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Saturday, February 15, 2025

State Rep. Porter comments on Braun’s defunding of Martin University 

HANNA RAUWORTH
HANNA RAUWORTH
Hanna Rauworth is the Health & Environmental Reporter for the Indianapolis Recorder Newspaper, where she covers topics at the intersection of public health, environmental issues, and community impact. With a commitment to storytelling that informs and empowers, she strives to highlight the challenges and solutions shaping the well-being of Indianapolis residents.

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Gov. Mike Braun introduced his Freedom and Opportunity budget to the State Budget Committee on Jan. 16, which allocates no money towards Martin University, Indiana’s only predominately Black institution of higher education or the College Success Program, which encourages minority and first-generation students to pursue higher education. 

In 2023, Martin University and the College Success Program each received $5 million.  

Martin University
Martin University (Photo provided/Martin University)

State Rep. Gregory W. Porter released the following statement in response: 

“The active intervention to end or attack anything in the budget that gives state dollars to people of color is sickening. I won’t mince my words: It’s racist. Black Hoosiers and other minorities pay taxes, so we deserve to benefit from the state budget as much as our white counterparts. 

“Martin University is Indiana’s only predominately Black institution. The only reason why it’s not an official HBCU is because it’s relatively young. Now they will receive zero state dollars, which is a complete cut from 2023. He also cut the College Success Program, which encourages minority and first-generation, low-income students to attend college. That means a total of $10 million in support for minority students has been eliminated.  

“This is wrong on so many levels. The last administration realized that this funding would give students of color an equal chance at success. It was less than a century ago when Black students couldn’t live in dorms, had to eat on separate sides of the dining room and couldn’t swim in the university pool. It also benefitted Indiana’s workforce since Martin University directed the money towards STEM education. 

“Sadly, this decision will continue to kill the hopes, dreams and aspirations of many students. No matter how hard they work, they’ll have the rug pulled out from under them. Even Trump paid lip service to HBCUs in his first term, which makes zeroing out these funds even more disturbing. Just like his other budget decisions, Braun continues to push his hostile, hateful agenda no matter who it harms.”  

To view the full budget, visit in.gov/sba/files/The-Book.pdf

This reporting is made possible by a grant from the Indianapolis African-American Quality of Life Initiative, empowering our community with essential health insights. https://iaaqli.org/ 

To read more like this, click here.

Contact Health & Environmental Reporter Hanna Rauworth at 317-762-7854 or follow her on Instagram at @hanna.rauworth. 

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Hanna Rauworth is the Health & Environmental Reporter for the Indianapolis Recorder Newspaper, where she covers topics at the intersection of public health, environmental issues, and community impact. With a commitment to storytelling that informs and empowers, she strives to highlight the challenges and solutions shaping the well-being of Indianapolis residents.

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7 COMMENTS

  1. @bernice per Census.gov Indiana’s Black population is 10.4% or roughly 700,000+ persons. 23% of Indiana’s population is under 18 or roughly 1.6mm persons. Of that number, approximately 15% are non-hispanic Black. or 240,000 persons, leaving about 460,000 eligible Black voters. I can’t find the exact percentage of Black voter turnout at the moment (usually estimated at 50%-60%) but safe to say Black Indiana voters are statistically overwhelmed in a state of 7,000,000 people.

    That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t vote but there is a firm red grip in this state for the foreseeable future. In the past, Indiana has gone blue for Governor and President, but I think those days are long gone.

  2. I was born/raised in Michigan City, Indiana. Didn’t realize that it was just as segregated as the deep south until I got grown. As a kid, I just took it for granted that all of the blacks lived in one section of town and all of the whites in another; that there were certain businesses that we could not/should not patronize. My high school was not segregated because MC had only one public high school; and the sole Catholic high school had no black students whatever.

    I matriculated at IU-Bloomington in ’66, which had 29K students, and only 500 blacks. No black professors. After I left IU, I left Indiana and have never looked back. I only occasionally visit family members who are still there. For years and years, Indiana also was the site of one of the largest Klans in the country.

    HD
    Chicago

  3. Indiana is falling behind on higher education, and as a result our salaries and economy are falling behind. Cutting state support to our universities is going to hurt our economy and our citizens.

  4. this is not right for the blacks to not get to go to school or not have the state funding because we pay taxes just like every one I go to martin and I love what they are doing to help people to get a great education

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