Black Women's Colleges
There are numerous colleges in the United States that specifically enroll black students or female students, but there are only two that have a student population comprised strictly of black women. These two institutions are Bennett College in Greensboro, North Carolina, and Spelman College in Atlanta, Georgia. Students also have the option of attending historically black co-ed colleges and universities.
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Bennett College
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The Bennett College campus was purchased by emancipated slaves in the 1870s for the purpose of educating black students. In 1926, Bennett became a women's-only college through the Women's Home Missionary Society. Bennett has an enrollment of 780 students and is affiliated with the United Methodist Church, The College Fund and the Women's College Coalition. Students can earn undergraduate degrees in several fields, including electrical engineering, biology, computer science, elementary education, English and Africana women's studies.
Spelman College
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Spelman College was originally founded as the Atlanta Baptist Female Seminary in 1881. The student population of more than 2,100 comes from 41 states and 15 foreign nations as of February 2011. The student faculty ratio is 12-to-1 and 85 percent of the faculty have doctorate degrees. Spelman has four partner institutions: Clark Atlanta University, the Interdenominational Theological Center, Morehouse College and Morehouse School of Medicine. Spelman offers 31 bachelor's degrees in arts and sciences on its 39-acre campus.
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Alabama State University
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Alabama State, in Morgantown, Alabama, is a co-ed black college. Alabama State was founded as the Lincoln Normal School in 1867 in Marion, Alabama, with $500 raised by nine freed slaves now known as the Marion Nine. In February 2011, the university has an enrollment of more than 5,600 students from 42 states and seven countries; nearly 50 percent of the undergraduate students and 80 percent of the graduate students are enrolled in education.
Howard University
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Howard University, a co-ed, historically black institution in Washington, D.C., was founded in 1866 by members of the First Congregational Society of Washington as a theological seminary for the education of black clergymen. Howard has 12 schools and colleges with 10,500 students in more than 120 areas of study leading to undergraduate, graduate and professional degrees. The university produces more on-campus black doctorates than any other university in the world.
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