News Archive - Page 28 of 40 - Cheyney University of Pennsylvania

For elite students, education is free at Cheyney University

THORNBURY—Upper Darby’s Rachel Ezeamaka is headed as a first-year student to Cheyney University and she won’t have to deal with the major burden of having to pick up the tab for her education.

The prospective Pre-Med Biology Major who hopes to become a physician is getting a free ride through undergrad school at Cheyney and then through med school.

Like any incoming freshman, she is thrilled.

“I’ll be fine,” said the Arch Bishop John Carroll High School graduate. “I’m so excited to meet friends and have a new life.

“It’s a really good offer and you can’t beat it.”

Ezeamaka was offered $4.7 million in scholarships overall and chose Cheyney, which is the nation’s oldest historically black college. She saw her late father deal with almost $200,000 in student debt. If she maintains a 3.0 grade point average, she should graduate debt free.

Since the July 1 state budget was adopted, $3.98 million will go to the Keystone Honors Academy to provide scholarships for elite Cheyney students. The amount, which also includes funding from the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency marks a substantial increase over last year’s $2.3 million allocation, reads a university release.

Jeffrey Jones, executive director of enrollment management, said that so far 74 students are enrolled in the program. Cheyney is on the rebound with a new president, former businessman Aaron Walton, who expects to balance the books this year. Cheyney attendance had slumped to fewer than 500 students and the university was operating in the red.

Jones said the university was always a little hesitant to go after the finest students, but said that this year’s class is “literally off the charts.”

The typical Keystone recipient has a GPA of 3.58 and an SAT score of 1110, Jones said. Walton said through a press release that he expects the budget to balance and for enrollment to increase.

An upcoming decision by the Middle State Commission on Higher Education will determine whether the school will maintain accreditation. Money has been a major issue.

Walton has also said that he believes the university will meet its goal of a balanced budget for the just-ended fiscal year.

“This very generous allocation will enhance our ability to continue to attract high performing students,” said Walton. “The scholarship funding comes at a great time with the university enjoying a resurgence in academics, culture and support.

“Now we’ll be able to work through the waiting list of students who committed to attending Cheyney and who will benefit from the full scholarship,” Walton noted. “We’ll also be able to recruit additional highly qualified students.”

“This additional funding will enable us to award scholarships to our high-ability continuing students who qualified as they entered Cheyney, but were unable to receive scholarships due to the lack of sufficient funding,” Jones said. “This increase will make a huge difference.”

“The scholarship funding for the new fiscal year has no bearing on Cheyney’s previously stated commitment to record a balanced budget in the just completed fiscal year,” reads the release. “Walton remains optimistic that when those numbers are reconciled over the next several weeks, the university will have met its financial goals.”

Bill Rettew, The Daily Local News

New PA Budget Sends Nearly $4M in Scholarships to Cheyney University’s Keystone Honors Program

(CHEYNEY, PA – July 1, 2019) – The new Pennsylvania state budget that went into effect today contains great news for incoming students at Cheyney University, the nation’s oldest Historically Black College (HBCU). The budget includes $3.98 million for the Keystone Honors Academy, a program that provides full scholarships to eligible Cheyney students.

The Keystone Honors Academy is the only full scholarship program that the PA State System of Higher Education provides.

The amount, which also includes funds from the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency (PHEAA) marks a substantial increase over last year’s $2.3 million allocation.

“This very generous allocation will enhance our ability to continue to attract high performing students,” said Cheyney President Aaron A. Walton. “The scholarship funding comes at a great time with the university enjoying a resurgence in academics, culture and support.”

Cheyney’s waiting list includes students who qualified for the program but were now awarded the scholarship for the upcoming fall semester because the previously available funds had been awarded.

“Now we’ll be able to work through the waiting list of students who committed to attending Cheyney and who will benefit from the full scholarship,” President Walton noted. “We’ll also be able to recruit additional highly qualified students.”

Added Executive Director of Enrollment Management Jeffery Jones, “This additional funding will enable us to award scholarships to our high-ability continuing students who qualified as they entered Cheyney, but were unable to receive scholarships due to the lack of sufficient funding. This increase will make a huge difference.”

