Historically Black Colleges and Universities

Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) are U.S. institutions of higher education established primarily to educate Black Americans. Federal law defines HBCUs by their founding purpose and date, not by the racial composition of their current student bodies.

Morrill Acts: U.S. laws that provided federal support for colleges focused on agriculture and the mechanical arts. The Second Morrill Act of 1890 required states with segregated higher education to provide land-grant access for Black students.
Thurgood Marshall College Fund: A nonprofit organization that supports public HBCUs and predominantly Black community colleges. It funds programs and advocates for institutions that educate a large share of Black college students.
Booker T. Washington: An educator and political leader who founded Tuskegee Institute in Alabama in 1881. His leadership at Tuskegee made him one of the most influential figures in HBCU history.
Predominantly white institution: A U.S. college or university whose student population is predominantly white. Unlike HBCUs, these institutions were not established primarily to educate Black Americans.
American Missionary Association: A Protestant organization that established and supported schools for formerly enslaved people and their descendants. It founded or supported several colleges that later became HBCUs after the Civil War.
United Negro College Fund: A nonprofit organization that raises funds for scholarships and private historically Black colleges and universities. Its scholarships and institutional support help sustain private HBCUs and expand student access.
W. E. B. Du Bois: A sociologist, historian, and civil rights activist who advocated higher education and political rights for Black Americans. His teaching at Atlanta University connected HBCU scholarship with arguments for racial equality.
Tribal college: A college controlled by a Native American tribe, often serving Indigenous communities and preserving tribal knowledge. Tribal colleges share a community-serving mission but differ in the populations and histories that define them.
Freedmen's Bureau: A U.S. federal agency established in 1865 to assist formerly enslaved people and refugees after the Civil War. Its education programs helped establish schools that formed part of the postwar foundation for Black higher education.
HBCU research: Scientific, scholarly, and technical work conducted at historically Black colleges and universities. HBCUs contribute research and train scientists, engineers, and scholars despite longstanding resource disparities.

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