UNCF Gray's Way

Black Issues in Higher Education, Sept 30, 1999 by Ronald Roach

"That's when the community worked well together," Blakey says.

By the early 1990s, UNCF had grown even stronger as a force in Washington. Naming an influential former U.S. congressman to the helm in 1991 only strengthened this new emphasis on policy.

Prior to being named president of the UNCF, Gray held the position of House Majority Whip, the third-ranking leadership spot in the U.S. House of Representatives. It often was suggested that he would have a shot one day at becoming Speaker of the House.

Then, unexpectedly in June 1991, Gray announced he was leaving Congress to take over the UNCF. The news media speculated he was resigning from Congress to avoid a messy investigation by the U.S. Justice Department over alleged improprieties in his congressional office.

Gray denied such speculations. He responded that instead of devoting the years necessary to become House Speaker, he'd rather have a direct impact on higher education as the UNCF president. Running UNCF would be a logical place for his talents and experience, he reasoned.

In 1994, almost three years after Gray's arrival, The College Fund moved its headquarters here to northern Virginia. Not only did the move offer a cheaper alternative to high-rent, high-salary Manhattan and convenient access to major airports, it offered closer proximity to D.C. policy makers.

In the Higher Education Act reauthorization of 1992, UNCF had proposals included throughout the legislation. Under Gray, UNCF set out to create higher education programs, such as the Institute for International Public Policy that would widen the UNCF's influence throughout higher education.

In addition to lobbying Congress, Gray placed a high priority on securing federal contracts for the UNCF and its member schools, says Christa Beverly, director of the UNCF government affairs from 1992 to 1996.

The working relationship among the Black college groups hasn't been ideal. Beverly says the relationships between the UNCF and the other Black advocacy groups were "tense" when she started her tenure at the UNCF because it "had more resources than the other groups."

Xavier's Francis says he and other presidents pushed for UNCF to assume a greater role. "We got together and said, `Let's quit reacting and start acting." We needed to have a voice in saying how policies would affect us. We are defending things that are extremely important to UNCF schools. Our feeling was if we don't do it who is going to do k for us?"

Some groups were critical of the UNCF's actions, particularly during last year's reauthorization negotiations for Title III of the Higher Education Act.

"We had our issues on the table to be debated," Francis says. "But NAFEO presidents misread our responsibilities to our 39 institutions. They said we should wait for NAFEO to get a position. Well, NAFEO hadn't developed a position."

Indeed, the disparity in resources between NAFEO and the UNCF has been stark. In 1998, NAFEO had a $4 million operating budget, which is dwarfed by the UNCF's fiscal 1998 expenditures, excluding distributions, of $.34.6 million.