>> Hello, I'm Doctor Ben Vinson III, the 18th president of Howard University.

And it is my pleasure to welcome you to this program, one of many we plan to bring to you as part of the At Howard series.

Howard University has the distinct pleasure of being the only HBCU to hold the license of a public television station across the country.

This special relationship allows WHUT to have unique access to the breadth and depth of academic content that is being produced on our campus.

From stimulating lecture series and panel discussions on a wide range of topics one-on-one conversations with captains of industry and international leaders of business, politics and the arts.

From time to time, WHUT will broadcast some of that content in the form of full programs to short excerpts that we believe will surely stimulate and engage you.

So sit back and enjoy.

We're proud to share with you some of what makes Howard University so special.

♪♪ >> Yeah.

What's up?

♪♪ ♪♪ >> Yeah.

>> What's up?

♪♪ ♪♪ >> We want to give a warm, warm welcome and good morning to Howard University, to you, Dr. Vinson, and to so many of our distinguished guests.

It is an absolute pleasure to be here in this remarkable building, which also stands as a symbol of Howard's growth not just in Washington, D.C., but as it touches so many different industries and businesses and communities.

So, Dr. Vinson, I'm excited to be able to explore that impact a little bit further in our conversation in a few moments.

But before I do, I thought it would be really important to give a little bit of context to why we have come together as partners, um, for this discussion.

So two years ago with a few incredible leaders who are here in the room today, uh, a group of leaders came together here at Howard University alongside Vice President Kamala Harris, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, and SBA Administrator Isabel Guzman to launch an incredibly bold, transformative vision.

The partnership, which is a collective, as Brianna said, of leading employers from Baltimore to Richmond, made a collective pledge to invest $4.7 billion, again right here at Howard University, to accelerate economic growth and foster inclusive prosperity throughout this region.

While the pledge in itself two years ago was incredibly significant and served as an important milestone, what is even more significant is how the effort has evolved since then.

The real impact lies in the intentional, sustained work of a coalition of leading employers who make up the partnership, engage in every single day in the way that they lead here in the region.

They choose to be a part of this collective, where they are actively committing to investments that make real impact across the region.

Financial, strategic, intentional, purposeful actions aimed at ensuring that as they grow, everyone is growing in ways that benefit the community.

And that investments, if made intentionally, they could unlock as much as $50 million for the region in GDP by 2028.

And we are really proud of where we are today.

We are delighted to be able to be back here with you, Dr. Vinson, but we're going to hear a little bit more about that progress in a bit today.

I really look forward to exploring how Howard is playing a pivotal role in this vision today.

So with that, I'm delighted to have this conversation with you, Dr. Vinson, who, as Tony Pierce mentioned, is also on the partnership board.

How do you define the role of an anchor institution, Dr. Vinson, in today's economic landscape?

And what unique role, um, and strengths do HBCUs specifically bring to that?

>> Well, Kathy, first of all, it is a delight, a pleasure to be here with you and with this amazing, amazing assemblage of individuals from all over the city, all over the region, uh, to really talk about an issue that's so important to all of us in terms of making sure that we uplift this entire region, uh, extending from Baltimore to Richmond.

Um, I will start by saying, first of all, I love the metaphor of anchor institution, but I also believe we need to be thinking about other metaphors as well.

And so certainly we're anchor institutions, but at the same time, we are institutions that set sail, to a city, to a region, uh, and we need to be thinking about the impact, not just in grounding a region, but also in animating a region.

And so that's something else that I think we need to bring to the table.

Secondly, I also want to point out, before I get into this a bit more, that we are blessed in this region to have multiple HBCUs.

This city alone, HBCU Squared with partner in crime Maurice Eddington and UDC.

But we think about Bowie, we think about [indistinct] and we think about -- there's so many institutions and all of us, um, contribute in very dynamic ways to our local and regional economies.

So when we think about, uh, Howard University, we think about an anchor institution such as ours, there are several things that come to fore.

We are economic drivers.

We create jobs.

We attract talent.

We generate substantial economic activity.

We are also a stable presence in our community.

Howard, for instance, has been here since 1867.

157 years we have been a part of this community, a part of the District of Columbia.

We've seen this city grow, and we're not going anywhere.

Uh, we invest in our community.

We provide programs.

We provide services and support.

