Information About Historically Black Colleges And Universities & The Top Ten HBCUs based on enrollment in 2024

Edited by Azizi Powell

This pancocojams post presents some general information about United States historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs).

This post also presents a list of the top ten HBCUs (based on enrollment in 2024).

The content of this post is presented for historical and socio-cultural purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to all those who are quoted in this post.
-snip-
Click the "HBCU Historically Black colleges and universities" tag below for links to a number of pancocojams posts on HBCUs.

Two of those posts are:
https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2023/07/information-about-historical-black.html "Four Examples Of The Chant "I love My HBCU" (Historical Black Colleges & Universities)".

and https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2025/04/correcting-mistaken-belief-that-stomp.html  "Correcting The Mistaken Belief That Stomp & Shake Cheerleading Is Performed At Every Historically Black University (Part IV: comments from the discussion thread for a 2022 video of a cheer battle between TxSU vs PV University".

****
INFORMATION ABOUT HBCUs
from AI Overview [result of my query in October 2026]

"Historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) are institutions of higher education in the United States established before the Civil Rights Act of 1964 with the principal mission of serving African American students. Today, there are 107 recognized HBCUs across the country, producing significant shares of Black college and STEM graduates.

Overview and History 

• Definition: Colleges and universities founded prior to 1964 to provide education for Black Americans locked out of traditional segregated systems.

• Oldest Institution: Cheyney University of Pennsylvania was founded in 1837 as the Institute for Colored Youth.

• Land-Grant Impact: The Second Morrill Act of 1890 forced segregated states to build public Black land-grant institutions or grant admission. 

Key Statistics and Status

• Total Count: 107 accredited institutions (public and private).

• Impact: Represent roughly 3% of American colleges yet produce 20% of Black graduates and 25% of STEM graduates.

• Geographic Spread: Most are located in the American South, with Alabama, North Carolina, and Georgia hosting the highest counts."

****
THE TOP TEN HBCUs (based on enrollment)
from AI Overview
"Based on Fall 2024 total enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), the largest Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) overall include major four-year universities like North Carolina A&T State University and Howard University, as well as unique dual-designated community colleges.

Top 10 Largest HBCUs by Total Enrollment (Fall 2024) 

St. Philip's College (San Antonio, TX) – ~14,000+ students ( dual-designated as an HBCU and Hispanic-Serving Institution)

North Carolina A&T State University (Greensboro, NC) – ~14,000 to 15,000+ students

Howard University (Washington, DC) – ~14,500–14,890 students

Morgan State University (Baltimore, MD) – ~11,559 students

Prairie View A&M University (Prairie View, TX) – ~10,085 students

Florida A&M University (Tallahassee, FL) – ~9,313 students

North Carolina Central University (Durham, NC) – ~9,281 students

Texas Southern University (Houston, TX) – ~8,704 students

Southern University and A&M College (Baton Rouge, LA) – ~8,279 students

Alabama A&M University (Normal, AL) – ~7,295 students
-snip-
This AI Overview write-up gave the following online source for this list:

 https://historicallyblackcolleges.com/top-10-hbcus/

That site includes brief information about popular majors and whether the university is public or private.

****
Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.