Press Releases

CBC Launches HBCU Tour #CBCOnTheYard

Goal of Tour is to Listen, Involve, and Mobilize Students to Effect Change in Communities

Washington, DC, April 3, 2017

Today, the Chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC), Congressman Cedric Richmond (D-La.), announced that the CBC has launched a tour of historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs), #CBCOnTheYard. The goal of the tour is to listen, involve, and mobilize students to effect change in their communities and to get their thoughts on the direction of the country and issues that affect their lives. The CBC has already hosted tour events at Morehouse College and Xavier University, and will hold the next tour event today at Howard University with Representatives Bobby Scott (D-Va.), Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.), Barbara Lee (D-Ca.), and Hank Johnson (D-Ga.). Congressman Meeks is a Howard University alum. 

“We often think that young people have a lot to learn from us, but we also have a lot to learn from them, especially now when they’re the folks launching and leading Black Lives Matter and other grassroots movements,” Chairman Richmond said. “If we’re going to create a more perfect union for Black families, we have to listen, involve, and mobilize young, Black leaders, and ground zero for many of them is an HBCU.”

HBCUs are important contributors to the strength of the nation, which is why fighting for these institutions continues to be one of the CBC’s highest priorities. Among African Americans, 13 percent of CEOs, 40 percent of engineers, 40 percent of health professionals, 50 percent of teachers, 50 percent of non-HBCU professors, 50 percent of lawyers, 80 percent of judges, and 90 percent with bachelor’s degrees in STEM subjects graduated from an HBCU. Additionally, a countless number of African-American political leaders, including past and present CBC members, graduated from an HBCU. In fact, 40 percent of the CBC’s current members graduated from one or more HBCUs.

Past and Future Tour Dates


Morehouse College
February 16

  • Chairman Cedric Richmond (D-La.)
  • Congressman Sanford Bishop (D-Ga.)

Xavier University
February 21

  • Chairman Cedric Richmond (D-La.)
  • Assistant Democratic Leader James E. Clyburn (D-S.C.)

Howard University
April 3

  • Congressman Bobby Scott (D-Va.)
  • Congressman Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.)
  • Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-Ca.)
  • Congressman Hank Johnson (D-Ga.)