Sacramento State Recognized as California’s First Black-Serving Institution
Credit: Yiming Chen / Getty Images- California State University, Sacramento was recognized by the state Assembly as California’s first Black-serving institution.
- The Legislature is currently considering legislation that would create a formal Black-serving institution designation for colleges and universities that are committed to supporting the success of Black and African American students.
- The university will open the nation’s first Black Honors College this fall.
A California bill that would establish “Black-serving institutions” is making its way through the Legislature. But the state Assembly is already proclaiming California State University, Sacramento as the first to receive the designation.
The California State Assembly recognized Sacramento State as the state’s first Black-serving institution on June 6, acknowledging the school’s efforts to increase Black student enrollment and graduation rates in a floor resolution.
Under Senate Bill 1348, colleges and universities with Black student populations of at least 10% or 1,500 students would earn the Black-serving institution designation.
“This distinctive recognition reaffirms Sacramento State’s commitment and dedication to serving the needs of our diverse student body, especially for our Black students,” Sacramento State President Luke Wood said in a press release.
According to the university, around 6% of the student population at Sacramento State — or approximately 2,000 students — is Black. The university has the largest population of Black and African American students within the 23-campus California State University (CSU) system and more Black and African American students than all but one of the University of California campuses.
California does not have any historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs), although California is home to one historically Black graduate institution: Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science. However, Huston-Tillotson University, a private, historically Black university located in Austin, Texas, is set to open two satellite campuses in Los Angeles/Inland Empire and San Diego this fall.
The state also does not have any predominantly Black institutions (PBIs), a federal designation for schools with at least 40% Black American students enrolled.
However, the Golden State boasts over 100 minority-serving institutions, including Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-serving institutions and Hispanic-serving institutions.
Wood pointed out that Sacramento State is already a designated Hispanic-serving institution and Asian American and Pacific Islander-serving institution.
“Currently, our Black students have to go out of state” to attend a college or university that carries the predominantly Black institution or HBCU designation, Wood said in the release. With the resolution, “we are publicly saying that we are here to serve Black students, same as our Latinx and Asian students.”
This fall, a Black Honors College will open at Sacramento State, making the institution the first college or university to ever offer an honors program specifically dedicated to supporting Black students’ success.
“We are building something new, something that has never been done before. And we should think about that. How come no college has ever done this before? Does that say something about what people think about Black intelligence?” Wood said in a prior statement to BestColleges.
The university will also house the first CSU Statewide Central Office for the Advancement of Black Excellence, which will serve as the main administrative body overseeing programs and initiatives aimed at promoting and supporting Black students’ success across the university system.