The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education

Airea Matthews Named Provost of Bryn Mawr College in Pennsylvania

Breaking News
Professor Matthews has taught creative writing and poetry at Bryn Mawr College since 2017. As a poet and educator, she centers her work on the intersections of language, economics, race, and social policy.

Texas Southern University Announces Two New Dean Appointments

Breaking News
At historically Black Texas Southern University, Aisha Moultry has been named interim dean of the College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences and Cheree Daniels has been named interim dean of the College of Transdisciplinary Studies.

Deborah Jones Named President of the MGH Institute of Health Professions

Breaking News
“I am inspired by the [MGH Institute for Health Professions'] mission to educate health professionals and researchers who will drive innovation in the delivery of equitable and interprofessional care,” said Dr. Jones. “This mission aligns deeply with my own purpose, which is to bring together people, ideas, and systems for the greater good, because the greater good is stronger than any individual part.”

Research & Studies

Report Analyzes Higher Education Anti-DEI Legislative Initiatives in Six U.S. States

“Banning DEI policies in higher education directly contradicts their fundamental purpose: to eliminate barriers to equal opportunity and create more equitable academic institutions,” the report authors write. “Without these programs, systemic disparities are likely to persist and widen, thereby reinforcing inequities in education, employment, and social mobility.”

How Racial Representation Impacts African Americans’ Trust in Scientific Institutions

For decades, research has documented African Americans' lower levels of trust in scientific institutions compared to Americans of other racial groups. According to a new study, this may be largely due to the persistent lack of racial diversity in the STEM workforce.

More Black Americans Would Choose to Live in the Past Than in the Future

Research & Studies
According to a new Pew Research Center survey, about one-third of Black Americans would rather live in the past than in present day, while one-fifth would prefer to live sometime in the future. Notably, half of White Americans would choose to live in the past, while just 10 percent would choose the future.

Scholars From Sub-Saharan Africa Teaching at U.S. Universities

Faculty
In the 2023-24 academic year, there were 112,552 scholars from foreign nations teaching at colleges and universities in the United States. This was a 10 percent increase from the previous year.

An Update on the Racial Gap in Six-Year College Completion Rates

Degree Attainments
Overall, 61.1 percent of college students who began their postsecondary education in fall 2019 graduated within six years. However, for Black students, just 44.0 percent completed their degree by 2025 - the lowest completion rate among all major racial groups.

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Quote of the Week

“It is imperative that we remain steadfast and recognize that our voices and stories cannot be silenced. Not by any ruling, not by any memo, and not by anybody.”

Kendal Wright,
editor-in-chief of Nineteen Fifty-Six, a magazine focused on the Black experience at the University of Alabama that was recently closed by the university's administration
(see JBHE post)

Features

Features

Five Blacks Among the Latest Cohort of 32 Rhodes Scholars From the United States

Features

MacKenzie Scott’s Donations to HBCUs: The “Haves” and the “Have Nots”

Features

Black Coaches in Pursuit of the NCAA Football Championship: One More Bridge to Cross in Collegiate Sports

Features

Thinking Beyond the Bars

Features

Why HBCUs Must Keep Education First Amid a New Era of Commercialized College Sports

Features

Top-Tier Research at HBCUs Beyond 2025

Statistic of the Week

5,900,000
Number of businesses with paid employees in the United States in 2023
201,000
Number of those firms owned by Blacks

Source: U.S. Census Bureau

Popular Categories

HBCUs (2667) Breaking News (2393) Research & Studies (2166) Appointments & Awards (2150) Honors & Awards (1126) Books (944) Faculty (906) Grants and Gifts (896) African-American History (864) In Memoriam (813) Leadership (743) Articles (719) Racial Gap (537) STEM Fields (509) Diversity (432)

JBHE Archives

All Recent Posts

Breaking News

A Change in Leadership at Jackson State University

Jackson State University President Marcus Thompson abruptly resigned on May 7. Denise Jones Gregory, the HBCU's provost, has been tapped to serve as interim president.
HBCUs

A Study by the Thurgood Marshall College Fund Examines the Financial Well-Being of HBCU Students

The Payne Research Center at the Thurgood Marshall College Fund has conducted a survey with HBCU students to gauge their financial challenges and aspirations in an effort to develop initiatives aimed at improving their financial well-being and ability to build generational wealth.
Books

