Naviance Partners with Common Black College Application to Help Students Match with HBCUs

Historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) are higher education institutions that were established before the Civil Rights Act of 1964 with the primary mission of educating Black students in the United States. These schools, located primarily in the South and along the East Coast, were founded at a time when Black students were denied admission to most colleges and universities.

In 1998, Robert Mason, an HBCU alum, founded the Common Black College Application (CBCA) to make it easier and more affordable for BIPOC students to apply to college.

For a flat fee of $20, students can send applications to the 67 HBCUs that accept the CBCA. In contrast, the fee for submitting an application to a single school By eliminating financial barriers to accessing higher education, Mason is dismantling educational inequity while providing opportunities for students to pursue higher learning and advanced degrees.

PowerSchool’s leading CCLR platform Naviance is proud to partner with CBCA to further Mason’s mission of making postsecondary opportunities accessible to any student who wants to pursue higher learning.

The Impact of CBCA

Since Mason founded the CBCA in September 1998, he has helped interrupt the cycle of poverty for hundreds of thousands of students around the globe. To date, more than 250,000 students have completed the CBCA. Nearly 97% of those students have been accepted to at least one CBCA member institution, and 33% have received a scholarship ranging from tens of thousands to millions of dollars. HBCUs rely on the CBCA to help them achieve their enrollment objectives and attract students ranging from those who might not have otherwise pursued postsecondary education to high achievers.

Naviance and CBCA

Naviance will support CBCA by highlighting CBCA member institutions in the platform as students research colleges. Each school will have a link that takes students to a streamlined application process. In addition to basic personal information and academic history, students are also asked to respond to essay questions that allow them to showcase their personality and accomplishments.

By removing many of the barriers that prevent students from applying to college, such as application fees and burdensome paperwork requests, Naviance and CBCA hope to diminish equity gaps in higher education and make college a viable option for students who think it’s not for them.

The partnership between Naviance and the CBCA is a clarion call to all that Naviance is committed to communities of color and to supporting Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Together, we will increase the number of educational options for students exponentially while helping the CBCA Member Institutions to exceed their enrollment objectives.
Robert Mason HBCU alum
Common Black College Application (CBCA)

Closing Equity Gaps in Higher Education

PowerSchool and CBCA believe that education is a fundamental human right, and all students should have equal access to quality instruction. When equity gaps persist, social inequality perpetuates, and students are denied the opportunity to reach their full potential.

Higher education is one of the most reliable pathways to economic mobility. Closing equity gaps improves wealth distribution, diversifies the workforce, and helps spur innovation and creativity by creating space for new voices. In this partnership, Naviance and CBCA work toward creating a more just and equitable society for all.