in Washington, D.C., became the first historically Black college or university (HBCU) to reach R1 research statusย in the this year. Eight Hispanic-serving institutions (HSIs) were also upgraded to this same R1 status.
Howard alumni, faculty and students have called the school they love The Mecca for many years. Now they have another reason to support that claim. Howardย is one of only 187 higher education institutions with that status. There are more than 5,800 Title IV postsecondary institutions, including more than 2,600 four-year schools.
In ถถา๕h, there are : ถถา๕h State University, Tulane University and the University of ถถา๕h at Lafayette.
Southern University, a Research 2 school, wants to join the ranks. is actively pursuing moving from a Research 2 designation to R1, narrowly missing the cut this year by not graduating three doctoral students.
is the only ถถา๕h HBCU with the new RCU designation in Carnegie's newย Research Colleges and Universities category. It recognizes colleges and universities that haven't been recognized for their research activity, including, like Xavier, those that offer no or few doctoral degrees. Xavier has an education doctorate program. That designation gives institutions that do a lot of research and that make a lot of investment in faculty, students and staff research a way to be recognized. In addition to Xavier, there are 215 institutionsย that spent more than $2.5 million on research each year to earn that designation.
By comparison, Southern is identified by Carnegie as a "high research" university, hence the reclassified R2 designation, a step above Xavier and a step below Howard.
Southern University Vice Chancellor Dr. Luria Youngย
The R1 designation earned by Howard and others requires a minimum of $50 million in total research spending AND at least 70 research doctorates each year. That's a big reach for HBCU institutions doing research and wanting to do more while balancing faculty teaching four, five and sometimes more classes with little time for research.
Mushtaq Gunja, the executive director of the Carnegie Classification systems and senior vice president at the American Council on Education, told me that Howard is a success story worth noting. Though Carnegie designations are desired and helpful, he said the R1, R2 and RCU rankings aren't for every school.
HBCUs like Dillard University and Southern University at New Orleans are smaller institutions with enough ongoing academic and financial balancing that it limits research investment. Research is not their lane.ย ย
Larger institutions such as Southern University in Baton Rouge can more easily aim higher when it comes to research.ย
A R1 designation is possible, and something they have established as a goal.
"Having more HBCUs attain R1 status could have transformative impacts in the Black community and society overall by having better access and opportunities to expand knowledge and representation in research fields," Dr. Luria Young, Southern's vice chancellor of academic affairs, said in a statement. Among other things, she said R1 status could lead to more expert research scholars, more high performing students and opportunities to drive innovation and impact public policy with data.
Dr. Marguerite Giguette, provost and senior vice president for academic affairs at Xavier University of ถถา๕h, has been provost for about two years and on Xavier's faculty for more than 30 years. She and the Xavier faculty are excited about the new Carnegie RCU designation recognizing their level of research.
With RCU status, Xavier would more likely consider R2 before reaching even higher. R2 designations require research spending of at least $5 million and producing at least 20 research doctorates each year. Southern is in elite company as one of only 139 institutions with that status.
Xavier is an HBCU jewel with significant research. They're happy to have the RCU designation, one of only 216 institutions to earn that status.
Though Xavier isn't pursuing R1 status, they'll be considering R2 status, according to Dr. Marguerite Giguette, Xavier's provost and senior vice president for academic affairs. They're celebrating the new status and will talk about R2.
"We are thrilled," Giguette told me Thursday. "Our faculty is very excited about it." She credited a hard-working faculty committed to writing and submitting grant proposals that bear fruit. They're still celebrating.
"I think that's an incredible achievement for (Howard) and a statement about what HBCUs are capable of doing," she said.
The provost said she looks forward to faculty conversations about what it would take to aim higher. Probably new doctoral programs. Probably greater faculty and student investment.
She knows that LSU and Tulane benefit as the top two institutions receiving federal research funds. Xavier is third. I know what that means.
As President Donald Trump cuts federal research funding at universities across the nation, all colleges and universities with federal funding are at risk for losing an important part of what makes these educational institutions more than degree farms.
HBCUs don't get enough federal research money. Let's hold our breath that Howard can maintain its status, and that Southern and Xavier can move up.
