Is recruiting at HBCUs the greatest solution?

Ah yes…the talent pipeline.

It’s been tough recruiting more black techies into Silicon Valley because of the talent pipeline. There are not enough black people (and let’s not forget our Hispanic and Latinx kinfolk) to recruit and fill roles in tech. At least that’s what we’re told.

Despite the fact that blacks and Latinx people make up roughly 18 percent of computer science degrees, there is a talent pipeline problem; therefore, we need a program like Howard West to fix that, right?

Silicon Valley is obsessed with meritocracy, which left me a little confused as to why Google’s implementation of a program dedicated to addressing the talent pipeline in tech-specific fields is associated with Howard University.

No dis against Howard because I know it produces amazing, highly intelligent people, but for a tech company to start its pilot program aimed at addressing diversity in tech roles, makes no sense to approach Howard, first.

Howard is rightfully one of the most well known and prestigious HBCUs, but if you want to focus on engineers, why not start at North Carolina A&T, which arguably has the best computer program for HBCUs, ranking No. 1 out of 25— or Florida A&M or Prairie View A&M for that matter?

We know Silicon Valley has an obsession with prestige, which often overshadows the false idea of meritocracy.

Could Google have fallen victim to its old habit of recruiting at the most “Ivy League” institutes only?

What about black students at a PWI?

Predominantly white institutions (PWIs), for the most part, don’t have the same hurdles to jump as many HBCUs do when it comes to recruiters visiting their institutions or developing co-op programs.

While in theory PWIs have access to more opportunities, too often black students remain marginalized within these institutions and don’t always gain equal access to the same opportunities as their white peers. When companies come to campus to recruit, for example, black and Hispanic students often simply “don’t show up” for information sessions. During my undergrad years, I recall hearing about private recruitment sessions, after the fact. Guess I didn’t get the invite.