UDC’s New President plans to deliver on the promise
“To promise is to commit that your words will be paired with corresponding actions,” said UDC’s tenth President, Maurice Edington, at its recent Founder’s Day ceremony. “A university with promise demonstrates the potential for greatness. To deliver on the promise is to fully commit and realize the immense potential of this storied institution.”
President Edington illustrated a mental roadmap to UDC’s future through the updated strategic plan set for the next five years to unite stakeholders and develop a strong, solid pillar of success. He highlighted three key goals: helping UDC become a world-class university for the nation’s capital, a national model for urban student success, and a research and innovation lab that addresses the District’s needs.
The newly minted strategic plan calls for exceeding national graduation and retention averages. President Edington’s three pillars of focus under “One UDC” are “excel, work, and service.” Another goal is to create workforce and economic mobility engines fueling the District. The plan’s goals are to increase external graduate program funding, double UDC’s scholarly work numbers, increase student enrollment by 50% and double the number of degrees awarded.
“Let us sit down to figure this thing out and become DC’s flagship institution,” Edington said. We can move mountains when we are all aligned. Every great championship had leaders challenging each other.”
Also, the event called for a collective pause and reflection to leverage the university’s history toward success.
UDC’s oldest predecessor institution, Miner Teachers College (originally Miner Normal School for Colored Girls), was founded 1851 by abolitionist and educator Myrtilla Miner. Miner’s vision was to create a more equitable society and affordable education for District residents. To promote racial equality in 1955, MTC merged with predominately white Wilson Teachers College to form DC Teachers College. The embers of innovation and change, in 1968, helped establish Washington Technical Institute, and Federal City College was formed. In 1976, Mayor Washington ordered the three institutions into a singular university, UDC. In 2009, UDC Community College was launched. In 2023, UDC’s first PhD students graduated.
Currently, UDC boasts the top HBCU computer engineering program (per Best Colleges.com) as the fourteenth best public HBCU and tied for the thirteenth best clinical law training program. The School of Business and Public Administration clinched international certifications granted to less than 6% of business institutions globally. UDC also touts a NASA-MIRO program, a $2 million grant from PEPCO, and $41 million in research funding. UDC’s David A. Clarke School of Law accounted for 33,200 hours for community-driven legal services. Four tons of fresh produce were donated from UDC’s Firebird Research Farm near Beltsville, MD.
“I see life as one big movie where everyone is a character’” Edington said. “Anyone who doubts our immense potential doesn’t know UDC. We’ve always stood on the frontlines of reform. We never retreat. Every generation has its moments, and this is ours!”
