Howard’s administration addressed financial aid, class registration and housing amongst other concerns that were expressed since the first week of classes in a “Welcome Zoom Session” last week.
This semester, students have been expressing concern with class registration, room assignments and financial aid. Anthony K. Wutoh, provost and chief academic officer, hosted a welcome informational session on Aug. 29 for students and parents to talk about these subjects and more.
The welcome session included panel guests from different departments within the university and received more than 900 pre-registrants, including students, faculty, parents and staff. This group submitted more than 400 questions.
Regarding BisonHub, Wutoh acknowledged that courses not being taught this semester were listed on this semester’s registration and that those courses have since been removed.
Problems with course listings were also mentioned in the session. Wutoh addressed courses being switched from online to in-person, and professors not being listed for registration. He said that this was due to new instructors being hired and onboarded. Some professors also had specific preferences about teaching online or in person.
Wutoh also added that 35 more faculty members need to be onboarded as of Aug. 29.
Parents in the Zoom chat of the session asked about the challenges their children have been facing with advising.
“The demand for Howard education is high and we simply need to grow our faculty and staff,” Kenneth Anderson, associate provost for undergraduate studies, said. “In particular, we need to grow our advising staff. This is a priority for us here in the Office of Undergraduate Studies.”
Anderson said that not only do they want to grow staff, but they also hope to implement better training processes.
To help students get in contact with their advisors, Anderson said the office of undergraduate studies is working on a uniform way for students to set up appointments. As of now, appointment processes differ depending on the college and advisor, but students are advised to first personally contact them.
Processing for financial aid was also addressed during the meeting. Dr. Tashni-Ann Dubroy, executive vice president and chief operating officer, said that the main issue with financial aid is a resource problem.
“We are growing pretty quickly, and our resources have to catch up with that, but we are working on it,” Dubroy said.
Dubroy addressed concerns about financial aid processing and credited it to enrollment growth, saying it has gone from 9,400 students enrolling for the fall semester in 2019 to more than 13,400 students in 2023.
This increase means that the university’s financial aid office is processing a larger amount of Pell Grants for its students. Dubroy said that Howard University is also processing a larger amount of Pell Grants compared to other universities.
Howard University’s undergraduate student population was 10,190 as of fall 2023, according to Howard’s institutional data, and 41 percent of those students receive the Pell Grant. The University of Pennsylvania and George Washington University have around the same number of students, with around 10,610 and 10,848, but have a smaller percentage of students receiving Pell Grants at 17 percent and 15 percent, respectively according to the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System.
“We need more people to process aid as the university body increases,” Dubroy said.
In the future, the goal is to keep the undergraduate population at 10,000 and grow the graduate and professional population, she added.
“We think that this will help to ease some of the stressors that are placed on the university at this time,” Dubroy said.
Financial aid help is available in the Solution Hub, which is located in the Wayne A.I. Frederick Undergraduate Library. Dubroy said this is the best place to get help.
“They may be facing financial aid challenges, but it definitely does not mimic what it was that you’ve experienced,” Dubroy said. “We have improved how students are served. There are no long financial aid lines on the second floor of the A-building.”
Cynthia Evers, senior vice president for student affairs, recognized some housing concerns that followed the move-in. She said room reconfiguration, specifically in Howard Plaza Towers, was one of the issues.
“The Office of Reslife, they have been working very closely and monitoring available spaces and trying to relocate students so that they are comfortable,” Evers said.
Another concern was single rooms.
“We know many students prefer a single room,” Evers said. “And we sincerely wish we had more to offer, but unfortunately we only have a very limited number of singles.”
Evers also mentioned that Howard University informs its real estate team that students prefer single bedrooms so they can secure off-campus housing that meets this need.
The last concern acknowledged was the reports for repairs in rooms.
“Parents, please encourage your Bison to not suffer in silence,” Evers said.
She said to first complete a work order as, “it’s important for us to be able to track the repairs with housing partners” to notice trends and make sure of timely responses.
Evers reiterated that they prioritize on-campus housing for freshmen and sophomores. If space is available, they will offer it to juniors and seniors. This year, they were able to house 1,413 juniors and seniors.
She pointed upperclassmen to the off-campus housing website, saying it “offers various options as it relates to cost, amenities, if you want a roommate and, in addition, throughout the year, we offer virtual off-campus housing fairs.”
These fairs are where off-campus housing partners will sign on virtually to talk to students about renting at their building. This is also where vendors offer deals, like monthly payment discounts and deposit or application fee waivers, according to Evers. The next virtual off-campus housing event will be in November.
The Oliver and Howard Manor, which will provide housing for faculty, staff, graduate, and professional students, are also complete and available for rent.
Copy edited by Jalyn Lovelady
