INTERVIEW: Stacey Lee Spratt Discusses HBCU Opportunities, Student Scholarships, Harlem Hops +More

Wake that ass up in the morning the Breakfast Club Morning. Everybody is dj n V Charlamagne to God. We are to Breakfast Club. We got a special guest in the building.

Yes, indeed, Stacy.

Lee Spratt Welcome.

What's up?

How you feeling listen?

Feeling good?

Director of the United Negro College Fund.

Yes, empower Me Tour.

There you go.

That's right.

I feel like I've been hearing about the United Negro College Fund my whole life, but not more, not that much.

In recent times.

Really.

Yeah, So what does United College Fund do?

Listen?

We've been around going on eighty years, so that's why you've been hearing about it since you were little. But you know, we provide educational support for minority students. So with the empower Me Tour, it's a traveling road show where we talk about college readiness, we talk about career readiness, and we give millions of dollars in scholarships for people to attend school, not just graduating high school seniors, but also people in college can still get scholarships through the UNCF.

Always want to, you know, like, do people are people as aware of resources like this as they need to be?

You know what I feel like we can always do a better job of making sure people know that resources are there. Un CF is not just to get students to college. It's our responsibility to get students through college also.

I mean, education is expensive.

Sure, what are some of the qualifications to get some of the students in college? You know what?

It honestly depends on the type of scholarship there is. You know, some have three point zero GPA qualifications, some might even have two point seven or your three point five and above. Some of them you have to write an essay. It really all depends on the type of scholarship that you're applying for. Like with the empower Me Tour, we have counselors that come on site and give on site admissions to students on the spot.

Not just that, we have college.

Admissions counselors offering full for year scholarships to students who didn't even know that they could attend college or could attend an HBCU. We really try to do the empower Me Tour in places where there aren't HBCUs so we can educate people that HBCUs exist and scholarships are available.

So this is only for HBCUs. You only given college.

Yes, No, we give scholarship money to not just HBCUs. People can get a un c of scholarship and attend any school of their choice. We just want to make sure people know in places, in spaces that HBCUs exists.

Is there HBCU in New York. I've been having this argument with people for the last there is not an HBCU in need, So fairly is not an HBCUs.

That is not an HBCU in New York?

Okay, Stacey said it not me because I've been saying it for the long because I was like, I didn't know it was because I always say, you know, growing up in New York, there were no HBCUs and the only time that I seen it was on a different world and that's what made me want to go to the best hbc You not Clockhampton University.

You know it could be second best because number one is what on this chest Clark and Learning University.

So being that y'all give money to everybody, y'all don't have to worry about like, you know, because you know now you see all of these people, like what's the name, I think the named Edward Bron doing these attacks on you know, the Fearless Fund and people who are providing fundings strictly for black people.

You don't have funding is.

Not just strictly for black or brown people, you know.

Again, I like to remind people HBCUs were created during a time that black and brown people couldnot attend. Majority institutions were historically black, not exclusively black.

What was so important for you to go to HBC? Of course you went to clock Atlanta.

Well, of course I went to Clark Atlanta.

Where you're from?

You gotta stop blushing.

I'm originally fro Mississippi.

You from Missisippi.

So every time you hear Clarkey blush, listen, that's.

Where my husband came from. So baby, that's you know that Clark Atlanta.

DJ Drama went to Clock Atlanta. Took Yes.

DJ Drama went to Clark Atland.

We were there around the same time my parents went to Clark College. My brother went to Howard, my other brother went to Morehouse. Like we are an HBCU family. Like my business partners you know, went to Hampton one okay and the other one went to Clark Atlanta.

So it just fostered.

Relationships HBCUs and just homecoming. There's no homecoming like in HBCU fact Okay, So that's why I love it so well.

People don't talk about that before.

What made you want to go? Was it instilled with your family or.

Is it it wasn't still with my family?

It was you know again, I've been attending homecoming at Clark Atlanta since.

I was two years old, you know, because both my parents went there.

And just watching the relationships that my parents had with other people from Clark Atlanta University and like those are my aunts and aunts uncle's extended family. I just fell in love with it.

People don't talk about that aspect enough of the networking that happens at these hbcs. What did you or who did you meet that led you to end up being the director of the United Nego College one.

I mean, first of all, my father received a un CF scholarship, so watching him talk about receiving a un CF scholarship and watching him work at General Motors and then turn around and give back for other black and brown people and people at Clark Atlanta, Spellman and Moorhouse to be engineers, and just watching that Foster. I always had a good, loving relationship for you and CF. But it really is the networking. You have relationships with people.

That went to Clark Atlanta with me? Or who you know went to another HBCU.

A lot of the work that I do, even in the events world, I provide opportunities for other HBCU graduates.

Well, what's some advice on tips you can give to help students apply for and receive scholarships from you UNCA.

