Many HBCUs need government funding, but some are preparing for a future without it
Colleges across the country are facing battles with the federal government over funding, but similar cuts and the potential elimination of the Education Department may be existential for historically Black colleges and universities, according to at least six college administrators and leaders who spoke with NBC News.
Colleges across the country are facing battles with the federal government over funding, but similar cuts and the potential elimination of the Education Department may be existential for historically Black colleges and universities, according to at least six college administrators and leaders who spoke with NBC News.
Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University’s (FAMU) college of pharmacy lost a $16.3 million federal grant in late March, as the Trump administration has threatened cuts at American colleges over diversity, equity and inclusion on campus. The moves are causing several Black colleges to consider what their budgets may look like with less or no federal funding.
“We’re at this position where we realize that our ancestors did not rely on federal money in order to get the work done,” said Fatima Brunson, an assistant professor for education at Spelman College, a private women’s HBCU in Atlanta with about 2,600 students.
Still, for the 100 or so HBCUs in the country — some of which were underfunded by more than $12 billion over the last 30 years compared with non-HBCUs, according to a 2022 Forbes analysis — federal cuts may translate to staff cuts, fewer students and the elimination of certain programs, according to two HBCU administrators who spoke to NBC News on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak on behalf of their universities.
One of the HBCU leaders described a shared “culture of concern” across Black colleges.
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