The scholarship funding for the new fiscal year has no bearing on Cheyney’s previously stated commitment to record a balanced budget in the just completed fiscal year. Walton remains optimistic that when those numbers are reconciled over the next several weeks, the university will have met its financial goals.

Cheyney, Lincoln universities receive awards from UNCF

The United Negro College Fund recently announced that it has awarded Cheyney University and Lincoln University, two of the nation’s oldest historically Black universities, $30,000 each in unrestricted cash and additional $30,000 to provide scholarship support to help close out their fiscal years.

“We’re thankful for this partnership with UNCF and Cheyney University because these funds provide much-needed scholarships that benefit Lincoln University students in need,” Lincoln President Brenda Allen said in a statement.

The money was awarded after the seventh annual Philadelphia Mayor’s Masked Ball had its best year yet, raising $736,178. The ball, held in March at the Pennsylvania Convention Center, is a signature fundraising event providing support to numerous students attending UNCF-member colleges and universities and nearly 1,100 other colleges across America.

“We’re delighted and we feel that the decision to highlight both Cheyney and Lincoln as the oldest HBCUs in the United States is mutually beneficial because not only does it benefit us but also UNCF as it highlights some of their efforts in this region,” said Cheyney President Aaron A. Walton. “We will be using $30,000 for the researchers campaign that the alumni is sponsoring and the other $30,000 will be used for our student scholarships.”

Since its inception in 1944, UNCF has raised more than $4.8 billion and helped more than 450,000 students earn college degrees. The organization is the nation’s largest private scholarship provider to minority group members, according to the UNCF website.

“This is the first time that Lincoln and Cheyney have gotten support directly based on the work that we’re doing in Philadelphia, as both universities are not UNCF member institutions,” said Fred D. Mitchell, UNCF vice president of development for the Mid-Atlantic/Midwest Division.

“UNCF supports 37 private HBCUs, and Lincoln and Cheyney are public universities,” he said. “However, we thought it was important to form a partnership with both universities as their work is in line with what UNCF does, and all sides are working to support young African Americans getting a college education.”

Mitchell said the relationship between UNCF and Lincoln and Cheyney is a great opportunity for everyone involved.

“The money awarded will be able to help the kids who might not have the resources to go to school otherwise,” he said.

Chanel Hill, WHYY

Cheyney president optimistic budget will be balanced by month’s end

With less than a month remaining before Cheyney University must balance its budget, President Aaron Walton expressed optimism that the beleaguered school will make its deadline.

“We are making significant progress with our Resurgence Fundraising Campaign, and the effort is in line with our expectations. I remain confident that the university will successfully balance its budget by June 30,” Walton said on Monday. “But in order to do so, we continue to count on the support of generous donors. The University will be making a public statement about the Resurgence Campaign in the coming weeks. In the meantime, we are preparing and very excited to welcome our incoming freshman class.”

If Cheyney does not balance its budget by June 30, the nation’s oldest historically Black college could lose its accreditation. If Cheyney balances its budget, the school, which is part of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education, must then present a report to the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, the regional accrediting body, detailing its progress. Then, in November, the Middle States Commission will again evaluate its accreditation.

And if Cheyney balances its budget for the next three years, the state will forgive $30 million of the $43 million it owes to the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education.

Walton, who took the helm of the struggling university in 2017, said in March that Cheyney was facing an approximately $4 million deficit.

Cheyney has already received a two-year extension from the commission to correct its finances and the university has been on probation since 2015.

Earlier this year, Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education Chancellor Dan Greenstein said the university faced a $10 million deficit and would most likely lose its accreditation this year because it was not in a position to balance its budget.

During a meeting with The Philadelphia Tribune’s editorial board, Walton said Aug. 15 was the next deadline, when the university must detail what became of the $29.5 million in financial aid it administered between 2011 and 2013.

Representatives of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education and state Department of Education did not return calls seeking comment.

Robert Bogle, the president of The Philadelphia Tribune, is the chairman of the university’s council of trustees.