We have 14 schools and colleges at Howard alone.

And they create -- they help us create stronger neighborhoods.

Uh, we serve our residents and our community.

We're also the hubs of innovation, uh, through our research in areas such as health disparities A.I., big data, STEM, some of the buzzwords that really resonate in our current society, or any number of areas.

Divinity, sociology.

When you think about all of the contributions of an institution like ours, these are areas where our exceptionally talented faculty and students are engaged and where we give back.

HBCUs play a special and unique role because of our historical mission and the role that this emphasizes for our commitment to social mobility, to really elevating and attracting a diverse talent.

We create incredible talent pipelines that other institutions, quite frankly, don't replicate in the ways that we do as HBCUs.

And we serve and focus on serving African American communities and minoritized populations.

What this means is that when we engage in partnerships, um, even commercial partnerships, we are also looking for ways to elevate the underserved.

We are looking to, uh, to hone in on underrepresented minority, uh, business owners, for instance.

I had a chance last week to kind of walk through and see some of our partnerships firsthand.

And I was struck by not just the level of partnerships, but also how we are serving to help provide even greater education, greater training for some of our business partners who seek it.

So these are some of the -- some of the areas, Kathy, that have really -- that hone in on what we mean by being an anchor institution that sets sail.

But, Kathy, if you don't mind, I'd like to turn the tables to you for a minute because you set the stage for this discussion with that question.

The Greater Washington Partnership places a strong emphasis on economic growth.

It also places an incredible emphasis on shared prosperity.

So how does the partnership define these concepts and gets people to see that these are not just buzzwords, but they mean something?

So I'd love to pitch it back to you.

>> Sure, people didn't know this was back and forth, did you?

Uh, we wanted to add a little bit of surprise here.

So, yes, Tony Pierce talked about this a little bit earlier, but, um, I will say that we as -- and when I say we, I'm really speaking on behalf of our leading employers.

Um, but we define economic growth as sustainable development of the region's economy, and that's ensuring that prosperity is shared by all.

And when we speak to shared prosperity, we're really speaking to the benefits that come from growth, how there's access to good jobs, there's quality education, there's infrastructure, but that they reach every part of our community, especially those, again, who have been historically marginalized.

So, no, we work really hard to make sure that these are not just buzzwords to us.

Um, inclusive growth is a core pillar to our mission at the organization, and we deliver on this through tangible, measurable initiatives and not necessarily all the initiatives that one could take on as an organization, but ones that really focus on investing in people, infrastructure, growth and communities to really think about how we build a more resilient and competitive economy.

And our efforts, for those who know the partnership, are really to expand education, job training, transportation.

They're all designed to ensure that economic opportunities are equitably distributed.

Um, so to ensure that these concepts are grounded in action, as I mentioned, we set clear goals and we regularly track our progress.

For instance, again, going back to two years ago when we were here, leading employers set a goal of $4.7 billion, um, towards a five year goal to advance inclusive growth in the region.

And today we've met close to 70% of that target, not at a halfway point, but at two years, with $2.1 billion invested by leading employers like Clark Construction, who are here, CareFirst, who is here, Howard University, who's right to my right, Dominion Energy, Northrop Grumman, Aiken, companies like Amazon and JPMorgan Chase have contributed over $1 billion to support initiatives and entrepreneurship in health equity and affordable housing.

And additionally, more than $90 million has been directed toward access to capital for underrepresented populations by firms like Exelon, CareFirst I mentioned -- you got two mentions -- and Wells Fargo, but I think -- and there are so many that I am not mentioning.

Um, this is not just philanthropy for our leading employers.

This is smart economics, and this is a part of how they grow their presence and make impact where taking on an inclusive approach to growth propels both our region's businesses but also our communities.

And I will say, I think this is one thing that is not noted often.

We work collaboratively through the work that we do with other businesses, with other organizations, with government, with elected officials and community organization to take the goals, take our findings, take our gleanings, and to be able to have them translated into real action through our partners in the region.

And it really is an effort that ensures that economic growth benefits everyone and making our region stronger, more inclusive and more competitive on the global stage.

Uh, Dr. Vinson, let's talk a little bit about -- I would almost just flip that question and ask you as one of those leading employers at the table, and as we talked about some of the investments that have been made, how has Howard University contributed to inclusive economic growth in this region?

