 private schools don't have it. Everything they catch and everything they kill is what keeps them alive. So you have to understand that first to really appreciate why private HBCUs like Morehouse, Spelman, Howard University get these kind of substantive gifts. Then you go to the conversation about well, what kind of Rolodex do these schools have? What kind of access to big time rich folks do they have where they can have conversations about how can you support our programs? How can you support our students? What does your support look like? How do we navigate what you want to do with your money? That's the big deal about these conversations that result in million dollar gifts. So if Howard, if Spelman, if Morehouse have big time Rolodexes going back generations because they've always been private, because they've always had the support of particularly white philanthropic communities, they're gonna be in line for these gifts. Why? Because money talks to money. Rich people talk to rich people and rich people watch the news. And when they think about places where their money can matter, it's the kind of conversation that they have with each other and the kind of conversation they have with the sector that suggests here's why we'll get what we'll get. And so when we ask the question, well, how come more financially struggling HBCUs can't get the support of big time philanthropists? And this was a huge deal today. Almost $160 million came into the sector today. Eight colleges and universities with direct gifts, $40 million coming to the Thurgood Marshall College Fund United Negro College Fund, we can't look past how historic that is. But if we're gonna continue asking the question about why this happens and why the same kind of schools get these gifts, it starts with the Rolodex. Now, part of that is because you've had a philanthropic record of being able to reach out to rich white folks with money who understand your story and understand how you will be able to best deploy their gift for impact for students and for the institution. The other part of it is you have alumni that work in these high level and high earning industries that can go and make networking and create opportunities with other rich people. So you have to look at programs as well. If you are a small liberal arts institution, your program of strength is teaching. Your most notable alumni are college superintendents, police chiefs, musicians. You're not gonna have an alumni network that is dwelling and moving and working in an orbit of wealth. They're not talking to wealthy people. They're talking to relatively affluent people. They're talking to 100,000 heirs. They're not talking to millionaires and billionaires. That's another key part of it. So when we say how come Morehouse gets everything before Valley can't get anything? Look at the programming of the two institutions. What are their programs of strength? What are the things that they specialize in? And what are the things that our alumni are doing in these areas that dwell in affluent circles? The final thing is, and we really gotta get out of this, this notion of how Morehouse and Spelman get everything and that's a bad thing. It's the same, maybe it is a bad thing. Maybe it is a bad thing for an elite few to get most of the resources. But the truth of the matter is they have the programming, they have the faculty, they have the network and most importantly, they have the story to tell to the Rolodex that gets them the resources. It's one thing for Spelman and Morehouse to have the opportunity to talk to a rich person. It's another thing for them to close the deal. And for everybody who complains about, for everybody who complains about these other institutions don't get any money, you gotta ask yourself one question. Has your institution closed the deal with you to even send in $1,000, let alone $160 million? If they can't convince you to send in a $25, $50 check, what kind of conversation do you think they're gonna be able to have with someone who has millions to burn and is interested in their name being associated with an institution that can market their philanthropy? Never forget philanthropy is all about marketing for the donor. Yes, they wanna help. Yes, they wanna make a difference in the lives of some people who may be underrepresented or have some really tough situations. But this is all about marketing for a donor. What kind of marketing value do you have aligning with Fort Valley State, with Savannah State, with Morris Brown College, when there's an opportunity that your money could walk much further, giving it to Morehouse Espelman? Let's just be realistic about it. How many of us go to a restaurant or go to any kind of business and do so just because if we don't, it's going to go out of business? You go to stuff that you know you're gonna get a good product, you're gonna get good service, or you have brand loyalty to it. Loyalty isn't built off struggle. Brand struggle isn't a quality brand. No one wants to align with a team that's going to lose. No one wants to align with a product that isn't good. And it's not to say that HBCUs aren't good or they have struggling products. That is the perception that is out there. And the question is, how are the schools going about reversing this kind of brand resonance, particularly in affluent communities? So I really, you hate to see it. You hate to see that Howard Morehouse Espelman over the past year can collect almost in excess of $250 million and we are the ones that have a problem with it. And we're saying it should go to other institutions. It should be spread out more evenly among other colleges. That's a good point. But if you start with the conversation, what kind of Rolodex does my school have? What kind of programs do my school have? Does my school have that generates wealthy alumni and attracts other wealthy people to listen to the story about the institution? And moreover, how have they convinced me to even give minimally to the school? If they can't convince you, you're not going to convince a rich white lady. You went to the school, you paid for a degree, you're not financially invested in it, but you want a rich white lady who has never even heard of the institution to be just as invested and just as knowledgeable and just as bought in on your school. How does it work? How does it work? So here's the way that from my opinion is when, I'm just one man, how you change the impact of that. Even, and it doesn't require for you to be a major school because