The White House announced Thursday that they are among the nine men and nine ladies Biden has appointed to the President's Advisory Board on Historically Black Colleges and Universities.
Biden has selected several HBCU presidents, United Airlines president and the first Black woman administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.
They will be joining Tony Allen, president of Delaware State University and Glenda Glaver, president of Tennessee State University.
Henson, a Washington, D.C. native, studied acting at Howard University, which is historically Black and the alma mater Vice President Kamala Hariri. Paul is a 12-time NBA All-Star for the Phoenix Suns as well as a two-time Olympic gold medalist.
Glover and Allen will join the board along with five other HBCU presidents. These are Virginia State University, Norfolk State University and Alabama State Universities in Virginia, Alabama State University and Prairie View A&M University respectively in Texas, New Orleans, Dillard University and Dillard University.
Lisa Jackson, the EPA's first Black administrator under the Obama administration, will join the board. Brett Hart, the president of United Airlines, will also join.
Biden will also appoint Paige Blake (20-year-old junior from Bowie State University), an HBCU located in Maryland.
According to the White House, $5.8 billion has been committed by the Administration for these historically Black colleges. This includes grants, pandemic relief funding and forgiving capital improvements debt.
