Tennessee State University (Tennessee State, Tenn State, or TSU) is a public historically black land-grant university in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1912, it is the only state-funded historically black university in Tennessee. It is a member-school of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund. Tennessee State University offers 41 bachelor's degrees, 23 master's degrees, and eight doctoral degrees. It is classified as "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity".
History
The university was established as the Tennessee Agricultural & Industrial State Normal School for Negroes in 1912. Its dedication was held on January 16, 1913.
Significant expansion occurred during the presidency of Walter S. Davis between 1943 and 1968. The postwar period resulted in the construction of "70 percent of the school's facilities" and the establishment of the graduate school and four other schools.
In 1968, the college officially changed its name to Tennessee State University. In 1979, the University of Tennessee at Nashville merged into Tennessee State due to a court mandate.
In 2022, Tennessee State University was awarded $250 million from the state legislature. The funds were intended to upgrade facilities and academic programs on campus. At the time of the award, the $250 million investment was the largest single investment into a historically black institution in the history of the country.
In 2023, Tennessee State's most well known graduate, Oprah Winfrey, served as the official commencement speaker for the first time.
On March 28, 2024, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee signed legislation that removed all of the school's board of trustees and replaced them with new members, subject to legislative confirmation. Characterizing the school as a “remarkable institution” he said, “I’m pleased to appoint these highly qualified individuals who will work alongside administrators and students to further secure TSU’s place as a leading institution.”
State legislation authorizing the governor to vacate the board of trustees was prompted by the numerous instances of financial and procedural mismanagement uncovered in recent school audits. Representative Ryan Williams specifically noted that the $250 million appropriation made by the legislature in 2022 was “completely blown through” and not used for infrastructure improvements as intended.
Tennessee State University is divided into 10 schools and colleges and has seen steady growth since its inception. It remains the only public university in Nashville. Its health science program is the largest in the state and one of the largest in the nation.
Campus
The main campus has more than 65 buildings, and is located in a residential setting at 3500 John A. Merritt Blvd in Nashville, Tennessee. Tennessee State's main campus has the most acres of any college campus in Nashville. The Avon Williams campus is located downtown, near the center of the Nashville business and government district. Tennessee State offers on-campus housing to students. There are on-campus dorms and two apartment complexes for upperclassmen. On-campus facilities include dormitories Wilson Hall, Watson Hall, Eppse Hall, Boyd Hall, Rudolph Hall, Hale Hall, as well as the Ford Complex and New Residence Complex, TSU's two on-campus apartment complexes.
Academics
The university is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) to award associate degrees, baccalaureate degrees, master's degrees, and doctoral degree. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity".
The university is organized into the following schools and colleges:
- College of Agriculture, Human, and Natural Sciences
- College of Business
- College of Education
- College of Engineering
- College of Health Sciences
- College of Liberal Arts
- College of Life and Physical Sciences
- College of Public Service
- University Honors College
- School of Graduate and Professional Studies
The College of Business is accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB). It was the first institution in Nashville to earn the accreditation of both its undergraduate and graduate business programs in 1994. The psychology program is accredited by the American Psychological Association. Programs in the College of Engineering are accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) or the National Association of Industrial Technology (NAIT). The Master of Public Health program was accredited in 2015 by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH).
Student life
{| class="wikitable floatright sortable collapsible"; text-align:right; font-size:80%;"
|+ style="font-size:90%" |Undergraduate demographics as of Fall 2023
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! Race and ethnicity
! colspan="2" data-sort-type=number |Total
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| Black
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| White
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| Hispanic
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| Two or more races
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|-
| International student
|align=right|
|-
| Unknown
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|-
| Asian
|align=right|
|-
! colspan="4" data-sort-type=number |Economic diversity
|-
| Low-income
|align=right|
|-
| Affluent
|align=right|
|}
thumb|right|200px|Tennessee State University Tigers wordmark
Athletics
Tennessee State University sponsors seven men's and eight women's teams in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) sanctioned sports. The school competes in the NCAA's Division I Football Championship Subdivision and is a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC). As a member of the OVC, Tennessee State is one of three Division I HBCU athletic programs that are not members of either the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) or Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC), whose members are primarily HBCU institutions. TSU has a rivalry with Tennessee Tech and Kentucky State University.
Student organizations
There are over 60 registered student organizations on campus including the Student Government Association, Aristocrat of Bands (AOB), and many Greek-lettered organizations.
Notable faculty
- Michael Harris, public policy scholar
- Millicent Lownes-Jackson
Notable alumni
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Aviation
Civil rights
Education
Entertainment
Politics
Science and technology
Sports
See also
- List of Tennessee State University presidents
- Southern Heritage Classic
- From the Rough
Notes
References
Further reading
- Lovett, Bobby L. A Touch of Greatness: A History of Tennessee State University (Mercer University Press, 2012) 340 pp.