we've seen schools like Edward Waters and I see Dr. Facer, thank you. You tell your story locally, hyper-locally, and you make the case that there is a legacy to be built with support. Don't jump all in and say, we need $20 million right now. You go to somebody that has means, you go to a network of means and say we got an opportunity to do something with $20,000. And once that works, then we got an opportunity to do something with $200,000. When that works, then we got an opportunity to do something with $20,000. Philanthropy is a relationship. It's not, I wanna give some million dollars away. Let me close my eyes, point at a map and see which HBCU I land on. Most of the time when you've seen these gifts, they have come over months and years of conversations with the donor. They don't just happen overnight. They don't happen sight unseen. They happen with some kind of introduction. They happen with some kind of conversation or a series of conversations that have played out over a long period of time and which have culminated in a gift. A lot of people don't know that the gift that came from the Netflix CEO, that wasn't their first gift to the college, to Spelman or Morehouse. It was like their second or third. And it was their largest, but it was their second or third gift of increasing value. They started off with a certain amount that made them comfortable and made them feel valuable as donors. The school cultivated them as donors, gave them appreciation, and they said, now let's step it up. We can do more. We can do more. So we have to have a better understanding of philanthropy, particularly for the private HBCUs, because let me tell you something. Howard is not okay. Morehouse is not okay. Let's just be real about it. Morehouse and Spelman and Howard are strong brands, but they are not financially okay. Morehouse two months ago was furloughing people. And I don't say that to be shady. I don't say that as a distant Morehouse. I'm telling you what their financial reality is. Morehouse needs about $5 million a month to operate. So if you think about $20 million, how many months does that give Morehouse College to run? That gives you a sense of how much money they need. That gives you a sense of how many students they have to enroll. There are no HBCUs that are financially safe, none. If any one of our institutions, for whatever reason, and particularly in the midst of a pandemic, were to lose 100 to 200 students in enrollment, people are getting laid off, programs are getting cut, it is a problem. So never get the impression that because an HBCU is more well known, that it's better off. It is not. We all are better off if the best of our sector, if the best of our sector creates a standard to say, there are other institutions that are like us, maybe not on a national scale, but certainly on a regional scale. Fort Valley State is important to its region. Edward Waters is critically important to Jacksonville. Lemoine Owen is critically important to Memphis. And at a time where people are paying attention to black folks and paying attention to black issues, the last thing that we need to show anybody, particularly ourselves, and more importantly, a donor community that is on the outside watching us, is to show that we are divided about what money can do for our institutions. Cheney is important to Pennsylvania, I appreciate it coach. So let's just be clear about the science and the art of philanthropy, particularly when it comes to HBCUs. You can't expect rich people who are looking to donate, who have never heard of your school to give millions of dollars to your school, sight unseen, no relationship, no brand resonance, no connectivity with why their name and why their business and why their image should be connected to any given HBCU. There has to be relationship building, there has to be an understanding, and more importantly, there has to be an understanding of how that gift is going to transform over years. It's not just I'm giving you $20 million and that's good, go pay some bills. Is my name gonna be on the side of a building? How many students are gonna graduate because of this gift? When those students graduate, what is your plan to get them giving back to the institution? What is your plan to help them become wealthy? If you don't have that in place, you ain't gonna get that money. We wouldn't give anybody the money if somebody wasn't able to articulate a plan. We wouldn't do it. Why are you expecting a billionaire to do it? So, I'm hoping that this is a conversation, not that it should stop, but that we should approach it with a lot more nuance. You're talking about people and circles that aren't in our orbit, but they are looking at our orbit to see how they can be anti-racist. What are the things that we can do to let our schools settle in a space and tell a story that even if it doesn't resonate nationally, we're still showing people that we are valuable to our city, we're valuable to our state, we're valuable to our region, and we'll be able to make a difference that way. But I'm really hoping that the enthusiasm of the younger brothers and sisters out there, every time a gift like this comes through, there's a lot of consternation about why are the same schools always getting it? Why are they always getting the same kind of money? They have the Rolodex to do it. They have perfected the art of telling their story, and they are working with alumni and supporters who dwell in networks of wealth. Those are the key factors. It is beyond football and band, brother, I appreciate that comment. Who do we have on the ground that dwells in areas of wealth and influence? And more importantly, how are we telling a story that lets a donor of any size or any impact know that their gift truly matters? If they can't convince you, they're not gonna convince a rich white lady. Say it one more time, if they can't convince you, they're not gonna convince a rich white lady who is not from the community. So, like I said, I come on every now and then to have these conversations. I'm gonna be doing a lot more of them, but I appreciate you guys' feedback. Again, you can follow us or follow me at Jericarta Senior Twitter, here on Instagram, Facebook, the same. And definitely looking forward to the next one. But let's take it and use it as a foundation for some better understanding of how we can get more transformational gifts coming to each of our HBCUs and making a true difference in the way that we impact the community. I appreciate y'all, thanks.