The first thing I would want them to do is to go to UNCF dot org and set up an account and check back there every other week, because again, scholarships pop up every day that we're offering. Again, if you're a graduating senior in high school, check it out.

Set up an account.

If you are in college and looking for an internship, looking for scholarship opportunities, set up an account at UNCF dot org and just continue to check back. Make sure you have your resume, you know, written out. Talk to someone that does resume building. It's so important make sure that you have your statement written out of why you want to even go to college, whatever college or university. That is so just being proactive and preparing yourself.

How early is too early? I know you said senior year, but sometimes senior year might be a little too late because you just don't necessarily know. So how early should I should parents should be looking into colleges, and same thing with students.

You know, you can set up your account at UNCF dot org.

I mean as a.

Freshman in high school, okay, and start looking at different scholarships and looking for what is it that you need to apply for those certain types of scholarships. It's never too early to talk to students about scholarships. About financial aid, I mean that is so important for parents and students to fill out that financial aid information. And I know the FASTFA has changed over the course of this year, so it's making sure you fill out your FASTFA set

Like, we need money for you to attend school.

Now, you know, a lot of parents are I don't want to say have problems with scholarships, but have problems with scholarships because they get this scholarship to get their kid into school. But now their kid is in school, they're freshmen. Now what happens sophomore year? Are some of these scholarships four year scholarships or they just one year scholarship You got to get in then you're on your own.

Oh no.

A lot of scholarships are four year renewable scholarships as long as you continue to keep that GPA requirement, as long as you continue to keep whatever the requirements are for that scholarship.

And it's so important to look and say, okay.

Is this scholarship renewable, you know, for my student, so they can plan accordingly. There are some scholarships that might be a one time So if you do get that scholarship that's one time, then you have to go back to the drawing board and say, okay, let me see about some scholarship money over here, over here, over here. You can also piecemell it together. It doesn't all have to come from one place.

Got when they talk when you talk about certain requirements and I didn't go to college. To forgive me for my stupidness, But is this scholarships that just like you, if you're five six, you.

Know what, there's a scholarship out there. If you're left handed, that's okay. It is scholarship money out there forever everything you.

Can think of.

And I think that's the key to it. You have to look for scholarships that make you might be thinking like I mean, it was a left handed scholarship, but it's out there. There are scholarships for all things, whether you play sports, whether you don't play sports, whether you're majoring in STEM, whether you're majoring and marketing, even entrepreneurial scholarships.

So it is scholarships available for everyone.

It's doing the research, spending the time to do the research, being organized about where you're looking and what you're looking for.

I wonder why why do they have a scholarship for like left handed people?

Yes, I don't know, because I didn't create.

That might have been a left handed billionaire that says, you know what, I just want to support other left handed people out there.

You can come up with what, however, you want to do. You know, scholarships.

When myself in Pinky Call, we gave scholarship money for thirty graduating seniors at Clark and Landa University.

We had no rhyme or reason.

Our reason was that they would not be able to graduate if they didn't pay that dollar amount. So sometimes you have people that just say, you know what, I want to make sure these students graduate. I don't care what their GPA is. It could be a two point oh, it doesn't matter. I want to make sure they get the money so they can walk across that step two point And that's what we did. Hey, we didn't care,

And so that's what we did.

My daddy said, if I get a two point on, I'm coming back to Queens.

Listen, you can graduate college still with the two point oh you graduate and thank you, Lottie.

But you're graduatingege, thank you, lad.

How can students prepare and pay for college, especially with the federal student aid deadline coming up.

Oh yeah, the deadline is around the corner. So they need to apply.

You must apply to see what you qualify for. What kind of scholarships you qualify for? Again, Google is your best friend. YouTube, university is your best friend. Really look up what scholarships are available.

But again go.

To UNCF dot org because we have thousands of scholarships available.

We give away millions of dollars.

To date, U and.

CF is probably given out over four billion dollars in educating young people.

What today is today is doctor Martin Luther King Junior Day, So for that day, are you guys doing something special for today?

Or doctor Martin Luther King went to Morehouse College. But we're not doing anything in particular besides what we always do, which is provide an education for black and brown and young people.

What are some benefits of going to an HBCU.

Because my daughter's fifteen now, and you know she's of course she's already talking about college. What's the benefits of going to an HBCU versus the PWS.

You know, I think for me, it's seeing people that look like you doing great things. It's again that community. It's a smaller classroom. It's also go where you're celebrated, not where you're tolerated.

What's the point of being an adulta?

What's the point of being.

What's the benefit? Don't you must have a must don't mother? My wife's mother is adult.

What's the point of being at Delta?

Wow? What's the benefit?

It's respectful at the point, the benefits, the benefits of being.

