St. Augustine’s University Inquires About Joining President Trump’s Higher Education Compact

In October, President Donald Trump sent nine prominent universities the “Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education.” According to the document, the White House promises to provide these institutions with multiple positive benefits and federal funding if the institutions agree to a myriad of Trump’s terms, including limits on foreign student enrollment and bans on race or gender requirements in admissions. All nine of the originally contacted universities declined or remain noncommittal on the proposal.

Now, St. Augustine’s University in Raleigh, North Carolina, is the first historically Black college or university to reach out to the Trump Administration and express interest in joining the compact, according to a letter acquired by Fox News. 

St. Augustine’s University has been in the midst of financial turmoil in recent years and has struggled to maintain its accreditation with the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges. The HBCU has also experienced significant leadership turnover. Earlier this semester, just weeks after the university secured temporary accreditation via court order, St. Augustine’s Interim President Marcus Burgess abruptly resigned.

In a letter addressed to the U.S. Department of Education, St. Augustine’s new Interim President Verjanis Peoples and board chair Sophie Gibson wrote, “On behalf of Saint Augustine’s University, we write to express our desire to participate in and help shape the Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education. As one of the nation’s oldest historically Black colleges and universities, with a 158-year legacy of expanding educational opportunity and transforming lives, we support the Compact’s broad goal of strengthening academic excellence, accountability, and transparency across American higher education.”

However, Dr. Peoples and Dr. Gibson also mention several provisions of the compact that are not compatible with St. Augustine’s mission, stating that they “cannot implement requirements that would directly conflict with our identity as a historically Black university or undermine our ability to serve the populations for whom we were created.”

Despite their concerns, Dr. Peoples and Dr. Gibson remain eager to discuss future collaboration with the U.S. Department of Education.

They continue, “We look forward to working closely with your office to advance a version of the Compact that strengthens American higher education, honors the unique role of HBCUs, and expands pathways to opportunity for all students. Saint Augustine’s University would be honored to participate fully in this important national initiative — with the understanding that we cannot adopt provisions that contradict the mission that Congress itself has charged us to uphold.”

Update: Oakwood University, a historically Black educational institution in Alabama, has also inquired about the Compact. In a letter to the Department of Education, Gina Brown, president of Oakwood University, wrote “while we strongly support the Compact’s overarching goals, several provisions of the draft framework raise important concerns that, if left unaddressed, could unintendedly hinder HBCUs’ ability to participate fully or effectively. Absent a mission-based exemption, HBCUs would face an untenable choice between compliance and fulfilling their congressionally mandated purpose” to serve African American students.