Recent Books of Interest to African American Scholars

The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education regularly publishes a list of new books that may be of interest to our readers. The books included are on a wide variety of subjects and present many different points of view.
Breaking News

Willie Todd, Jr. Named the Twenty-Second President of Talladega College in Alabama

“I am profoundly honored to have been chosen to lead Talladega College, an institution with a powerful legacy and boundless potential,” said Dr. Todd. "As a proud product of an HBCU and a lifelong servant of these sacred institutions, I believe the time has come to reimagine liberal arts education as a dynamic force for the future."
Racial Gap

Despite Major Improvements, Black Women Have the Highest Breast Cancer Mortality Rates Among Women Ages 20 to 49

Breast cancer deaths among Black women aged 20-49 dropped from 16.54 deaths per 100,000 women in 2010 to just 3.41 deaths per 100,000 women in 2020. However, Black women's breast cancer mortality remains notably higher than that of White women, whose morality rate in 2020 was only 1.16 deaths per 100,000 women.
Breaking News

Alexia Hudson-Ward to Lead the Association of College and Research Libraries

Alexia Hudson-Ward, associate director for research and learning at MIT Libraries, will serve as the president-elect of the Association of College and Research Libraries beginning on July 1. This will be followed by a one-year term as president beginning July 1, 2026.
HBCUs

Eleven HBCUs Receive New “Opportunity College” Designation From Carnegie Classifications

The newly created "Opportunity Colleges and Universities" designation from Carnegie Classifications highlights institutions that successfully enroll students that reflect the communities they serve and whose alumni go on to earn competitive wages compared to their peers.
African-American History

Emory’s Crystal Sanders Wins Two Awards for New Book on Graduate Education During the Jim Crow Era

Crystal Sanders' award-winning book, A Forgotten Migration: Black Southerners, Segregation Scholarships, and the Debt Owed to Public HBCUs, explores Black southerners' efforts to secure post-baccalaureate education during the era of legal segregation.
African-American History

Institutional Archives Returned to Simmons College of Kentucky

The University of Louisville has housed Simmons College of Kentucky's institutional archives for over 50 years. Recently the physical collection has been returned to the HBCU, where it will remain and be developed into an accessible digital archive.
Appointments & Awards

Six Black Leaders Taking on New Administrative Roles in Higher Education

The Black men and women appointed to new administrative posts in higher educartion are Nicole McDonald, Lerato Barney, Rodney Lewis, Charles Jake, Brittany Holloman, and Douglas LaVergne.
Financial Aid

Fisk University Launches Transfer Scholarship Initiative for Community College Students

“This isn’t just about a scholarship - it’s about designing systems that honor where students are coming from and set them up for long-term success,” said Tiffany Steward, vice president for enrollment management and student success at Fisk University.
HBCUs

Rust College’s A’Cappella Choir Receives Top Award at International Competition

"I am immensely proud of our students," said Karl Twyner, dean of humanities at Rust College. "They worked diligently to prepare for this once-in-a-lifetime experience. Through it, they gained international exposure for themselves and the college, received valuable feedback from world-class judges, and created lifelong memories."
Grants and Gifts

Higher Education Gifts or Grants of Interest to African Americans

Here is this week’s news of grants or gifts to historically Black colleges and universities or for programs of particular interest to African Americans in higher education.
Articles

Online Articles That May Be of Interest to JBHE Readers

Each week, JBHE will provide links to online articles that may be of interest to our readers. Here are this week’s selections.
Campus Racial Incidents

Student Reports Hate Crimes at St. Mary’s College of California

A freshman student at Saint Mary's College in Moraga, California, has been the victim of racism and harassment from other students in his residence hall, who have reportedly shouted racial slurs outside of his door and written racial slurs on a communal bathroom door.
Books

Recent Books of Interest to African American Scholars

The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education regularly publishes a list of new books that may be of interest to our readers. The books included are on a wide variety of subjects and present many different points of view.
Black Studies

California State University, Bakersfield Establishes Its First Black Student Success Center

