Description
Book SynopsisThe multifaceted story of the UNCF. Winner, Outstanding Publication Award, American Educational Research AssociationEtched into America's consciousness is the United Negro College Fund's phrase A mind is a terrible thing to waste. This book tells the story of the organization's efforts on behalf of black colleges against the backdrop of the cold war and the civil rights movement. Founded during the postWorld War II period as a successor to white philanthropic efforts, the UNCF nevertheless retained vestiges of outside control. In its early years, the organization was restrained in its critique of segregation and reluctant to lodge a challenge against institutional and cultural racism. Through cogent analysis of written and oral histories, archival documents, and the group's outreach and advertising campaigns, historian Marybeth Gasman examines the UNCF's struggle to create an identity apart from white benefactors and to evolve into a vehicle for black empowerment. The first histo
Trade ReviewA vivid and comprehensive account of the history of the United Negro College Fund.
—
Teachers College RecordReveals the multifaceted story of the organization's effort on behalf of black colleges.
—
Philadelphia TribuneSo many issues are imbedded in the intersection of race and philanthropy, yet so few researchers have tried to probe them. Gasman is to be admired for being bold enough to examine the 'double consciousness' that existed for both Blacks and Whites in leading and supporting the UNCF.
—
Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector QuarterlyA thoughtful, incisive history of the UNCF.
—
Diverse Issues in Higher EducationA solid basis for continued consideration of the intersections of race, philanthropy, and higher education.
—
Journal of American HistoryGasman convinces the reader that agency is complex and compelling, and as a result she reminds the reader that the historical and contemporary ironies of opportunity in this democracy deserve exploration and discussion.
—
Review of Higher EducationEnvisioning Black Colleges is a worthy addition to the larger field of philanthropic history, and it brings new depth to the study of the history of African American higher education in the US.
—
NEA Higher Education JournalMarybeth Gasman has provided an excellent study of the United Negro College Fund.
—
Register of the Kentucky Historical SocietyProfessor Gasman fills an important and neglected gap in the history of black higher education and its ongoing relationship with philanthropy in the mid- to late-twentieth century.
—
History of EducationGasman's book is a very informative history of the founding and the evolution of the UNCF during the period examined. Her use of visual images from UNCF campaign advertisements is powerful, underscoring their strong symbolism reflective of the times and each story deftly told.
—
Oral History ReviewTable of ContentsForeword, by John R. Thelin
Acknowledgments
Introduction
1. Black Colleges and the Origins of the United Negro College Fund
2. Bringing the Millionaires on Board
3. Flirting with Social Equality
4. A Stigma of Inferiority
5. Responding to the Black Consciousness Movement
6. Speaking Out on Behalf of Black Colleges
7. "A Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Waste"
Conclusion
Appendixes
A. Pittsburgh Courier Letter to Black College Presidents
B. Member Colleges, 1944 to Present
C. Executive Directors and Presidents, 1944 to Present
D. National Campaign Chairmen, 1944 to 1979
E. Archives and Oral History Collections
F. Oral History Interviews
Notes
Index
