Bass Public Affairs Announces the Humphrey-Pinkston Fellows Program for Students Attending HBCUs

Bass Public Affairs (BPA) is excited to announce the launch of the Humphrey-Pinkston Fellows program. The Humphrey-Pinkston Fellows program is offered to students attending Historically Black Colleges and Universities. The program is both a mentoring and a reverse mentoring program. In addition to learning from business and political leaders, HBCU students share their knowledge and insights with national influencers.

“As a proud alum of an HBCU, Fisk University, I am thrilled to launch the Humphrey-Pinkston Fellows program,” said Bass Wilbon. “Our family has a long commitment to the HBCU community, and this fellowship is another way to highlight the incredible impact of HBCUs.”

The fellowship is named in honor of Lula Mae Pinkston-Humphrey, the maternal grandmother of BPA co-founders Dee Dee Bass Wilbon and Deana Bass Williams.

“We know by targeting HBCU students we are targeting American exceptionalism,” said Bass Williams. “Bernayl Sparks, our first fellow, is evidence of the outstanding students in the HBCU community.”

Sparks is a sophomore at Voorhees University in Denmark, South Carolina. She is an active member of the university’s student body serving as vice president of the student government association, a member of the university’s honors college and president of the student advisory council.

While HBCUs only represent 3% of all higher-education institutions, they graduate 40% of all Black engineers, 40% of all Black U.S. Congressmen, 50% of all Black lawyers, and 80% of all Black judges.

Applications are accepted on a rolling basis. The program is open to sophomores, juniors and seniors attending HBCUs. While Bass Public Affairs is headquartered in Washington, DC, students may participate in the three-month program virtually or in person. Fellows receive a stipend and may pursue independent study credit per their university’s guidelines.

Students interested in learning more may visit BassPublicAffairs.com/hbcu.