Difficult Times for Private Black Colleges

Abstract

T A A he nation's historically black colleges and universities were established in the middle to late nineteenth century for one principal reason: black people could not attend white colleges. From the beginning, these colleges were generally open to both sexes and all races of people. Later, in most southern states, legislators passed laws which restricted the mixing of the races in the same school; such legislation established a pattern of de jure segregated higher education that has been in existence for most of the last one hundred years. Not until 1964 were significant efforts made to dismantle this de jure, and in some cases de facto, segregation. What has been the result of these efforts? What are the status and future prospects of independent black colleges which face a changed environment where they must compete against all colleges for students and resources and not just among themselves and the once badly financed public black colleges?