The First HBCU: Remembering The Oldest Black Colleges In the Nation
|
Posted By: Hija Chang on February 28, 2019 FEATURED Content Do you know when and where the first HBCU was established? Black colleges have played an important role in the education, empowerment, and success of African-American students, from the missionaries that taught runaway slaves to the trade schools that were founded in the early 20th century. Some HBCUs, however, have more history than others: there are over 100 HBCUs in the United States, and many of those institutions have served African-American students for more than one-hundred years. We’ll take a look at the people, places, and traditions that have shaped the first HBCU: Cheyney University of Pennsylvania: The First HBCU In The United States Richard Humphreys, a Quaker philanthropist, arrived in Philadelphia in 1764. Humphreys knew that African-Americans needed trade schools that would prepare them for the job market, so he dedicated one-tenth of his estate to the creation of a new kind of institution. Cheyney University of Pennsylvania (which was originally called the Institute for Colored Youth) was founded in 1837, and it is currently recognized as the oldest HBCU in the United States. https://hbculifestyle.com/ If you enjoyed this article, Join HBCU CONNECT today for similar content and opportunities via email! |
 |
Hija Chang
Management, See Moss Interactive Central State University class of 2021 Member Since January 2011 |
Comments
More From This Author
Latest News
 |
Delaware State University Nears 7,000 Students as Fall Enrollment Outpaces Last Year's RecordDelaware State University is approaching a record 7,000 students this fall, with enrollment up nearly 40% since 2020 and the largest in-state freshman class in school history. ...more
Roger The Great • 72 Views • October 7th, 2026 |
 |
Byron Allen's Allen Media Group/HBCU GO Announces 2027 Basketball ScheduleAllen Media Group's free-streaming digital and television platform, HBCU GO – the leading media provider for the nation's 107 Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) – will tip off its 20 ...more
Reginald Claremont • 70 Views • October 7th, 2026 |
 |
VSU Welcomes College Hill Cast Back to the Hill as 2026 Homecoming Parade Honorary Deputy MarshalsTwenty years after cameras captured life on e Hill, the cast of BET’s College Hill is coming home. Virginia State University will welcome eight members of the show’s VSU season as honorary deputy mar ...more
Reginald Claremont • 66 Views • October 7th, 2026 |
 |
FAMU School of the Environment Celebrates Nexus Scholars at White Coat and Greening CeremonyFlorida A&M University’s School of the Environment celebrated 26 incoming Nexus Scholars and 21 graduating seniors during its White Coat and Greening Ceremony on Sept. 18 at the Frederick Humphries Sc ...more
Reginald Claremont • 70 Views • October 7th, 2026 |
Popular News
 |
Louisiana Upholds Life Sentence to Black Man For Stealing Hedge Trimmers in 1997While this may not be HBCU related news, as an AFrican American male, I had to share this appalling decision by the Louisiana court system to keep a man in jail with a life sentence for such a petty c ...more
Roger The Great • 405,886 Views • August 6th, 2020 |
 |
Blonde Instagram Model Goes Viral for Graduating from HBCU and Pledging Delta Sigma Theta!A blonde woman is going viral this morning, for graduating from A Historically Black College while pledging a Black sorority, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated.
@Blonde_HBCU
The woman, an IG ...more
Roger The Great • 190,211 Views • November 30th, 2020 |
 |
Apple to Invest over $40 Million Dollars into HBCUs - Time to major in Computer Science!!!On Tuesday Johnny C. Taylor, President and CEO of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund stopped by “NewsOne Now” to make a major announcement that could literally change the lives of thousands of HBCU st ...more
Roger The Great • 131,022 Views • March 11th, 2015 |
 |
North Carolina HBCU Unity DayShaw University - Elizabeth City State University - Johnson C. Smith University - Fayetteville State University - Livingstone College - North Carolina A&T State University - North Carolina Central Uni ...more
Reginald Claremont • 118,090 Views • August 8th, 2016 |
 |
Black Billionaire Robert F. Smith to Donate $50 Million to Support STEM Students at HBCUsThe Student Freedom Initiative announced today a $50 million personal gift from Robert F. Smith, philanthropist and Founder, Chairman and CEO of Vista Equity Partners. This gift matches the initial fu ...more
Roger The Great • 86,615 Views • October 22nd, 2020 |