“The Dr. Thomas D. Wallace Student Success Center shall become the cornerstone for Black student success, a space where academic gaps will be closed, graduation rates will rise, and Black excellence is not only expected but is celebrated every day," said Natasha Harris, director of special programs and student retention initiatives at California State University, Bakersfield.
Financial Aid

Namibia to Offer Tuition-Free Higher Education in 2026

Beginning next year, tuition at Naminia's two state-run universities and seven vocational colleges will be completely subsidized by the government.
Degree Attainments

Ranking the Nation’s Largest HBCUs By Their Graduation Rates

JBHE has compiled a list of the graduation rates at the nation's 25 largest HBCUs by total enrollments to see how students at these schools succeed in earning a degree. Only four of the 25 HBCUs graduated at least half of their entering students within six years. The low graduation rates at many of these HBCUs is undoubtedly impacted by a long history of underfunding at these institutions.
Racism

Study Examines the Effect of 2020 BLM Protests on White Americans’ Racial Biases

After the onset of the Black Lives Matter movement in the summer of 2020, there was a rapid drop in White Americans' racial biases towards Black Americans. However, this drop was short-lived. By the end of 2020, implicit and explicit biases held by White Americans increased to nearly pre-BLM levels.
Breaking News

A New Executive Order Promotes HBCU Education

President Trump has recently signed a new executive order to "promote excellence and innovation at historically Back colleges and universities." The order establishes the White House Initiative on HBCUs and the President's Board of Advisors on HBCUs.
Black Studies

Michigan Study Highlights the Importance of Social Support Networks for Unmarried African Americans

Dr. Robert Taylor, professor of social work at the University of Michigan, has recently published a study regarding the patterns of friendships and support networks for African Americans. Unmarried Black adults are more likely to have stronger friend networks than those who are married.
Breaking News

Teresa Merriweather Orok Is the First Black Woman Leader of the University Economic Development Association

With over 35 years of professional experience, Dr. Orok currently serves as the inaugural director of the Center for Entrepreneurship, Innovation, and Economic Development at Alabama A&M University.
Racism

Study Finds Some Viewers Dismiss Brilliant Black Characters on TV or in Films as Unrealistic

People who hold strong racial biases against Black men and women's intelligence are more likely to dismiss a genius Black TV or movie character as unrealistic, even when the character is based on a real-life individual.
Breaking News

Four Black Leaders Selected for Dean Appointments at Universities

Taking on new dean assignments are Richard Sévère at Purdue University Northwest in Indiana, Monica Carson Sheriff at Hollins University in Virginia, Christopher Jenkins at Lawrence University in Wisconsin, and Agya Boakye-Boaten at the State University of New York at Geneseo.
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All Recent Posts

African-American History

Harvard to Relinquish Early Photos of Enslaved People to South Carolina Museum

A set of photographs from 1850 featuring enslaved individuals will be transferred from Harvard to the International African American Museum in South Carolina following a settlement with the subjects' descendant, Tamara Lanier. She alleges Harvard took and retained the photographs without consent and capitalized on the photos by requiring a licensing fee to reproduce the images.
Articles

Online Articles That May Be of Interest to JBHE Readers

Each week, JBHE will provide links to online articles that may be of interest to our readers. Here are this week’s selections.
In Memoriam

In Memoriam: Yvette Murphy-Erby, 1963-2025

A longtime member of the University of Arkansas community, Dr. Murphy-Erby was the first woman to serve as vice chancellor of diversity and inclusion at the institution. She was a full professor of social work who studied family well-being in underserved populations and the child welfare system.
African-American History

New Database Provides Insights Into Black Americans Born Before Emancipation

A team of scholars from several partnering organizations has identified the names of 2 million Black Americans born before emancipation who were included in the 1900 census. The database opens the door for numerous future research applications and could serve as a resource for people seeking to discover their family history.
Breaking News

Albert Mosley Named the Eighth President of Bethune-Cookman University

"I am deeply grateful for this opportunity, and I look forward to all that God has in store as I partner with our faculty, staff, students, alums, donors, and community partners in shaping a bold and inspiring future for B-CU," said Dr. Mosley. His presidency is set to begin on July 7.
Books

Recent Books of Interest to African American Scholars

The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education regularly publishes a list of new books that may be of interest to our readers. The books included are on a wide variety of subjects and present many different points of view.
Research & Studies

