Dr. Fred A. Bonner II
We are witnessing a renaissance at HBCUs that is not merely about expanding degree offerings; it is about reimagining what graduate education can and must be. These institutions, long the incubators of Black excellence and engines of community transformation, are reclaiming graduate education as a tool for justice. And they are doing so on their own terms.
Across the nation, HBCUs are rapidly launching and expanding Master’s, EdD, and PhD programs in higher education administration. These are not your standard graduate programs. They are deliberate, mission-aligned interventions designed to cultivate scholar-practitioners who not only know how to navigate academia—but know how to transform it.
To be clear: This is not about keeping pace with predominantly White institutions. This is about setting the pace. From Delaware State to Prairie View A&M, from the Deep South to the urban Northeast, these programs are infused with cultural reflexivity, community-rooted pedagogy, and a commitment to disrupting the very systems that once excluded us.
Why now? Because the academy is in crisis. The leadership pipeline in higher education has long suffered from a lack of diversity, cultural competency, and justice-minded vision. HBCUs see these maladies not as challenges—but as a calling.
The programs we represent are built to produce leaders who are prepared to confront structural inequities, who understand the unique experiences of marginalized students, and who are trained not only in policy and administration, but also in advocacy, activism, and care. These leaders are scholar-warriors—rooted in their communities and relentless in their pursuit of systemic change. They are diversifying professional pathways and are prepared to lead across a range of Minority-Serving Institutions and campus contexts as a result of their professional preparation at HBCUs.
They are not being groomed for status—they are being prepared for service.
And it’s not just about who we educate, but how we educate. Our programs embed culturally responsive frameworks in every syllabus, every capstone, every dissertation, and every community engagement project. From curriculum to campus culture, intentionality drives design. Faculty are not just instructors—they are mentors, guides, and co-conspirators in the work of equity and justice.
We are investing in faculty. We are building networks of legacy mentorship. We are forging alliances across Minority-Serving Institutions. And we are reshaping the narrative around what a graduate degree in higher education administration should look like.
To sustain and scale this movement, we need bold investment. Foundations, philanthropists, and public institutions must recognize that HBCUs are not an afterthought—they are the blueprint. We must embrace flexible models, including hybrid and online delivery, to reach students who have historically been shut out of graduate education due to geography, finances, or systemic barriers.
We must also sharpen our degree pathways—clearly articulating the unique purposes of EdD versus PhD programs—so that students can enter with confidence and graduate with clarity. Notably, three HBCUs are now members of the Carnegie Project for the Education Doctorate (CPED), signaling a growing commitment to advancing rigorous, practice-based doctoral education.
And perhaps most importantly, we must continue to lead with purpose. These programs are not career ladders—they are launchpads for advocacy. Our graduates are entering spaces where they are underrepresented and often underestimated—and they are changing the game. They are dismantling outdated paradigms, building inclusive systems, and redefining success on their own terms.
This is more than a trend. It is a movement—one that rethinks how we prepare higher education leaders through an HBCU lens and tradition. As institutions increase their research capacity and expand doctoral offerings, HBCUs are demonstrating how to train scholar-practitioners who are both academically rigorous and socially responsive.
We are not simply responding to an opportunity—we are leading a revolution. And the future of graduate education in higher education administration will be shaped, in no small part, by the bold and visionary work happening right now at HBCUs.
This is a call to action for institutions, funders, scholars, and policymakers alike: If you care about the future of higher education, you must look to HBCUs. We have always been here—and we are just getting started. We will continue to innovate, to challenge, and to lead in developing the next generation of equity-minded higher education professionals.
Dr. Fred A. Bonner II is Professor and Endowed Chair in Educational Leadership and Counseling, and Executive Director and Chief Scientist of the MACH-III Center at Prairie View A&M University.
Dr. Adriel A. Hilton is Director of Programs, Transition, and Youth Success Planning at the Washington State Department of Children, Youth, and Families. He previously served as Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs and Enrollment Management and Associate Professor of Education at Southern University at New Orleans.
Dr. Pietro A. Sasso is an Associate Professor of Higher Education at Delaware State University.
Dr. Justin L. Alexander is an Assistant Professor of Higher Education at Delaware State University.
