WASHINGTON - The National Park Service (NPS) today announced $9.7 million in grants to assist 21 preservation projects in 9 states for historic structures on campuses of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).
“For more than 180 years, Historically Black Colleges and Universities have provided high-level academics, opportunities, and community for generations of students. These grants enable HBCUs to preserve the noteworthy structures that honor the past and tell the ongoing story of these historic institutions,” said NPS Director Chuck Sams.
Since the 1990s, the NPS has awarded more than $87 million in grants to over 85 of the remaining active HBCUs. Congress appropriates funding for the program through the Historic Preservation Fund (HPF). The HPF uses revenue from federal oil and gas leases on the Outer Continental Shelf, providing assistance for a broad range of preservation projects without expending tax dollars.
Accredited HBCUs are eligible to apply for this grant program, and eligible projects include physical preservation of sites listed in or eligible for the National Register of Historic Places. HBCU grants can also fund pre-preservation studies, architectural plans and specifications, historic structure reports, campus preservation plans, and National Register nominations. All projects must follow the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards and Guidelines for Archeology and Historic Preservation.
Projects receiving grants this year will preserve stories, resources, and places, such as:
- North Carolina A&T State University: The World War Memorial Stadium was designed in 1926 and is the oldest minor-league ballpark in North Carolina. This project will address repairs to the structural concrete seating deck and installation of new seating, and the addition of ADA-accessible seating as well as other safety devices.
- Mississippi Industrial College: Washington Hall was founded in 1905 and is contributing to Mississippi Industrial College Historic District. Rust College, located directly across the street acquired the property and is working to reimagine the former HBCU. This project will address repairs to the roof and building envelope.
- Selma University: Dinkins Memorial Hall is contributing to the proposed Selma University Historic District, as determined by the Alabama Historical Commission. This project will address replacement of the roof, and upgrades to the HVAC and electrical systems.
Learn more about the Historically Black Colleges and Universities grant program. Applications for $10 million in FY2022 funding will be available in fall of 2022.
2022 HBCU Grant Award Recipients
Alabama
- G.W. Trenholm Hall Preservation Project Phase II, Alabama State University, $500,000
- Williams Hall Historic Preservation Project – Phase III, Miles College, $500,000
- Preservation of Historic Dinkins Memorial Hall, Selma University, $500,000
- Restoration and Renovation of Carnegie Hall Library, Alabama A&M University, $500,000
- Transforming Sheppard Library into a Civil Rights Museum, Stillman College, $500,000
Florida
- Preservation and Restoration of Centennial Hall Phase II, Edward Waters College, $500,000
- Samuel H. Coleman Memorial Library Preservation Project, Florida A&M University, $500,000
Georgia
- Samuel T. Graves Hall Window Rehabilitation, Morehouse College, $500,000
Kentucky
- From Colored Central School to Simmons College, Simmons College of Kentucky, $500,000
Mississippi
- Preserving Ayer Hall the Margaret Walker Center, Jackson State University, $500,000
- Rehabilitation of the Council of Federated Organizations (COFO) Center, Jackson State University, $150,000
- Preservation Initiative for Woodworth Chapel, the Boddie Mansion, Galloway Hall, and Holmes Hall, Tougaloo College, $500,000
- Rehabilitation of Washington Hall, Rust College, $500,000
North Carolina
- University Historic Chapel Repairs, St. Augustine’s University, $500,000
- Rehabilitation of Tyler Hall, Shaw University, $500,000
- Rehabilitation of World War Memorial Stadium, North Carolina A&T State University, $500,000
- Rehabilitation of Vanstory Hall, North Carolina A&T State University, $500,000
- James Shepard Administration Building Window Rehabilitation, North Carolina Central University, $500,000
South Carolina
- Benedict College Historic District Expansion Project, Benedict College, $50,000
Tennessee
- The Erastus Milo Cravath Library and Administration Building Preservation Project, Fisk University, $500,000
Virginia
- Rehabilitation of Virginia-Cleveland Hall, Hampton University, $500,000