>> Well, um, we have, as the video mentioned, we have a workforce of about 5,000 people.

Our annual payroll is about $400 million.

We are a significant driver of economic activity in DC and the region.

And last year, for example, the university spent $235 million with local, uh, and diverse vendors.

Uh, our students -- you cannot forget our students -- they're major consumers and their consumer spending is more than about $25 million a year.

So I'm looking at our students in the room.

I'm sure you didn't -- sure you didn't realize that.

But you are a catalyst here as well.

So as a result of our direct spending that also drives secondary and tertiary spending, the university has a $1.5 billion, almost a $1.6 billion impact in the Washington area.

Um, and when we look at the city itself in the metro area, we have a $1.1, almost a $1.2 billion impact just in D.C. and we support about 8,800 jobs.

So we're also about to implement a master campus plan.

And as we execute this plan over the next several years, uh, we will be investing about another $800 million in capital facilities.

And this is a great opportunity to further support local businesses and really diverse owned businesses, which is a part of our mission.

So our team has been focused, Kathy, is focused on ensuring that there are opportunities for local and diverse owned business participation.

Again, this is something that's so important to this institution and to HBCUs.

Um, and we're going to be doing this as we really execute these projects over the next several years.

Thank you.

You know, let me ping pong it back to you, Kathy, if you don't mind.

And so let me ask you that as we look to create more equitable economic opportunities, what are some of the key metrics or indicators that the Greater Washington Partnership uses to measure the success of inclusive economic growth in our region?

>> So I would, um -- let me say this.

In 2022, we created two critical tools.

One was an inclusive economic growth plan, which we call a blueprint.

But I like to define it -- it's a growth plan -- and a dashboard that serves as a tool that the region can use as well to help guide us in our progress.

So the blueprint is a ten year roadmap designed to drive growth and regional economic competitiveness and close the region's equity gaps.

The dashboard contains over 40 indicators measuring the region's progress in six key pillars, or categories, of the information that's tied to our inclusive economic growth plan, our blueprint.

Um, the data in the dashboard really serves to provide awareness of how we're doing, our region's overall economic health, and our intra-regional progress against important equity metrics.

And within those indicators, there are key metrics that we can zoom in on as we get a better sense of the success of inclusive economic growth and larger objectives in the region.

So I will say that, yes, we are very proud of the efforts that were made two years ago.

But these are not just data points from these tools.

They really help us tell a needed story of how well we are creating equitable opportunities and ensuring the region thrives.

And what we know is we have a lot of work to do.

Um, the three we see from our most recent dashboard refresh, which was just a couple of months ago, are jobs, GDP and housing.

So with jobs, while we're making progress, we've just barely recovered the jobs that were lost during the pandemic.

In Washington, D.C., we're still 30,000 jobs below pre-pandemic levels.

And Baltimore faces similar challenges.

GDP -- the shift of jobs to lower cost areas has slowed our region's economic output, and as a region, again, from Baltimore to Richmond, we've slipped from third to fourth place in GDP compared to peers since 2017.

Um, there are other parts of the country like New York City, LA, and the Bay Area, in particular areas that are outpacing us.

On housing -- housing is critical for our region's economic vitality.

We know that.

We're hearing that surface regularly.

It's the Metropolitan Council of Governments, COG, they project that we need 320,000 new housing units by 2030 to keep pace with our region's growth.

But as of this year, we're on track to meet about 68% of that goal, which, that's a shortfall of over -- I'm not very good at math -- $110,000.

Um, but we know that a constrained housing market, it sets us back and it limits our growth, our job growth, our population retention and our affordability.

What I will say, Dr. Vinson, is I think partners like Howard University, they play a vital role in addressing the three that we are zooming on at this moment, one, by equipping students with skills for high growth jobs and sectors.

Howard strengthens the region's talent pipeline and it fuels future economic growth.

Your focus on increasing housing supply -- this is an example, this building that we're sitting in as an example of that, through your campus planning -- is a model for the kind of leadership we are going to need by so many to keep the region accessible and affordable for graduates and residents alike.

Uh, so we have work to do, but we have partners in place, and we have a table of incredible leading employers who are committed to the work, so knowing where we are and knowing the vulnerabilities will only position us for greater success.

>> So I think I'll ask you one more if that's okay.

All right.

