THE 19% PERCENT
The 19 Percent Initiative is a program dedicated to increasing the enrollment, retention, and graduation of Black men at Howard University. By providing financial assistance, emergency support, and educational resources, the initiative helps students overcome past-due balances and other financial barriers so they can remain enrolled, focus on academic success, and graduate as future leaders.
In 2025 an article from the New York Times showed that At Howard University, Black men currently make up only 19% of the student population.
The 19 Percent Initiative was created to help change that.
This initiative is dedicated to providing resources and securing financial support that helps close the enrollment and retention gap for Black men at Howard. Our goal is to ensure that young men can focus on earning their degrees—not live under the constant fear of being dropped from their classes because of a past-due student account balance.
By removing financial barriers, we are investing in retention, academic success, and graduation.