HBCUs & The Power Of Stepping In Community-Building

In 1799, John Chavis, the first African American on record to attend college, enrolled in Washington & Lee University. However, it wasn’t until 1823 that the first African American, Alexander Lucius Twilight, earned a bachelor’s degree from an American university Middlebury College. Later, in 1862, the first African American woman, Mary Jane Patterson, earned a bachelor’s degree from Oberlin college. Accessing higher education wasn’t always feasible for African American people in the United States.

With a mission to teach free African Americans skills for gainful employment, Richard Humphreys established the first HBCU (historically black college and university), now known as Cheyney University, in 1837. Because black students were unwelcome at existing public and private colleges and universities, HBCUs were established to provide undergraduate and graduate level education to African Americans. The majority of HBCUs were established shortly thereafter, between 1865-1900. Specifically, the greatest number of HBCUs started in 1867, after the Emancipation Proclamation declared “that all persons held as slaves” within the rebellious states “are, and henceforward shall be free.”

Why HBCUs Exist

Even after the passing of legislation, black students still face insurmountable barriers to attend existing institutions of higher education. For that reason, HBCUs exist to offer all students, regardless of race, the opportunity to develop their skills and pursue a profession. World-renowned individuals like Rev. Jesse Jackson (North Carolina A&T State University), Samuel L. Jackson (Morehouse College), Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (Morehouse College), Toni Morrison (Howard University), Dr. Ruth Simmons (Dillard University), Wanda Sykes (Hampton University), and Oprah Winfrey (Tennessee State University) graduated from an HBCU. Today, there are  more than 100 HBCUs identified by the United States Department of Education.