Paying it forward

In celebration of the Martin Luther King holiday, the MLK Breakfast has been a longstanding tradition within the Twin Cities. Once more, General Mills and the United Negro College Fund (UNCF) are hosting the annual breakfast, which shall be in-person this yr. 

The theme for the breakfast is “Leading Onward – Elevating Latest Voices for Justice and Equality,” and can concentrate on King’s legacy of civil rights and its influence on today’s Black youth activists.

This yr’s MLK Breakfast marks the thirty fourth yr the event has been held, which is one among the nation’s largest celebrations of Dr. King’s life and legacy. As in previous years, the breakfast helps raise funds for under-represented students within the Twin Cities. Proceeds from the breakfast profit UNCF Twin Cities and support local students of color attending college at historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) member institutions. Through the partnership, General Mills has provided $7.2 million to UNCF.   

“Every year, this event gives us the chance to return together as a community to create an imperative to live out Dr. King’s legacy and have fun his unwavering commitment to education,” said Mary Jane Melendez, chief sustainability and global impact officer at General Mills. “We remain steadfast in our commitment to making a world that reflects Dr. King’s dream and to advancing a culture of equity and belonging.”

The MSR spoke with Laverne McCartney Knighton, UNCF’s development director who oversees fundraising for the organization’s 37-member private Black colleges and universities and scholarships awarded to Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska, and North and South Dakota area students. This April, UNCF will have fun 80 years. 

“We were founded by historically Black colleges and university presidents in 1944,” said McCartney Knighton. “That was when only a small number of scholars were admitted to predominantly White colleges and universities. Our founders knew that a school education was necessary. They usually created UNCF to boost dollars for HBCUs, and the lots of of hundreds of scholars who attended them.

“So here we’re today, 80 years later. Now we have raised over $5 million, and supported greater than 500,000 students of their college journey. Mainly, HBCUs have built Black America’s middle class. 

“UNCF scholarships, which we raise money to supply, have helped students pay for his or her college degree and help them move up economically, which helps our society. Here at UNCF, we consider that higher education institutions have a vital role.”

Based on UNCF Twin Cities most up-to-date data for Minnesota, the organization has awarded scholarships to 171 students and supported about 127 students. “The whole amount awarded was slightly below 1,000,000 dollars—$977,000 to be exact,” said McCartney Knighton. “The typical scholarship amount is about $5700,” she added.

The impact of last yr’s U.S. Supreme Court affirmative motion decision on HBCUs and UNCF member institutions has not gone unnoticed.

“We’ve seen a rise in enrollment and requests for enrollment at HBCUs,” said McCartney Knighton. “It puts a burden on the funds which might be needed for school and our efforts to boost money to assist these students get to the school of their selection,” she added.  “That’s the massive impact—increased enrollment in any respect of our HBCUs.”

Like many Black organizations, UNCF has its fair proportion of challenges.

“When it comes to fundraising, it’s all the time a challenge to be in an area where everyone seems to be trying to boost money to support their organization,” said McCartney Knighton. “We’re fortunate to be in a community where we’ve plenty of Fortune 500 firms which might be headquartered here and are very supportive of UNCF’s efforts,” she said. “They understand the necessity to recruit students of color and that it is crucial to their bottom line—creating more diversity and equity and inclusion,” she continued. 

“The opposite challenge is attempting to be certain we offer funding to our HBCUs that need infrastructure support, IT support, all those things that help create a thriving campus for our students,” said McCartney Knighton. “Also, we can assist construct endowments, in order that schools can have that ongoing support that they need.”

The MLK Breakfast shall be held on the Minneapolis Convention Center on Jan. 15, 2024, from 8 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. Doors open at 7 a.m., and tickets can be found at MLKBreakfast.com.

UNCF is the nation’s largest minority education organization serving youth, the community and the country. By supporting education and development through scholarships and other programs, the organization helps strengthen its 37 member colleges and universities, and advocates for the importance of minority education and college readiness. Today, UNCF supports greater than 50,000 students at over 1,100 colleges and universities across the country. To learn more and contribute to the organization, visit UNCF.org.