At Howard’s homecoming, students and alumni note progress, continued struggles

In the midst of Howard University’s 101st homecoming celebrations, alumni and administrators are celebrating the progress of the University.  

From new buildings, upgrades to existing facilities, and neighborhood expansion, the university has seen drastic changes, and officials expect more to come.  

“Bethune used to be a parking lot,” said Robert Mitchell, class of 1980.  “Anything past Bethune was the hood. You had to catch the shuttle unless you were from D.C. or a track runner,” he said.  

According to the university’s Real Estate Development and Capital Asset Management page, at least 10 facilities on the campus have received updates ranging from computer labs and conference rooms to new furniture and laundry facilities.  

One of the newest additions to the campus is The Oliver, a mixed-use facility on Georgia Avenue that is both a dorm for some students and offices for faculty and staff.  

“This is the only building where that’s allowed,” said Jenelle Howard, director of development, institutional giving, business and law. Howard is one of the administrators with an office housed in the new building.   

Directly behind The Oliver, Howard Manor’s revitalization delivered “80 permanently affordable homes capped at 60 percent of area median income for 99 years,” according to the development website. Units in Howard Manor are open to alumni and other community members. 

In addition, the university has entered ground-lease agreements with buildings such as Meridian, Slowe, and Carver Halls. According to the development website, these agreements allow the university to retain ownership of the land, while creating affordable housing options for the neighborhood that generate revenue for the school to fund scholarships and operations.

Earlier this year, the Miner Building reopened after a major renovation. Miner houses the School of Education and the Howard University Middle School of Mathematics and Science PCS. 

Also new this semester is Innovation Hub, a makerspace located inside Founders Library.

“There’s not a lot of traffic because people don’t know about it yet,” said Selah Allen, a junior who works at The Hub.  

Allen said that, at times, it’s better than the library for getting work done. “It’s another space for students to have on campus, which I think is very much needed.” 

Students still see issues.

Despite the progress, current students still see issues that the university needs to tackle. Access to healthy food options remains a continuing struggle for students, and choices are increasingly limited.  

“Eating on campus is hard, and they made it inaccessible,” said Steve Texas, a senior at the university. “The only things to eat are the dining hall, McDonalds, and Chick-fil-A.” He said that while progress has been made on campus in general, it’s not enough.  

 “It feels stagnant,” he said.  

 Other students, such as senior Aniyah Genama, said that off-campus options are shrinking as well.  

 “Chipotle, Subway, and Negril are all gone,’ she said.  

 For junior Janeen Louis, the lack of progress isn’t just limited to food.  

“I don’t like the new bookstore vendor because we have less books,” she said. “We used to have study spaces, I don’t see that anymore.” 

The university has added a café to the undergraduate library and upgraded kitchen facilities in some of the dorms. Overall, however, dining options are limited. “The food vendors are hit or miss,” Louis said.  

Even with these challenges, this week, the focus is on homecoming. 

“With everything going on in the world, HBCU homecomings are important,” Howard said. “Howard alum love coming back and pouring into the students,’ she said. 

H. Clay Smith, III, is one of those alum. Smith graduated from Howard in 1981, and from Howard’s law school in 1984. He stood on Fourth Street with three of his classmates reminiscing about his time at Howard.

“One thing about Howard, you can come back even 45 years later and still see someone you know,” he said.