Historically Black Colleges and Universities

A brief history

There are 105 historically black universities and colleges, and the majority were created in the United States after the Civil War. They were defined by the Higher Education Act of 1965 as any college or university established prior to 1964 whose main mission was (and is) to educate black Americans, and were accredited--or made strides toward being accredited--by nationally-recognized agencies.

The history of these historical black colleges and universities offer stories of courage, dedication, and commitment to the ideal of intellectual pursuit for all Americans.

Ethnic background and college admissions

Colleges normally give you the option of describing yourself as a member of one or more of these groups: American Indian or Alaskan Native, Black or African-American, Mexican-American or Chicano, Puerto Rican, Other Hispanic-American or Latin American, Asian American or Pacific Islander, or multiracial.

Many colleges aggressively recruit students from under-represented minority populations, and financial aid opportunities are great. Most admission offices have a counselor who is in charge of this effort, and this person can serve as good source of information as well as an advocate in the process.

Below, you can find a complete list of all historically black colleges and universities.

School	State	Type
Alabama A&M University	Alabama	Public
Alabama State University	Alabama	Public
Albany State University	Georgia	Public
Alcorn State University	Mississippi	Public
Allen University	South Carolina	Private
Arkansas Baptist College	Arkansas	Private
Benedict College	South Carolina	Private
Bennett College	North Carolina	Private
Bethune-Cookman University	Florida	Private
Bishop State Community College	Alabama	Public
Bluefield State College	West Virginia	Public
Bowie State University	Maryland	Public
Central State University	Ohio	Public
Charles Drew University of Medicine and Science	California	Private
Cheyney University of Pennsylvania	Pennsylvania	Public
Claflin University	South Carolina	Private
Clark Atlanta University	Georgia	Private
Clinton Junior College	South Carolina	Private
Coahoma Community College	Mississippi	Public
Concordia College	Alabama	Private
Coppin State University	Maryland	Public
Delaware State University	Delaware	Public
Denmark Technical College	South Carolina	Public
Dillard University	Louisiana	Private
Edward Waters College	Florida	Private
Elizabeth City State University	North Carolina	Public
Fayetteville State University	North Carolina	Public
Fisk University	Tennessee	Private
Florida A&M University	Florida	Public
Florida Memorial University	Florida	Private
Fort Valley State University	Georgia	Public
Gadsden State Community College	Alabama	Public
Grambling State University	Louisiana	Public
Hampton University	Virginia	Private
Harris-Stowe State University	Missouri	Public
Hinds Community College at Utica	Mississippi	Public
Howard University	District of Columbia	Private
Huston-Tillotson University	Texas	Private
Interdenominational Theological Center	Georgia	Private
J. F. Drake State Technical College	Alabama	Public
Jackson State University	Mississippi	Public
Jarvis Christian College	Texas	Private
Johnson C. Smith University	North Carolina	Private
Kentucky State University	Kentucky	Public
Lane College	Tennessee	Private
Langston University	Oklahoma	Public
Lawson State Community College	Alabama	Public
LeMoyne-Owen College	Tennessee	Private
Lincoln University	Pennsylvania	Public
Lincoln University of Missouri	Missouri	Public
Livingstone College	North Carolina	Private
Meharry Medical College	Tennessee	Private
Miles College	Alabama	Private
Mississippi Valley State University	Mississippi	Public
Morehouse College	Georgia	Private
Morehouse School of Medicine	Georgia	Private
Morgan State University	Maryland	Public
Morris College	South Carolina	Private
Norfolk State University	Virginia	Public
North Carolina A&T State University	North Carolina	Public
North Carolina Central University	North Carolina	Public
Oakwood University	Alabama	Private
Paine College	Georgia	Private
Paul Quinn College	Texas	Private
Philander Smith College	Arkansas	Private
Prairie View A&M University	Texas	Public
Rust College	Mississippi	Private
Saint Paul's College	Virginia	Private
Savannah State University	Georgia	Public
Shaw University	North Carolina	Private
Shelton State Community College	Alabama	Public
South Carolina State University	South Carolina	Public
Southern University and A&M College	Louisiana	Public
Southern University at New Orleans	Louisiana	Public
Southern University at Shreveport	Louisiana	Public
Southwestern Christian College	Texas	Private
Spelman College	Georgia	Private
St. Augustine's College	North Carolina	Private
St. Philip's College	Texas	Public
Stillman College	Alabama	Private
Talladega College	Alabama	Private
Tennessee State University	Tennessee	Public
Texas College	Texas	Private
Texas Southern University	Texas	Public
Tougaloo College	Mississippi	Private
Trenholm State Technical College	Alabama	Public
Tuskegee University	Alabama	Private
University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff	Arkansas	Public
University of Maryland Eastern Shore	Maryland	Public
University of the District of Columbia	District of Columbia	Public
University of the Virgin Islands	United States Virgin Islands	Public
Virginia State University	Virginia	Public
Virginia Union University	Virginia	Private
Virginia University of Lynchburg	Virginia	Private
Voorhees College	South Carolina	Private
West Virginia State University	West Virginia	Public
Wilberforce University	Ohio	Private
Wiley College	Texas	Private
Winston-Salem State University	North Carolina	Public
Xavier University of Louisiana	Louisiana	Private