State leaders rallied around Cheyney this year and the university planned to conduct an extensive outreach to alumni and other partners.

But some see a lack of urgency on the university’s part.

“There’s definitely a disconnect” between the school and alumni, said Jermaine Colon, a 2007 Cheyney graduate.

Colon, a 39-year-old West Philadelphia resident, said alumni are aware that Cheyney is facing some problems, but know little of the details. Cheyney lacks a robust and transparent campaign, particularly on social media, to explain what the university is facing, Colon said.

“There’s an old saying that goes, faith without works goes dead,” said Colon, a member of a regional alumni chapter. “So they want this school to have this miraculous financial turnaround, but they have to still put in the work and get their hands dirty.”

Colon said the regional alumni chapter is expected to launch a fundraising campaign for the school in coming months.

The Cheyney Foundation, a nonprofit that supports the university, is running a campaign called The Resurgence.

The only mention of Cheyney’s fundraising efforts on its website are a handful of links at the bottom of its homepage calling for donations.

Cheyney’s issues, however, are not indicative of the state of HBCUs across the country, said Ivory Toldson, professor of counseling psychology at Howard University and former executive director of the White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities under then-President Barack Obama.

HBCUs nationally have maintained a steady enrollment, with many thriving, Toldson said. Those schools attract students through robust educational, graduate and professional programs and maintain endowments.

Toldson suggested that issues at the state, which oversees Cheyney among other institutions, were the source of some of Cheyney’s issues.

“If I was investigating, that’s where I would investigate first,” Toldson said, referring to the state.

Years of financial struggles and declining enrollment have impacted nearly every area of the campus, which straddles Chester and Delaware counties.

Enrollment this school year sank 38% compared to the previous year, dropping from 755 students to 469 enrollees — the steepest fall in enrollment among the 14 state-run colleges. In May, 168 students received diplomas from the university.

In recent years, the university has cut the number of majors from 19 to 15. Administrators were considering cutting more.

Last year was the first since 1914 that Cheyney did not have a football team. The school dropped out of the NCAA Division II for the 2018-19 school year and lost its membership in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference, which the school had held since 1951.

But enrollment is rising, said Jeff Jones, executive director of enrollment management at the school.

In fall 2018, Cheyney had 103 new freshman and 40 transfer students. As of Friday, 235 students have paid deposits to enroll in the school’s fall semester and 55 students received Keystone Scholarships, which are fully paid four-year scholarships given to high-achieving students.

The university has bumped up admission standards, focused on high-performing students and recruited at more high schools, which Jones credited with a renewed interested in the school heading into the fall semester.

“Before, folks didn’t believe you could attract those types of students to the school, but you can,” he said. “Cheyney University didn’t focus as a whole on trying to attract high-ability students.”

As one of two HBCUs in Pennsylvania with a long history, Cheyney occupies a unique space in the history of Black community, Toldson said. Its loss, he added, would be a huge disappointment.

“Cheyney is part of that rich Black legacy of Pennsylvania,” he said, “that meant so much to the entire nation.”

Tribune staff writer John N. Mitchell contributed to this report.

The Philadelphia Tribune

PA State System of Higher Education Chancellor Greenstein to Meet with Students at Cheyney University

What: On Friday, April 26, the chancellor of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE), Dan Greenstein, will hold a forum with students and staff at Cheyney University. PASSHE is a state agency that oversees the 14 state-owned colleges and universities, including Cheyney, the nation’s oldest historically black institution of higher education.
The university is in the process of a dramatic turnaround in its financial stability and academic standards, led by university president, Aaron Walton. The visit presents an opportunity for Chancellor Greenstein to see and hear about the progress first-hand.
The university has also undertaken a fundraising campaign called Resurgence aimed at ensuring that the fiscal year ending June 30 has a balanced budget.

Who:
 Dan Greenstein, Chancellor, PA State System of Higher Education
 Cheyney University President Aaron Walton
 Cheyney University staff and students

When: Friday, April 26, 2019 at 2:30 p.m.

