In December 2008, Georgia state senator Seth Harp ignited controversy when he proposed merging two historically Black colleges with nearby predominantly white colleges to save money. Less than a year later, Mississippi governor Haley Barbour sought to unite Mississippi's three predominantly Black colleges. These efforts kindled renewed interest in historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) across the nation and the globe. In this study, HBCU officials and faculty attempt to identify the challenges that HBCUs face, explore the historic origin of HBCU management systems, and identify models of success that will improve the long-term viability of the HBCU. By analyzing HBCUs within a larger framework of American higher education and the cultural context in which HBCUs operate, these essays introduce a new paradigm in the quest to ensure that HBCUs continue to play an important role in the education of Americans of all races.

This exhaustive analysis of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) throughout history discusses the institutions and the major events, individuals, and organizations that have contributed to their existence. The oldest HBCU, Cheyney University of Pennsylvania, was founded in 1837 by Quaker philanthropist Richard Humphreys as the Institute for Colored Youth. By 1902, at least 85 such schools had been established and, in subsequent years, the total grew to 105. Today approximately 16 percent of America's black college students are enrolled in HBCUs. Historically Black Colleges and Universities: An Encyclopedia brings the stories of these schools together in a comprehensive volume that explores the origin and history of each Historically Black College and University in the United States. Major founders and contributors to HBCUs, including whites, free blacks, churches, and states, are discussed and distinguished alumni are profiled. Specific examples of the impact of HBCUs and their alumni on American culture and the social and political history of the United States are also examined. In addition to looking at the HBCUs themselves, the book analyzes historical events and legislation of the past 174 years that impacted the founding, funding, and growth of these history-making schools.

Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) are valuable institutions that provide intellectual domains for racial uplift, racial refuge, and cultural empowerment within a continually polarized nation. Today’s current racial climate reminds us of the historical context that gave birth to HBCUs and segregated athletic experiences. While the sporting life at HBCUs is an integral part of these institutions’ mission, there is a dearth of research about HBCU athletics. In The Athletic Experience at Historically Black Colleges and Universities: Past, Present, and Persistence, leading scholars from across the nation present a holistic examination of the integral role sports have played at HBCUs. Chapters in this volume cover a range of topics, from HBCU Football Classics to economics. It begins with a historical overview of HBCUs and the early sporting life before delving into the experiences of today’s male and female student-athletes—including the unique perspectives of athletes who transferred from historically White colleges and universities to HBCUs. Other chapters examine economic issues at HBCUs, such as the financial viability of their athletic departments in the context of the larger NCAA economic framework, and recommendations for the future of HBCU athletics to restore both academic and athletic excellence at these institutions. An important addition to the existing literature on race in contemporary society, this volume provides a narrative of the Black experience from the historical origins of educating Blacks, their early athletic experiences, and the current state of athletics at HBCUs. The Athletic Experience at Historically Black Colleges and Universities is a significant contribution to the debate on college athletics and higher education, in general, and athletics at HBCUs, specifically. It is a must-read for sport studies scholars and students, sport management practitioners, and sport enthusiasts of the inter-workings of athletics and the HBCU experience.

Beginning in the 1830s, public and private higher education institutions established to serve African-Americans operated in Pennsylvania and Ohio, the Border States, and the states of the old Confederacy. Until recently the vast majority of people of African descent who received post-secondary education in the United States did so in historically black institutions. Spurred on by financial and accreditation issues, litigation to assure compliance with court decisions, equal higher education opportunity for all citizens, and the role of race in admissions decisions, interest in the role, accomplishments, and future of Historically Black Colleges and Universities has been renewed. This volume touches upon these issues. Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) are a diverse group of 105 institutions. They vary in size from several hundred students to over 10,000. Prior to Brown v. Board of Education, 90 percent of African-American postsecondary students were enrolled in HBCUs. Currently the 105 HBCUs account for 3 percent of the nation's educational institutions, but they graduate about one-quarter of African-Americans receiving college degrees. The competition that HBCUs currently face in attracting and educating African-American and other students presents both challenges and opportunities. Despite the fact that numerous studies have found that HBCUs are more effective at retaining and graduating African-American students than predominately white colleges, HBCUs have serious detractors. Perhaps because of the increasing pressures on state governments to assure that public HBCUs receive comparable funding and provide programs that will attract a broader student population, several public HBCUs no longer serve primarily African-American students. There is reason to believe, and it is the opinion of several contributors to this book, that in the changing higher education environment HBCUs will not survive, particularly those that are financially weak. The contributors to this volume provide cutting-edge data as well as solid social analysis of this major concern in black life--as well as American higher education as a whole.

Historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) were originally founded to provide the educational opportunities that other post-secondary schools had denied to black Americans. Today these schools face new challenges, and how they respond is shaped in large part by the men and women at the helm. Ten HBCU presidents speak out in this volume, addressing the fundamental issues confronting minority higher education. They discuss the historical role of black colleges; the current mission of HBCUs; and the effects of diversity programs, minority recruiting goals and globalization. Other topics include the impact of technology on college classrooms and the priorities and challenges in fundraising and development. Each chapter is devoted to the comments of one of the ten educators, and each includes a brief professional biography. An appendix includes profiles of historically black institutions.

There are currently 109 historically black colleges and universities in the United States. Established before 1964, their mission was and continues to be the education of black Americans for service and leadership in the black community as well as the wider community. Ever since Lincoln University opened its doors in 1854, controversy has raged over separate black institutions of higher learning. Roebuck and Murty review the history of black colleges from the antebellum years (prior to 1865) to the present. They provide profiles of each of the major black universities from their founding until today, including their current student composition and faculty makeup. Reviewing the literature on race relations in college life, the authors describe tensions on white and black campuses as reported in journals and periodicals. They then analyze and interpret the results of their own empirical study of race relations on fifteen campuses in the southeastern United States. This is the first comprehensive coverage of the subject.

A highly readable overview of the rich past of historically black colleges and universities, and how their role in higher education is evolving for the future. Historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) have influenced African American lives and communities since 1837. Historically Black Colleges and Universities provides a past and present look at their role in higher education. This volume addresses why these institutions exist, how effective they've been, and if today's 103 HBCUs are still necessary. Special attention is given to the years since 1954 and to desegregation cases such as Brown v. Board of Education, United States v. Fordice, and other judicial decisions. The volume highlights government relations, leadership, and philanthropy as they apply to HBCUs. Also, a chapter provides a case study of the Historically Minority Universities Bioscience and Biotechnology Program Initiative, and a final chapter suggests research agendas for the 21st century.