So, Kathy, the Greater Washington Partnership and Howard University have already begun some impactful collaborations.

When you look ahead, what are some of the key areas where you see the partnership and Howard working together to even drive greater impact on this community?

>> Yeah, I would say that one key area, um, is really aligning education with employer needs.

And we, you know, we talk a lot at the partnership about these tools that we create.

The tools that we create are not for the partnership staff.

They're really for the region to use as a tool to help inform them in any way that is helpful.

But one of our tools is our employer signaling system, which really integrates labor market data and employer insights to ensure, yes, Howard graduates, but I would say graduates, are prepared for the high demand roles with leading companies and organizations throughout the region, um, and directly with the table of 35 plus employers who are at our table.

Um, there is really an opportunity to make sure that we are doing that much more intentionally and talking and communicating much more regularly to ensure that the information that you have from our table is helpful and helps inform a student's journey.

Also, I would say, um, Howard's pioneering work in AI through partnerships with our employers, with our organization, that's an area where the partnership and Howard could think about how we elevate the new AI initiative on ethics, research, and skills development.

I think we all need to lean in more in this area.

So to have a thought partner to do that with, knowing that you are really leading in this innovative space would be terrific.

And I would say that there has been history.

The partnership has supported Howard students with our Emerging Tech Talent scholarship, ensuring that students have access to opportunities in these in-demand sectors that lead to economic mobility.

We should do more of that.

Our goal is to really have our thought partners at the academic Institutions really lead us as we think about the growth that is needed, to think about the issues that we need to address collectively.

Recognizing that the priorities that you have, that you have been sharing today, but you have probably -- you're going to be sharing all week, are really tied to what we as leading employers in the region are grappling with, but very ready to collaborate with the international partners on.

Dr. Vinson, I think that I get the final question today.

I would ask that, as you ask us that question, I can give you answers on what I think are key areas that we can be much more strategic in collaborating on.

But I would ask you the same question.

As you think about the Greater Washington Partnership, you think about leading CEOs like Brian Penick, Robbie Moser, Tony Pierce, who are right here who represent so much of what they want in terms of growth, how can we as an organization partner more effectively and strategically with you at Howard?

>> So, Kathy, thank you for that last question.

I really believe that it's convenings and conversations like the one we're having right now that are really critical to driving inclusive prosperity.

I think that the Greater Washington Partnership, when we stand shoulder to shoulder -- you with your organization, Howard University -- this plays a key role in helping engage our partners and our colleagues so that we emphasize how important this work really is.

By fostering economic renewal and growth -- and I like to use this word maximum -- when we do it with maximum participation, we create a competitive advantage for this region.

Um, we are at a disadvantage when we do not take full advantage of the full array of human resources and human capital in the area.

So it is essential to include everyone in this process.

I also think that we have an opportunity to learn from one another so that we can apply best practices to ensure broad and diverse participation.

Um, and that is what's needed to drive the growth and development of this economy.

So at Howard, we are proud of the outreach and the technical assistance programs that we offer to minority contractors and suppliers.

So I know that our business school, for instance, has programs.

We have ways in which if contractors need some additional capacitation, there are through lines through our business school to help provide additional skills.

I believe it's Howard Builds, I can't remember.

Yes, Rashad is nodding.

Howard Builds.

Um, when we actively match small, local, diverse businesses with larger companies to ensure that these small businesses have opportunities to work on larger projects within our ecosystem of contracting, this is a recipe for success.

When we talk about building shared prosperity, as a university, we're also deeply committed to ensuring minority participation in ownership and equity structures of our development projects.

So institutions like Howard, our fellow brother and sister HBCUs, UDC -- shout out to UDC -- and really, all across the nation, we have so much to contribute when we talk about conversations around inclusive growth and contributing to the groundswell of Black talent.

So as a university, we're always going to be a place of learning, a place of building and growing, and we're always eager to learn from others on how we can expand the reach of this space for greater shared prosperity.

So we recognize the importance of working with entities like GWP, um, to continually evolve and to enhance our efforts to foster inclusive growth.

So I thank you for the work you do and the organization does to really serve as a major driver for this region.

So thank you.

>> Thank you, Dr. Vinson.

This was wonderful.

>> This program was produced by WHUT and made possible by contributions from viewers like you.

For more information on this program or any other program, please visit our website at WHUT.org.

Thank you.