Historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) are expanding mentorship, financial assistance, and campus support programs as Black male enrollment continues to decline, with the drop at HBCUs outpacing the national trend, Capital B reports.
Black male undergraduate enrollment across U.S. colleges and universities declined roughly 22% between 2010 and 2022, according to the American Institute for Boys and Men. At HBCUs, enrollment fell 25% during that period
. Black men now account for roughly 26% of HBCU enrollment, down from 38% in 1976, when Black male enrollment peaked, according to the outlet.Financial challenges, family responsibilities, mental health concerns, and a lack of belonging are among the factors contributing to the decline, according to colleges and organizations that spoke with the outlet. Several HBCUs are responding with programs aimed at recruiting, retaining, and graduating more Black men.
Benedict College in Columbia, South Carolina, is bucking the trend. Men account for more than 54% of its student body this year, up from at least 42% in previous decades. The college has maintained a Black male enrollment rate above the national average for nearly a decade.
“We’re trying to create a resource-rich environment so that in all of these co-curricular curated experiences, there are ways for students to find belonging, find their people, their tribe,” Benedict President Roslyn Artis told Capital B.
Benedict recently launched its B.E.S.T. Men initiative, which stands for belonging, excellence, service, and thoughtfulness. The program provides mentorship, academic support, and activities, with all incoming first-year male students required to participate. A $100,000 grant from Sigma Pi Phi, the oldest Black Greek-letter professional fraternity, supports the initiative.
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University is also strengthening support for Black male students through its Men of the Mecca Initiative, which uses community-building activities to connect students with one another and campus resources, including counseling.Outside organizations are tackling retention as well. Between fall 2021 and spring 2026, nonprofit InsideTrack provided retention coaching to more than 11,000 enrolled students and re-enrollment coaching to more than 23,000 students who had left college.
For HBCU leaders, the effort goes beyond getting Black men onto campus.
“The secret sauce is that we have men on this campus
who are deeply committed to spending their off time,” Artis said. “We want to see the ultimate goal if we want to assess the efficacy of the program: equitable outcomes for men and women on this campus.”RELATED CONTENT: NCAT Launches Program To Boost Enrollment Of Black Men At HBCUs