Where: Cheyney University – Marian Anderson Auditorium – Cheyney, PA

Essence Editor-in-Chief Emerita and National CARES Mentoring Movement Founder Susan L. Taylor to Deliver Commencement Address at Cheyney University

(Cheyney, PA – March 15, 2019) – Susan L. Taylor, who served as Editor-in-Chief of Essence Magazine for 27 years and now runs the nation’s fastest-growing mentor-recruitment organization, will give this year’s commencement address at Cheyney University of Pennsylvania.

“We are extremely honored that Susan Taylor accepted our invitation,” said Cheyney University President Aaron A. Walton. “This is an individual who gave up her position in one of the highest echelons of journalism to devote her life to building an organization whose mission is to break the cycle of intergenerational poverty among African Americans. She is an ideal messenger to address our graduates as they prepare to make their impact on society.”

Taylor describes her organization – the National CARES Mentoring Movement – as “a community transformation crusade dedicated to changing the predictable futures defined for our young men and women who are struggling along the margins and living with the indignity of poverty.”

“For more than a century Cheyney’s leadership has worked with passion and dedication to educate and create the best post-graduation successes for its students,” Taylor said. “A mentee of mine, who was in deep crises, is among the multitudes of young people who have benefited from the nurturing support the university provides its students. It is my honor to return to Cheyney to congratulate and inspire the May 2019 graduating class.”

The National CARES Mentoring Movement got its start in 2005 when Taylor founded Essence CARES. It has grown to now operate in 58 cities, including a chapter in
southeastern Pennsylvania. Local CARES Affiliates recruit, train and deploy caring adults to schools and a wide variety of youth-serving organizations that are desperate for Black volunteers to serve as mentors, tutors, reading buddies and role models. To date, National CARES has recruited more than 130,000 mentors, working with organizations such as Big Brothers Big Sisters and the Boys and Girls Clubs of America.

At Essence magazine, Taylor not only served as chief editor, but also authored the magazine’s most popular column, In the Spirit—the first in a mainstream U.S. magazine to champion spiritual growth as a pathway to total well-being and a meaningful life.

Under her guidance, the publication’s readership soared to eight million in the U.S., the Caribbean, Canada, the U.K. and English-speaking Africa nations, and the Essence brand expanded into book publishing, broadcasting, eyewear, hosiery and its own fashion catalogue. But nowhere outside the magazine did she bring people and Black culture together as beautifully as with the launching of the Essence Music Festival and its famous empowerment seminars.

“I plan to tell the Cheyney graduates to have faith in the goodness of life, and to realize that when we strive to be kind and loving and true to our purpose, and leave our world better than we found it, everything we need to succeed in doing the work of life is given us,” said Taylor.

Taylor’s genius has not gone unrecognized. She is the first and, sadly, she laments, the only African American woman to be recognized by the Magazine Publishers of America with the Henry Johnson Fisher Award—the industry’s highest honor—and the first to be inducted into the American Society of Magazine Editors Hall of Fame.

Word that Taylor will be addressing the 2019 graduating class comes at a very exciting time for Cheyney. The university recently announced partnerships with Epcot Crenshaw, Jefferson University and Starbucks that will bring new programs and investment to the 275-acre campus that straddles Delaware and Chester Counties. In addition, to the partnerships and negotiations over a potential hotel-conference center, academic admission standards have been raised, attracting a wave of applications from high achieving students.

“We’re transforming the trajectory of the university,” President Walton said. “It’s not just change. We are totally redesigning the university to meet 21st Century standards.”
The commencement ceremonies are scheduled for Saturday, May 11, 2019 at 10:00 a.m. in the Marian Anderson Music Center Auditorium.

About Cheyney University
Cheyney University is America’s oldest and first institution of higher learning for African Americans. It was founded on February 25, 1837 at a time when African Americans were not allowed to study at other universities. Although its current student population is predominantly African American, Cheyney University today receives students from
various races, nationalities and cultures who are seeking a quality higher education. As America’s first HBCU (Historically Black College or University) it is considered a national treasure.
Read more at www.cheyney.edu.