Program

Challenge Programs: Cooperative Agreements and Special Projects (Challenge Grants)

Period of Performance

9/1/2019 - 2/29/2024

Funding Totals (matching)

$500,000.00 (approved)
$500,000.00 (offered)
$478,144.04 (awarded)


HBCU Cultural Heritage Stewardship Program: A Cooperative Agreement with the National Trust for Historic Preservation

FAIN: ZZ-268721-20

NTHP (Washington, DC 20037-1905)
Brent Leggs (Project Director: May 2019 to August 2019)
Brent Leggs (Project Director: August 2019 to July 2024)

A cooperative agreement to establish a cultural heritage stewardship program for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) that would provide funding and technical assistance for the development of two campus-wide plans and up to six single-structure plans for historic preservation of these buildings and sites. A convening of participants and a national discussion of project results would be presented at the annual conference of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) and National Trust for Historic Preservation (NTHP) would partner to invest $1M and establish a two-year pilot HBCU Cultural Heritage Stewardship Program, which would fund the development of two campus-wide and up-to-six single-structure Cultural Heritage Stewardship Plans to ensure HBCUs (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) are equipped to preserve and maintain their historic campuses and historic assets. 





Associated Products

A Campuswide Commitment to Preserve Jackson State University: A Q&A with Heather Denne (Blog Post)
Title: A Campuswide Commitment to Preserve Jackson State University: A Q&A with Heather Denne
Author: Monique Robinson
Abstract: This year, eight HBCUs were awarded more than $650,000 in funding to develop cultural heritage stewardship plans for their campuses and historic sites. The sole goal of this initiative is to partner with HBCUs to empower and preserve the legacies of the campuses and ensure that the stories of their foundations are upheld to educate and inspire future generations of students to pay it forward. As part of this work, we conducted a Q&A with each grant recipient to learn about the history and work at each of these significant institutions.
Date: 10/14/2021
Primary URL: https://savingplaces.org/stories/a-campuswide-commitment-jackson-state-university-heather-denne
Blog Title: National Trust for Historic Preservation
Website: www.savingplaces.org

Restoring Spelman's Rockefeller Fine Arts Building: A Q&A With Arthur E. Frazier III (Blog Post)
Title: Restoring Spelman's Rockefeller Fine Arts Building: A Q&A With Arthur E. Frazier III
Author: Monique Robinson
Abstract: This year, eight HBCUs were awarded more than $650,000 in funding to develop cultural heritage stewardship plans for their campuses and historic sites. The sole goal of this initiative is to partner with HBCUs to empower and preserve the legacies of the campuses and ensure that the stories of their foundations are upheld to educate and inspire future generations of students to pay it forward. As part of this work, we conducted a Q&A with each grant recipient to learn about the history and work at each of these significant institutions.
Date: 9/14/21
Primary URL: https://savingplaces.org/stories/restoring-spelmans-rockefeller-fine-arts-building
Blog Title: National Trust for Historic Preservation
Website: www.savingplaces.org

Historic Black Colleges to Get $650,000 to Preserve Campuses (Article)
Title: Historic Black Colleges to Get $650,000 to Preserve Campuses
Author: Associated Press
Abstract: Several historically Black colleges and universities will receive more than $650,000 in grants to preserve their campuses as part of a new initiative announced Tuesday.
Year: 2021
Primary URL: https://www.usnews.com/news/us/articles/2021-02-16/historic-black-colleges-to-get-650-000-to-preserve-campuses
Format: Newspaper
Publisher: U.S. News & World Report

Rich in Black history but long underfunded, these HBCU campuses will finally be preserved (Article)
Title: Rich in Black history but long underfunded, these HBCU campuses will finally be preserved
Author: Nate Berg
Abstract: A new pilot grant program is designed to help Historically Black Colleges and Universities preserve significant buildings and sites on their campuses—an initiative that is long overdue.
Year: 2021
Primary URL: https://www.fastcompany.com/90617571/rich-in-black-history-but-long-underfunded-these-hbcu-campuses-will-finally-be-preserved
Format: Other
Publisher: Fast Company

Philander Smith College gets $60,000 preservation grant to repair 1936 gym (Article)
Title: Philander Smith College gets $60,000 preservation grant to repair 1936 gym
Author: Jaime Adame
Abstract: A grant from a national preservation organization is a first step toward renovating a key part of the Philander Smith College campus, supporters of the effort said.
Year: 2021
Primary URL: https://www.nwaonline.com/news/2021/feb/18/philander-smith-college-gets-60000-preservation/
Publisher: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

National Trust for Historic Preservation launches $1 million initiative to preserve and protect HBCUs (Article)
Title: National Trust for Historic Preservation launches $1 million initiative to preserve and protect HBCUs
Author: Selena Hill
Abstract: The African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund, which is a multiyear initiative led by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, announced a $1 million investment to pilot the HBCU Cultural Heritage Stewardship Initiative. According to a statement, the program will “provide technical assistance and fund preservation-based stewardship plans at up to eight HBCU campuses across the country.”
Year: 2021
Primary URL: https://www.blackenterprise.com/national-trust-for-historic-preservation-launches-1-million-initiative-to-preserve-and-protect-hbcus/
Format: Other
Publisher: Black Enterprise

