“Some people believe HBCUs are no longer needed and are irrelevant. They are under assault.”

That was the sobering message U.S. Rep. George Kenneth “G. K.” Butterfield, chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus, delivered on the state of historically black colleges and universities.

He spoke Dec. 3 to a receptive audience of students and faculty at Virginia Union University.

“Without our support, HBCUS are in danger,” he said. “Republicans don’t understand the legacy and importance of them. They don’t care that black students in the 21st century still suffer from a lack of resources.”

To counter that, Rep. Butterfield said he and other Democrats are backing legislation co-sponsored by U.S. Rep. Robert C. “Bobby Scott, D-3rd, called “America’s College Promise Act of 2015.”

He called it the “most significant” legislation for higher education since the Higher Education Act of 1965. The legislation would make two years of community college free and provide an affordable pathway to a four-year college degree for low-income students, according to Rep. Scott’s office.

Over a 10-year period, the act would provide $79 billion to participating community colleges to waive tuition and fees to eligible students, according to Arika Trim, a spokesperson for Rep. Scott. It also would provide $9 billion in funding to HBCUs and other minority-serving institutions.

The legislation would aid an estimated 9 million students at 1,300 community colleges and nearly 300,000 students at approximately 280 four-year, historically black colleges and other minority-serving institutions, according to Rep. Scott’s office.

Rep. Butterfield, who earned his undergraduate and law degrees from North Carolina Central University, also encouraged students to pursue careers in STEM fields, science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

He said the corporate community estimates that 1.4 million new STEM jobs will “come online in the next five years” and they say “they do not have the talent black, white or brown” to fill them.

Rep. Butterfield’s visit to VUU came about through his longtime association with Samuel Rhoades, special assistant to university President Claude G. Perkins and Title III administrator.

Dr. Perkins said the university was honored to host Rep. Butterfield.

Trinity Gaskins, a freshman majoring in cyber security, said she wants to see “more funding for more students to attend schools. It’s not enough to have scholarships and grants. We need more than that so everybody can go to college.”