I graduated from one of the best HBCUs, Spelman College, in 1983. My siblings that attended college also attended HBCUs, as did countless extended family members and friends. And I can attest that there’s nothing quite like the HBCU experience. However, an HBCU is not for every student and or their family, especially regarding financial resources.

Using myself and my son as examples, I had been a licensed Realtor in the state of Georgia for 13 years when the market crashed in 2008, one year before my only child, Joshua, graduated from high school in 2009. That same year, 2008, my average annual income decreased by two-thirds. In conjunction with this, I had been a single mother for 8+ years, so my anxiety and stress levels about how to afford college ran high.

Joshua’s dad and I had saved semi-regularly for his college education before separating. Unfortunately, neither of us continued to do so with any real consistency in the wake of our divorce. In a net, there was very little saved for my son’s post-secondary education. So, with this knowledge, my main concern was that Josh incurred NO or little student loan debt. And while my son had strong academic credentials, they were not strong enough for him to receive significant funds from an HBCU where the competition runs high while attracting some of the best and brightest African American students.

Well aware of our financial situation, both Josh and I started researching schools that were trying to increase their diversity numbers. Coupled with this, a good friend’s husband, also African American, had planted a seed for his alma mater, which became Joshua’s as well – Bowdoin College. Due to the significant grant aid provided by Bowdoin, and with the remaining due (@10%-20% annually) paid by his dad, Josh graduated debt-free from one of the best liberal arts colleges in the country in 2013 – a primarily white institution (PWI). Josh, his dad, and I have NO regrets about his decision to attend Bowdoin.

Another twist of fate is that around 2010, I noticed that more and more of my young real estate clients – recent college graduates could NOT qualify for mortgage loans. Why? Their debt-to-income ratios (DTI) were too high to qualify, primarily due to their monthly student loan payments. My guestimate is that these payments averaged around $700.00+ per month based on an average amount owed of $100K-$200K. Coupled with this, many of them had $300.00-$500.00 per month car notes, credit card debt, and annual salaries of $50K or below.

Armed with this knowledge, it became evident that there would be an entire generation, possibly multiple generations of African American college graduates who likely will never become homeowners. So, I became a cheerleader for students who looked like me and wanted to attend college, to do so while incurring as little student loan debt as possible. Thereafter and with a very slow start, my private college counseling practice was born. I have made it my mission to educate parents and students, minorities in particular about the inherent risks of borrowing huge amounts for college. And as applicable, I advise high achieving, economically disadvantaged students to consider PWIs that are willing to provide significant aid for them to attend and or to consider junior colleges.

Lastly, I will not sit idly by while African American students are chastised, shamed, or ridiculed for choosing not to attend an HBCU. Let’s uplift all students who choose to continue their education after high school – no matter where they choose and can afford to go!