Funding will strengthen the Detroit HBCU enrollment pipeline, expanding access to educational environments proven to produce outsized success

The Kresge Foundation today announced two permanent $1 million endowment funds to support Detroit Public School graduates pursuing education at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs): one at Thurgood Marshall College Fund (TMCF) and another at United Negro College Fund (UNCF). Kresge will provide an additional challenge grant of $500,000 to each organization if they raise matching funds.

TMCF and UNCF are renowned organizations that create access to higher education for students attending HBCUs via scholarships, provide career readiness preparation for low-income and first-generation HBCU students, facilitate pathways to economically sustainable corporate careers, and build capacity at their historically under-resourced member schools.

For more than 150 years, HBCUs have provided high-quality, safe and dynamic educational spaces where Black students can build resilient networks, grow confidence and pursue clear pathways to personal and professional fulfillment. Six of the top 10 out-of-state destination colleges for Detroit Public School graduates are HBCUs, however the means needed to reach these sought-after institutions are often out-of-reach to students. Organizations like TMCF and UNCF provide essential resources for potential HBCU attendees.

“We wanted to create a Detroit HBCU Fund, not a Kresge HBCU fund, to encourage other donors to come forward to recognize the importance HBCUs play in our community,” said Rip Rapson, CEO of The Kresge Foundation. “All told, we hope to provide at least $3 million in funding to support Detroiters to go to HBCUs. We hope other foundations, corporations and individuals will join us in making these donations.”

Today’s announcement follows TMCF’s CEO Awards, honoring Rapson for his leadership and Kresge for championing HBCUs. Kresge has long advocated for and supported HBCUs, recognizing their pivotal role in advancing educational equity, with the earliest support for HBCUs dating back to the 1940s. “Kresge’s long history of investing in HBCUs underscores our commitment to equity and justice and is a key element of the Foundation’s broader post-secondary education strategy,” said Bill Moses, managing director of Kresge’s Education Program and member of President Biden’s Board of Advisors on HBCUs. “HBCUs elevate students from lower-income backgrounds to higher post-graduate incomes at nearly double the rate of predominantly white institutions. The endowments and additional challenge grants announced today will generate more funding to support Detroit students with meaningful scholarships to attend their preferred colleges and ultimately produce more Detroit success stories.”

HBCUs have historically provided a nurturing educational environment for students of color, fostering their academic success and bridging the racial attainment and wealth gaps for graduates. Since their founding, HBCUs have had a disproportionately positive impact on society despite their limited financial resources and direct underinvestment by government. Although HBCUs make up only 3% of U.S. colleges and universities, they enroll 10% of all African Americans and produce 20% of all African American college graduates. Additionally, HBCUs produce 70% of all Black doctors, 80% of Black judges, 40% of Black engineers, and 40% of all Black undergraduates in physics, chemistry, astronomy, environmental science, math and biology.

Since Kresge’s founding in 1924, the foundation has made more than 60 grants to strengthen HBCUs, exceeding $75 million.