Can NAFEO Find Its Direction?

 By Michele N-K Collison

There was a time when thousands of Black college officials would block out the third week in April on their calendars so that they wouldn't miss the annual meeting of the National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education (NAFEO).
The conference, held at the Washington Hilton in the District of Columbia and sponsored by NAFEO, attracted a who's who assortment of higher education professionals who convened to discuss the latest issues facing Blacks in higher education. And high school students would arrive by the busloads to visit the conference's Black college fair.
But judging by conference attendance in the past couple of years, it is clear that for some Black higher education administrators and faculty NAFEO's bloom has withered. A growing number are choosing to attend other higher education conferences. 
Critics say attendance has dropped because the conference has developed a reputation as a place to socialize, offering little of value for those seeking substance. Run by old-school Black higher education leaders, they say, NAFEO is still reveling in past victories and failing to tackle the new challenges of the coming century.
To be sure, the grumbling about NAFEO is not new. In the past, Black educators have been reluctant to air the organizations "dirty laundry" in public. However, a new generation of Black college presidents — who are not fearful of upsetting the status quo — are voicing their increasing resentment about paying dues to an organization that they view as irrelevant.
"NAFEO needs a facelift," says Dr. Marie McDemmond, president of Norfolk State University. "They've got the same conference, the same banquet. There are no new initiatives and there is a new crop of HBCU presidents who are questioning what these membership dues are for," McDemmond  says. "The dues structure is very high and I really need to evaluate" what the institution is getting for the money. 
Moreover, amid the current backlash against affirmative action, NAFEO critics are frustrated that the organization is not taking greater strides to take advantage of the situation and make a case for Black public colleges.
Many of the larger member institutions have hired lobbyists of their own and formed alliances with other institutions to get more, some, or any federal research dollars. This development is both the symptom and cause of what many consider the root of NAFEO's problems — a lack of resources.
To its credit, the leadership is now exploring new strategies for rebuilding attendance at the annual conference. Adding to the list of NAFEO's woes, 56 of its 118 member institutions have not paid their dues — which range from $3,000 to $13,000 annually depending on the institution's  enrollment size.
"The organization is languishing, it is faded," says Dr. Julius Nimmons, president of the University of the District of Columbia. "We've got to recapture those things that were good."