As the landscape of higher education continues to evolve, so too do the challenges associated with the job of University President, especially at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). Heightened public scrutiny pertaining to topics such as minority degree completion rates, college debt, and gainful employment, combined with low financial support from state and federal resources, present severe hardships for HBCU Presidents to address during their presidency. Unfortunately, although these hardships require methodical long term solutions, HBCU presidents are finding it increasingly difficult to find stability in their positions compared to their Predominately White Institution (PWI) counterparts. While many documented factors contribute to the involuntary departure of an HBCU president, such as low student success rates, poor faculty support, and or a loss in confidence from the governing board, are there other factors that could impact a president's tenure, such as institutional culture? To assist both aspiring HBCU presidents and governing board with maintaining strong presidential stability, there must be a solid understanding of how institutional culture affects a president. Currently, the relationship between HBCU presidents and their institutional culture remains vastly unexplored and undefined, despite the existence of evidence that institutional fit has presented itself as a legitimate challenge for presidents. The purpose of this qualitative study is to assess how HBCU presidents learn about their inherited institutional culture(s) and to understand the impact if any, that the culture had on their governance of the institution. From a theoretical lens, I will utilize Schein's organizational culture model to conduct the study along with a narrative inquiry methodology consisting of one-on-one semi-structured interviews. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]