Sacramento State U. creates the nation's first Black Honors College

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Sac State’s launch of Black Honors College heralds first-in-the-nation initiative​

Sociology major Imani Harper, right, and Kinesiology major Blaire Nelson are among those looking forward to participating in the new initiative

February 12, 2024

Sacramento State is recruiting students for the inaugural class for the newly created Black Honors College, the first institution of its kind in the nation.
The college is specifically designed for all students interested in Black history, life, and culture. It will start accepting students in fall 2024.

The University’s announcement of the college’s creation coincides with Black History Month, which the University is celebrating throughout February. One of the month’s key events is Super Sunday, on Feb. 25. That day, campus leaders, including President Luke Wood, will visit Sacramento-area churches that serve predominantly Black congregations to extoll the value of higher education and encourage young people to attend Sac State.

In creating the Black Honors College, Sac State is taking initiative to support the CSU’s efforts to advance Black student success. A key goal is to boost Black graduation rates and improve Black student enrollment and retention.

The University will provide details to the public about the college during a community meeting at 5 p.m. Feb. 19 in Library Room 11.

Sac State enrolls more Black and African American students than any other university in the CSU system, and Wood said the University should lead the way in ensuring that they succeed in college and beyond.
“While we have the highest population of Black students, we are in the bottom quartile for success, and have been for many years,” and the Black Honors College will seek to reverse that trend, he said.

The college will offer high-achieving students of all races, cultures, and majors a comprehensive curriculum focusing on the Black and African American experience.

“We already have some cultural communities, like the MLK Center and the DEGREES Project, but this will go much further. I think students who hear about this will be very hopeful and will want to join in.” -- Imani Harper, Sac State Sociology student

It will feature specialized general education courses with smaller classes, and faculty members who have a record of success in serving Black and African American students.
“The Black Honors College is designed to create a pathway for our Black students at Sacramento State that has never existed, to uplift our scholars, and to help them persist to graduation,” said Boatamo “Ati” Mosupyoe, the college’s dean of students and chief academic officer. Ruth Williams, previously associate director of Sac State’s DEGREES Project, is staff director.
“There will be an intentional focus on authentic mentorship to adjust students to the rigors of college, paid internship opportunities to give students tangible experience, and elite co-curricular education to enhance their overall college experience,” Mosupyoe said.

 

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June 6, 2024

California Assembly honors Sac State with state’s first Black-Serving Institution designation

Sac State leaders gathered at the State Capitol on Thursday to witness a floor resolution recognizing the University’s work to promote the success of Black and African American Students.

www.csus.edu

 

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Sac State partners with community colleges to create guaranteed pathway to Black Honors College​

Representatives of 16 community colleges signed memorandums of agreement signaling their partnership with Sac State and the Black Honors College (BHC) during a June 13 ceremony. The partnership creates a seamless pathway for students to transfer into the BHC.


June 14, 2024

Sacramento State is aligning with community colleges to create a seamless pathway for students to transfer into its new Black Honors College (BHC).
At a June 13 ceremony that was part of the CSU’s Juneteenth Symposium, representatives of 16 community colleges signed memorandums of agreement (MOA) signaling their partnership with the University and the BHC, an event administrators called “a momentous occasion.” More community colleges are expected to join the initiative in the coming months.
The BHC will welcome its first cohort of transfer students in the Spring 2025 semester.
The MOAs “are a first step in longer-term formalized partnerships,” said Jenni Murphy, interim vice president of Enrollment and Engagement for Sac State.

“Our work to help our Black students cannot just be performative. It has to be meaningful. It has to be work that changes lives. This is the real deal, and I’m extremely excited about it.” -- Albert Garcia, Sacramento City College president

Interested students can apply beginning Aug. 1. Eligible students who have earned at least a 3.8 GPA from partnering community colleges will receive guaranteed admission to Sac State and the BHC. The University will work with individual colleges to support students in activities such as faculty exchanges, special lectures and other opportunities.
Community college transfers, many of whom are people of color and have low incomes, represent “some of the best students we have,” Sac State President Luke Wood said. “We want to have the largest transfer population in the state.”
Sacramento City College President Albert Garcia said the initiative was especially meaningful for his institution.
“Sac State had its beginnings on Freeport Boulevard,” Garcia said, referring to the University’s first few years housed at Sac City, which is on Freeport. “It’s so wonderful to have our colleges connected in this way.
“Our work to help our Black students cannot just be performative. It has to be meaningful. It has to be work that changes lives. This is the real deal, and I’m extremely excited about it.”
The BHC, touted as the first institution of its kind in the country, is designed for students from all backgrounds who are interested in Black history and culture. The college will offer high-achieving students of all majors a comprehensive curriculum focusing on the Black and African American experience.
Sac State enrolls more Black students than any of the other 22 universities in the CSU system. The California Assembly recently recognized the University as the state’s first Black-Serving Institution, and the CSU designated Sac State as headquarters for its Statewide Central Office for the Advancement of Black Excellence.
“Too often, students from California want to go out of state for college because they believe that public education in California is failing them,” said Aniesha Mitchell, the University’s vice president for Student Affairs.
“Unlike anything else in the state, the Black Honors College is specifically designed to meet the needs and aspirations of Black students,” she said. “We are intentionally cultivating the courageous leaders of tomorrow.”
Elijah Martin, a transfer student who earned his undergraduate degree at Sac State in 2022 and now is pursuing a graduate degree, said he would have welcomed the opportunity to be a BHC student.
“Transitioning from a community college can be isolating,” said Martin, now a BHC recruiter. “You can lose that sense of belonging. I wish I would have had the Black Honors College.”.
Wood shook hands with each of the community college representatives who attended the June 13 signing ceremony and made them a powerful promise.
“We plan on being the best partners you’ve ever had in supporting your students on our campus,” he said.
“When you send your students to us, we take that seriously,” Wood said. “We will make sure that they have everything that they need to walk across that stage at graduation.”

 

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Welcomed the first class


August 8, 2024

Game Changer - The Sacramento Observer

Sacramento State University launches Black Honors College, the first of its kind outside HBCUs. Aiming to foster diversity and inclusion.

sacobserver.com