Advocates for historically Black colleges have spent years urging Congress to shore up their aging campus infrastructure and boost their research capabilities — and the Biden administration’s grant competition announcement earlier this month is the first step to attaining a new level of prestige that has long been out of reach for the institutions.
— Two grant competitions totaling nearly $100 million are underway to support research infrastructure and student retention. About $50 million will go toward a research and development infrastructure grants which are slated to play a key role in fueling HBCU leaders’ push to attain the coveted Research-1 status — an indicator of research prowess that opens doors to research grants — which no HBCU holds.
— The grants, which were funded by the last appropriations cycle, will bolster construction on campuses, but also expand the HBCU research footprint. While HBCUs are only 3 percent of colleges, they produce about 25 percent of all Black STEM graduates.
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