Historical writings about the Morrill Land-Grant Acts are not free from promoting unbiased, dominant ideas about the laws' reach and intentions. The Morrill Acts were major legislation, but they did not signify the entitlement of every citizen; their successes for Black students, communities, and colleges were meager. This study makes common cause…

What accounts for the variation in southern state colleges and universities responses to initial desegregation? This article analyzes southern state university responses to qualified Black students' applications to historically white public colleges. Furthermore, the study tests V.O. Key's hypothesis in Southern Politics in State and Nation--that…

In 1956, southern Congressmen signed the Southern Manifesto, rejecting the Supreme Court's "Brown v. Board of Education" ruling. This moment, in the general American consciousness, marked the rise of White massive resistance to Black advancement, a racist foray doomed to be swept aside by civil rights forces and a determined federal…

The federal Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended, defines a "historically" black institution of higher education as "any historically black college or university that was established prior to 1964, whose principle mission was, and is, the education of black Americans." They are usually referred to as HBCUs. Most private…