Robert Mason, an author, higher education professional, and advocate for America’s historically Black colleges and universities who has inspired hundreds of thousands of Black students to enroll, has died. He was 66.
Todd Mason, his brother, confirmed his death to JS. A cause of death has not been released at this time.
Mason is best known for creating the Common Black College Application, or CBCA, a portal that allows prospective students to apply to over 60 HBCUs, like Morehouse College, Claflin University and Tennessee State University, all at once for an affordable, one-time fee.
“He believed that every Black student deserved the opportunity to pursue higher education without financial barriers,” Mason’s CBCA team said in a statement. “Through the Common Scholarship Application, he worked tirelessly to connect students with scholarship opportunities that would help them achieve their educational goals and realize their full potential.”
“His passion for educational equity became the foundation of our mission and left a lasting impact on our team and the communities we serve,” the statement continued.
He was inspired by the Common Application, the platform that allows students to submit one application for over 1,000 colleges and universities nationwide.
“What sets the CBCA apart is our unwavering commitment to Historically Black Colleges and Universities,” Mason said in a recent interview. “HBCUs have long served as engines of economic mobility and social change, and we are proud to support their enrollment efforts while connecting students with institutions where they can thrive academically and personally.”
Mason nearly missed his opportunity to attend college. Born in Roanoke, Virginia, and raised by a single mother, he finished at the bottom of his graduating class with a 1.9 GPA. He was accepted into Virginia State University in 1978, a decision that would shape the rest of his life.
After graduating from Virginia State with a bachelor’s degree in sociology, he continued to pursue higher education through HBCUs. There, he became a member of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Incorporated. He later earned his master’s degree in public administration from Clark Atlanta University, where he would work in admissions for years. It was at Clark that the idea of the Common Black College Application was born.
“I was always being asked, ‘Why is this particular college not being represented or why is this particular school not here?’” Mason told U.S. News & World Report in 2023. “And I didn’t have an answer.”
In 1998, 80 students filled out the Common Black College Application in its first year. More than 500,000 students have used the application service since, according to the CBCA website.
“Not only did he want to introduce HBCUs to students, he also wanted to help smaller HBCUs with their recruitment efforts. It was two-fold,” said Tanya Mitchell, a school counselor and a longtime colleague of Mason. “He has broken a cycle of poverty in the lives of hundreds of thousands of students worldwide.”
In the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to ban race-conscious college admissions, more students are learning about and applying to HBCUs. According to Tekora Scruggs, the Common Black College Application is still relevant now more than ever.
“It exposed students to the different types of HBCUs. There are private HBCUs and small HBCUs; there are HBCUs in Alabama, Florida, Virginia,” said Scruggs, the founder of the college access nonprofit Rooted to Rise and a 20-year higher education professional. “It exposed them not only to how to apply to HBCUs but also to information about why HBCUs are important today.”
“The impact he had was tremendous,” Scruggs continued. “The opportunity for students to learn about HBCUs reached beyond just applying. They were learning about their culture, why HBCUs were built and why they are still so important.”