A South Sudanese-Australian basketball prodigy is hoping to inspire other minorities after turning down the chance to play at some of America's biggest universities.
Makur Maker has become the highest-ranked basketball prospect in at least a decade to commit to a Historical Black College or University (HBCU), over other top colleges known for their elite athletics.
The first HBCUs were set up before the American Civil War (1861–65), mainly in the South, with the assistance of black churches and religious missionary organisations.
The main aim was to provide educational opportunities to black youths who faced racial discrimination in attending more established colleges and universities.
By choosing Howard University - which is a Historically Black College in Washington D.C. - Maker said he hoped to inspire other top athletes.
He said he hopes the bold decision starts a movement of athletes champion HBCUs.
"I was the 1st to announce my visit to Howard & other started to dream 'what if,'" he wrote on Twitter.
Maker was born in Kenya to South Sudanese parents but grew up in Perth after relocating to Australia with his family as a one-year-old.
In a shock announcement, the 19-year-old turned down offers from some of the best basketball programs in the US to instead play at the relatively-unknown Howard University.
"I need to make the HBCU movement real so that others will follow."
He made a direct appeal to Mikey Williams, a 2023 five-star recruit who said he has thought about following in his mother's footsteps and attending an HBCU.
"I hope I inspire guys like Mikey Williams to join me on this journey."
Williams responded with words of support: "On your side my boy let’s shock the world!!!"
Maker is the cousin of Detroit Pistons center Thon Maker.
The 2.11-metre (6-foot-11) player has also entered his name into the NBA draft.
If selected in the NBA draft, he would be the first HBCU athlete since Kyle O'Quinn in 2012, who attended Norfolk State University.
According to the ESPN recruiting database, which began in 2007, Maker is the first five-star prospect to commit to an HBCU.
Enrolments are expected to increase at the 101 HBCUs across the country, following the Black Lives Matter protests sparked by the death of African-American George Floyd at the hands of police.
The founder of the Women's Institute for Science, Equity and Race, Rhonda V. Sharpe, said history shows there has been a surge in enrolments at HBCUs during times of racial tensions.
She cites the example of 1996 when students chose to use their enrolment to voice their support for Proposition 209, which resulted in a ban on racial preferences in the University of California admissions system.
Ms Sharpe told the Washington Post that is because black students "did not feel welcome at majority [white] institutions."
Top black high school athletes have already indicated their preference for HBCUs, including 4-star basketball forward Nate Tabor, who will play for Norfolk State University in the 2020-21 season.
Maker was particularly impressed by the "family atmosphere" during his visit to Howard University.
"On the visit at Howard, that was the main difference. Just for me on the outside looking in, he’s part of the fabric. You’re not just the athlete or the Black athlete," Maker’s guardian, Ed Smith, told ESPN last month.
"A lot of people are comfortable with familiarity. Kids could say: 'I would feel welcome that I’m not just an athlete - I’m part of a community'."
Maker said he would be taking the opportunity to mark South Sudan Independence Day on 9 July by revealing his deeper motivation in choosing to attend Howard University in an interview on ESPN.
(L-R) Anthony Susnjara, Matur Maker, Makur Maker and Thon Maker pose for a photograph after a practice session in Los Angeles. Source: Anthony Susnjara/AAP
According to the National Center for Education Statistics, 293,000 students attended an HBCU in 2015, compared with 234,000 in 1980.
Nine percent of all African American college students attend HBCUs between 2009 and 2018, representing a 17 per cent increase between 1976 and 2018. This accompanied a more than doubling in the total number of black students attending a post-secondary institution from 1976 to 2018.
The diversity at HBCUs has increased by 9 per cent since 1976, with non-black students making up 24 per cent of enrolments in 2018.
