RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) — Students, staff, alumni and families attended a candlelight vigil Sunday afternoon at St. Augustine Church. This comes as Raleigh College continues to face financial difficulties.
Organizers asked for the event to be private, but shared on social media that they wanted the vigil to bring people together to show support for those “affected by concerns regarding the university's status.”
“I think we can all agree that St. Augustine's is going through a dire time right now,” said a senior political science major at the university.
Together, students and faith leaders discussed their concerns and focused on the power of faith, renewal, and hope as the historic school struggles to maintain its school accreditation. HBCUs were established by the Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina in 1867, more than 150 years ago.
During Sunday's vigil, Pastor Hershey Stevens emphasized the importance of hope.
“I think our faith doesn't fully acknowledge the current hardships we're in. It's hard for students to concentrate, it's hard for professors and staff to pay the bills. And it is also difficult for the government to make promises and then break them.”
Pastor Stevens added: “Look at these stones cut from this land. Our first students, the freed people, the people of our parents and grandparents, who knew the humiliations of slavery but had the hope of an education. It was piled up by people who might.”
In December, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) voted to remove St. Augustine's College from membership, citing financial problems. The university has appealed this decision and has also launched a $5 million campaign to help with the necessary funds.
In addition to enrollment concerns and delays in paying employees, the university is also facing criticism from former St. Augustine's football coach Howard Feggins, who was fired in October 2023. Mr. Feggins filed a lawsuit alleging that he was unfairly fired.
Former university president Dr. Christine McPhail, who was fired in December, also alleged discrimination and retaliation by the school's board of directors.
Speaking to students at the Sunday vigil, one of the university's faith leaders said: “We know it can be difficult when things are difficult, but we want you to know that we are with you.'' “It was,” he said.
St. Augustine's University will hold a press conference at 11 a.m. Monday to discuss a “strategic path forward to stabilize the university and ensure a sustainable future.”
Dr. Marcus H. Burgess, the university's interim president, will be joined by students, alumni, faculty, staff and the Board of Trustees.
