Billions owed: ‘The Debt’ covers the South’s long fight to repay public HBCUs By Mallory Yu|Sarah McCammon|Ahmad DamenJanuary 25, 2026 A long-running fight over how to calculate and repay state funding debts to public HBCUs is flaring across the South, and Emily Siner and Camellia Burris tell the story in their special ‘The Debt.’