Study Reveals Americans’ Self-Reported Race and Ethnicity Do Not Always Match Their Genetic Ancestry

In a study of more than 2 million genetic variants in over 230,000 Americans, researchers have found subcontinental genetic ancestry, rather than self-reported race, may be a better method of understanding health disparities facing populations in the U.S.
Breaking News

Teresa Hardee Selected to Lead Bennett College in North Carolina

“I am truly honored to serve Bennett College at such a pivotal time,” said Dr. Hardee. “Bennett’s legacy is unmatched, and its future holds even greater promise. Together with the Bennett community, I am committed to building on its strengths and charting a bold path forward.”
Racial Gap

Study Finds Racial Disparities in Drug Overdose Deaths in the United States

Drug overdose deaths in the United States have decreased since 2022, but this is largely due to decreases in overdoses by White Americans. In contrast, Black Americans and Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islanders experienced statistically significant increases in the same time period.
Breaking News

Five Black Scholars Selected for Dean Appointments at Universities

The appointments are Kamau Siwatu at Texas Tech University; Courtney Anderson at Georgia State University; Michael Bolden at the University of California, Berkeley; Jide Wintoki at the University of Kansas; and Marla Peppers at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona.
HBCUs

Miles College Selected to Pilot New AI-Powered Mentorship Program

MentorPRO, an AI-powered mentorship platform, is coming to Miles College in Alabama. The HBCU's 2150 Center for Innovation, Commercialization, and Growth will oversee the program's implementation.
Appointments & Awards

New Academic Appointments for Three Black Educators at HBCUs

Kisha Cunningham Aites and Archie Williams have been selected for associate dean roles at Savannah State University and Alcorn State University, respectively. Bracy Martin has been appointed interim director of bands at Elizabeth City State University.
HBCUs

Charles R. Drew University Establishes New Transfer Agreement with Los Angeles Mission College

Beginning in Fall 2025, students who complete their associate's degree at Los Angeles Mission College and meet admissions requirements will be guaranteed admission to Charles R. Drew University. Transfer students who enroll full-time will also receive a $1,500 annual scholarship.
Appointments & Awards

Yale’s Branden Jacobs-Jenkins Wins the Tony Award for Best Play

Professor Jacobs-Jenkins recent win for his drama, Purpose, makes him the first Black playwright to receive the Tony Award for Best Play since 1987. Additionally, he is now the first Black playwright to win back-to-back Tony Awards. Last year, his play Appropriate won Best Revival of a Play.
HBCUs

Tennessee State University Expands Childcare Services for Local Families

The Tennessee State University Early Learning Center will now provide year-long childcare services for families in Nashville and beyond. The expanded center will create new hands-on training opportunities for early childhood education students.
Appointments & Awards

A Trio of Black Leaders Appointed to New Administrative Roles in Higher Education

Andre Payne, Jessie Grant, and Janel Forde are taking on new roles at Talladega College, the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, and the University of Colorado Boulder, respectively.
Grants and Gifts

Higher Education Gifts or Grants of Interest to African Americans

Here is this week’s news of grants or gifts to historically Black colleges and universities or for programs of particular interest to African Americans in higher education.
Articles

Online Articles That May Be of Interest to JBHE Readers

Each week, JBHE will provide links to online articles that may be of interest to our readers. Here are this week’s selections.
Books

Recent Books of Interest to African American Scholars

The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education regularly publishes a list of new books that may be of interest to our readers. The books included are on a wide variety of subjects and present many different points of view.
In Memoriam

In Memoriam: Bradley Simmons, 1951-2025

For nearly three decades, Simmons taught West African and Afro-Cuban music at Duke University in North Carolina. He frequently collaborated with the Duke Dance Program, serving as a mentor for both students and his fellow faculty members.
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Recent Job Listings

CSE @ TAMU Multiple Faculty Positions

Faculty

Dean of the Graduate School of Management

Administrative

Dean of the College of Education, Nursing and Health Professions

Administrative

Multiple Open Rank Faculty Positions in Engineering

Faculty

Director, Diversity, Compliance, and Title IX Coordinator

Administrative

Career Services Specialist

Administrative

Breaking News

JBHE Jobs

About Us

JBHE is dedicated to the conscientious investigation of the status and prospects for African Americans in higher education.

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