformation

How Past Practices Inform the Present and Future

Edited by:
Vickie L. Suggs, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Published 2014

Historically Black College Leadership & Social Transformation Little research has been conducted to identify aspects of effective social transformation leadership in American college and university leadership. The authors of this book argue that while much less has been done at predominantly White institutions to practically apply the processes of social transformation as a leadership model, HBCUs have historically relied upon strategies of social transformation as they sought to build and sustain the distinct mission of their institutions that enhance college access, inclusion, and choice.

This publication is intended to serve as a departure from the examination of the typology of transformation leadership in the private sector and, instead, view this leadership model through the lens of higher education. The authors’ intent is to focus on institutional leadership at historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) and provide a deeper understanding of the Social Change Model and how it can be successfully situated as a conduit for realizing and sustaining the mission of Black colleges from perspectives of the past, present, and future.

CONTENTS
Acknowledgments. Preface, Vickie L. Suggs. Section I: Black College Presidents During the 1930s–1960s. Influences of Social Gospel: The Institutional Leadership of Benjamin Elijah Mays and Robert Maynard Hutchins, Vickie L. Suggs. Mary McLeod Bethune: The Significance of Rhetorical Action in the Development of a Black College Leader, Vickie L. Suggs. James Edward Shepard and North Carolina Central University: In Service to the State, Vickie L. Suggs. Section II: Case Study of a Contemporary Black College President. Black College Presidents, Institutional Leadership, and the Use of Social Media: A Case Study of Philander Smith College, Vickie L. Suggs and Jennifer E. Tomon Stephens. Section III: Black College Sustainability. HBCU Pipeline to College Access: Considerations for the Twenty-First Century, Torry L. Reynolds, Vickie L. Suggs, and Shayla Mitchell. Civic Engagement and Critical Consciousness: Culture and Traditions of Liberal Arts Education, Malika Butler and Vickie L. Suggs. Conclusion, Vickie L. Suggs. Appendix: List of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). About the Contributors.