Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), originally founded to provide Black students access to higher education, remain vital institutions of academic excellence, cultural preservation, and community empowerment today. As City Colleges students explore their transfer options, HBCUs can offer a seamless pathway due to our partnerships with several HBCUs and our likeminded values.
In this week’s Black History, Bold Futures feature, learn how two Kennedy-King College alumni are finding success at HBCUs.
After a semester of online courses, Kennedy-King alumna Me’Lisa Lashon Thimot arrived at Delaware State University in January 2025 amid a snowstorm.
“I called my Delaware State advisor to tell her I made it, and I was starting class in three days,” Me’Lisa recalled. She told me she believed me when I said I’d be here. The way she told me she believed me, I knew in my heart I was in the right place.”
The Englewood native picked Delaware State for its stellar hospitality program. She studied hospitality at Kennedy-King but was unsure about continuing her studies at a four-year institution. If she did continue, she wanted to find a college or university that provided a smooth transition from Kennedy-King.
On her first visit to Delaware State, Me’Lisa found the advisors and instructors to be just as supportive and receptive as her advisor and instructors at Kennedy-King. She was also humbled by the opportunity to attend a university with people who shared her culture, had similar experiences, and to be a part of Black history.
“You see Black history on display here,” Me’Lisa said. “You walk through campus, and you see the Tubman Law Building and the plaques honoring the Tuskegee Airmen. Then you see what the students here are doing on campus, and its history in the making. It’s amazing to be a part of that.”
Me’Lisa’s family history makes attending an HBCU even more gratifying.
“I’m from a family that can trace their lineage back to the slave trade. To have that as my foundation and attend an HBCU means the world to me,” Me’Lisa said.
For Kennedy-King College alumnus Willie Hopkins, attending an HBCU has been a transformative step in defining his future. While at Kennedy-King, Willie was a student-athlete, a member of the Student Government Association (SGA), and an advocate for his community. Encouraged by his mentors, including Dean Allison Rose and his coaches, he began exploring what life after Kennedy-King could look like. That led him to Mississippi Valley State University, an HBCU where he found the support, inspiration, and sense of belonging he needed to grow.
“The culture and the way people interact with each other made me feel at home,” Willie shared.
At Mississippi Valley, he discovered an academic environment that uplifted him, challenged him, and reinforced the values of leadership and service that he cultivated at Kennedy-King. Now Willie is thriving at Mississippi Valley. He’s on the honor roll and is studying Integrated Social Sciences. Looking ahead, he hopes to earn his master’s degree and inspire others to keep pursuing their education, no matter the obstacles.
While Willie is still exploring what he wants his future to look like, attending Mississippi Valley State University, an HBCU, is helping him narrow it down.
HBCUs continue to shape bold futures by fostering Black excellence, preserving history, and empowering students like Me’Lisa and Willie to dream big.