Benedict College among historic Black schools receiving $650,000 in preservation grants (Article)
Title: Benedict College among historic Black schools receiving $650,000 in preservation grants
Author: Christine Fernando
Abstract: Several historically Black colleges and universities, including Columbia’s Benedict College, will receive more than $650,000 in grants to preserve their campuses as part of a new initiative announced Feb. 16.
Year: 2021
Primary URL: https://www.postandcourier.com/ap/benedict-college-among-historic-black-schools-receiving-650-000-in-preservation-grants/article_bcf5b80e-708d-11eb-a24c-afb3d7caf51f.html
Format: Other
Publisher: The Post and Courier

The Legacy of Homecoming: 5 Preservationists on the HBCUs They Call Home (Blog Post)
Title: The Legacy of Homecoming: 5 Preservationists on the HBCUs They Call Home
Author: Brandon Bibby
Abstract: Anticipation fills the autumn air at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) as Homecoming season arrives. The sights and sounds of Black joy flood our communities in spiritual celebration of a return home. Feet stomping, hands clapping, pinkies raised, canes smacking as people line the streets, and thousands of beating hearts unite to the percussive pulse of the drumline. For almost two centuries, HBCUs have been vessels of empowerment for Black Americans, and embedded within each are spaces of resistance, resilience, and refuge.
Date: 10/25/2023
Primary URL: https://savingplaces.org/stories/the-legacy-of-homecoming-at-hbcus

Preserving Philander Smith College: Q&A with Dr. Roderick L. Smothers, Sr. (Blog Post)
Title: Preserving Philander Smith College: Q&A with Dr. Roderick L. Smothers, Sr.
Author: Tiffany Tolbert
Abstract: The HBCU Cultural Heritage Stewardship Initiative derived from a need to cultivate and uplift historic Black colleges and universities across the nation. This work is in tandem with the standard set by the African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund to protect and restore places where significant Black history happened and highlight the key roles they have played in American society.
Date: 04/07/2022
Primary URL: https://savingplaces.org/stories/preserving-philander-smith-college-q-and-a

Preserving Lane College: Q&A with Dr. Logan Hampton and Sherill B. Scott (Blog Post)
Title: Preserving Lane College: Q&A with Dr. Logan Hampton and Sherill B. Scott
Author: Tiffany Tolbert
Abstract: The HBCU Cultural Heritage Stewardship Initiative derived from a need to cultivate and uplift historic Black colleges and universities across the nation. This work is in tandem with the standard set by the African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund to protect and restore places where significant Black history happened and highlight the key roles they have played in American society.
Date: 2/17/2022

Maintaining Duckett Hall at Benedict College: Q&A with Leandra Hayes-Burgess (Blog Post)
Title: Maintaining Duckett Hall at Benedict College: Q&A with Leandra Hayes-Burgess
Author: Monique Robinson
Abstract: The HBCU Cultural Heritage Stewardship Initiative derived from a need to cultivate and uplift historic Black colleges and universities across the nation. This work is in tandem with the standard set by the African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund to protect and restore places where significant Black history happened and highlight the key roles they have played in American society.
Date: 1/7/2022
Primary URL: https://savingplaces.org/stories/maintaining-duckett-hall-at-benedict-college

Preserving Winsborough Hall at Stillman College: A Q&A with Dr. Cynthia Warrick (Blog Post)
Title: Preserving Winsborough Hall at Stillman College: A Q&A with Dr. Cynthia Warrick
Author: Monique Robinson
Abstract: The HBCU Cultural Heritage Stewardship Initiative derived from a need to cultivate and uplift historic Black colleges and universities across the nation. This work is in tandem with the standard set by the African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund to protect and restore places where significant Black history happened and highlight the key roles they have played in American society.
Date: 12/2/2021

Preserving Thrasher and Sage Halls at Tuskegee University: Q&A with Kwesi Daniels (Blog Post)
Title: Preserving Thrasher and Sage Halls at Tuskegee University: Q&A with Kwesi Daniels
Author: Monique Robinson
Abstract: The HBCU Cultural Heritage Stewardship Initiative derived from a need to cultivate and uplift historic Black colleges and universities across the nation. This work is in tandem with the standard set by the African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund to protect and restore places where significant Black history happened and highlight the key roles they have played in American society.
Date: 12/22/2021

Video: New Documentary Follows the Inaugural HOPE Crew Fellowship Program with Historically Black Colleges and Universities (Blog Post)
Title: Video: New Documentary Follows the Inaugural HOPE Crew Fellowship Program with Historically Black Colleges and Universities
Author: Milan Jordan
Abstract: In 2022, the National Trust for Historic Preservation's HOPE Crew (Hands-On Preservation Experience) program in partnership with the African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund presented a 6-month paid fellowship to students studying at three Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs): Florida A&M University, Prairie View A&M University, and Tuskegee University.
Date: 3/21/2023

Preserving Black Excellence at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (Blog Post)
Title: Preserving Black Excellence at Historically Black Colleges and Universities
Author: Cameryn Blackmore
Abstract: My admiration for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) began while growing up as a Black girl with Southern University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, in my backyard. Witnessing Black excellence—the idea of success and leadership brought on by determination and persistence—via a post-secondary educational institution created to provide opportunity to Black citizens, always warmed my heart. Attending summer camp and football games on the campus of Southern University was my first introduction to the importance of HBCUs and the communities they served. As I grew up, I realized that embedded within that role as a center of cultural and community life, is the historical significance of the physical locations of these institutions.
Date: 2/8/2023