Wow, look at the being a gallery it up Listen. Being a member of Delta Signa the Sorority Incorporated was one of the greatest decisions for me. They are my sisters, my line sisters, my big sisters, my little sisters. Again, I not only work with them, I love them. It is a sisterhood. I don't have sisters. I have two older brothers.

You know.

I have a sissy that you know is my cousin. But it is about the love, it's about the sisterhood. It's about the commune unity, it's about giving back. So all of those things are what Delta encompasses.

Yeah, because I think about it. If you go to an HBCU, that's one level of sisterhood, absolutely and together and it's with your black Black people.

But then you get pledged delta. That's the whole other.

Level listen, a whole other level of sisterhood and brotherhood. I mean again that HBCU camaraderie is a sisterhood and brotherhood in itself, whether you pledge something or not. And even pledging delta, I still have a ka's that I so love.

I mean, my public is.

An AKA, you know, but you know it's still that love of fraternities and sororities.

Absolutely.

Yeah.

My oldest is a sophomore in high school. Like I said, we're already starting to look for colleges. When should students start seriously looking into.

Honestly, again, I would say seventh eighth grade years. Start talking to your kids about college and and what kind of college would they want to go to?

What do they want to do? You know, as they you know, get older.

And I always also tell studentudents, if you don't know exactly what you want to do, it's okay to say that, it's okay.

To change your mind.

But I also say, as a junior in college, just go ahead and finish whatever that major is and figure out how to apply it to whatever it is you want to do or become. That's right, Like, don't pay all that money to take extra classes or additional classes.

Just move forward.

Yeah, I always say HBCUs sometimes have to do a better job at trying to get students, especially on the East Coast, because we don't see them as much, especially in New York and in New Jersey or or even Delaware and Philly. We don't see it as much. And like I said myself, my biggest thing was a different world. That's what made me see what an HBCU is like. So I would say they have to do a better job and hopefully things like this will encourage more students to check out HBC.

Yes, and we actually did the empower me to or in New York with high school students. It was some years ago, was right before COVID and again hugely successful because students didn't know about HBCUs that they're available, you know, for them to attend.

Do you agree with MV that you know HBCUs have to do a better job or do we as black people have to start valuing our own better.

I think it's both. I think it's I think it's twofold.

I think one it's important for us to continue to give back to our HBCUs.

It's not just about.

Homecoming and coming home, it's also coming home, loving on your people, but also giving back to your institution. So I just really think, you know, it's imperative, and we do have to do a better job of letting kids know that HBCUs are attainable, that they're available, and that money is available.

The reason them to attend.

The reason I talk about them so much is going to Hampton and going to all these homecomings. I didn't get that experience in New York. You know, you go to Florida and they have the classic where it's it's nothing but people, and they're outside and they're barbecuing and they're cooking, and there's a parade and it's just so much going on. And then you go to one in Alabama and it's the same thing, and you realize, damn, I didn't have that in New York. We didn't have

They have a they have an excellent homecoming, and I will say I mean, I love my CEU. Jackson State also has a fun yes coming as well. I must say that, But I thought there was a classic here.

In New Jersey. Didn't they just start.

It's a game, okay, so they just to shout the album. He just he's trying to bring it back to New York.

Got it.

He didn't actually go to a HBC. He went to Saint John's, but he understands what it means. He has black kids, so he's trying to create the classic background. Schools are coming in the problems. I think last year they did more house in Alabama State at Alberty State. And the problem with Alberdy State, sadly is most people thought it was in Albany, New York, but albody states

She's also an entrepreneur.

That's right.

Harlem Hops, Bier Booths, Bites and Beach be Scott that brought us this before.

That's right. You know what I mean. We want to talk about Harlem Hops.

Listen. Harlem Hops is a craft beer bar. It's in Harlem.

We also just opened up a second location at Peer fifty seven, so we have Harlem Chelsea also in the food hall where the Google building is, So that's our second location. And I mean we are one African American owned, you know, first black owned Crappier Barn.

In New York.

The reason I love this because it shows that you know what you do with you United Negro College. When you do that, have to be of service.

Absolutely, you know what I mean, absolutely do it to be of service to other students so they can also see again, there's nothing like a mirror image to see what it is that you can do and what you can become. And when you see you know, a brother or sister and you're like, dang, I can do that also.

It's it's inspiring and it's inspirational.

How can people get in contact with you in the UNC?

Okay, you can reach me on my ig at Stacy Lee thirty two. That's my maiden name, Lee. I'm a Spratt.

You know.

On ig you can reach out to me directly.

You know, any kind of questions about education, any kind of questions about scholarships, I will be glad to answer.

And Unit A Negro College Fund dot un c F dot.

Org dot org UNCF dot org for all information about scholarships, internships, you know, ways to get to and through college.

It's all right there at your fingertips.

All right, well, Stacy Lee Spratt, we appreciate you for joining us.

Thank you.

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