Fayetteville State University

Fayetteville State University is a college for black people. It is located in Fayetteville, North Carolina. It has had several names in the past. It has grown from a small 3 room school to a larger University that is part of the University of North Carolina System.



Prior to the civil war in 1861 black education was limited to prevent slave rebellion. However, as early as 1835 some northern schools admitted black students. The Institute for Colored Youth was founded in Pennsylvania in 1837 and later became Cheyney University. The Wilberforce University started in 1856 was the first school owned and operated by black americans.



Many schools for blacks only prepared them for industrial work. In 1865 the Freedman's Bureau was set up to help freed slaves with education. In 1867 seven black men bought some land to be used for teaching black children in Fayetteville, North Carolina. General O.O Howard from the Freedman's Bureau built a 3 room school on the land. The school was named the Howard school. In 1877 the State of North Carolina wanted to start a school for black teachers. They selected the Howard school. The Howard school became a school for training black teachers and its new name was the State Colored Normal School.

In 1899 the school was expanded from 3 rooms to 10 buildings on 50 acres when 5 men got a loan to add on to the school. In 1929 the school stopped teaching high school courses at the Normal School. In May of 1937 the North Carolina State Board of Education said that the Normal School may give Bachelor of Science degrees in education. In 1939 the name was changed to Fayetteville State Teacher College.

They added classes so that degrees other than teaching degrees could be earned in 1956. In 1963 the name was changed to Fayetteville State College beacause it wasn't just a teacher's college anymore. In 1969 the name was changed to its current name Fayetteville State University. In 1972 Fayetteville State University became a part of the University of North Carolina System.

In the South if you are a black person you have a good chance of going to college. Strong Segregation created a lot of black colleges in the southern part of the United States. Fayetteville State University is part of the southern black education heritage. Today 3/4ths of the students at Fayetteville State University are African Americans. They offer baccalaureate degrees in 23 disciplines. They now also have Graduate degrees in Business Administration and Education.

Lydia B.