By Chris Barber
Contributing Writer

Lincoln University stands to receive a $2 million grant for capacity-building if its request for the funding is deemed compelling and it is among the top eight of 32 university applicants applying.

Harry Williams, the president of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund, which is sponsoring the grants, hosted a press conference at Lincoln University’s Vail Hall on Jan. 24 to announce the news and explain details. Williams is also the former president of Delaware State University.

That date, Jan. 24, he pointed out in his greeting, was the 32nd anniversary of the death of Marshall, the first black U.S. Supreme Court justice and one of Lincoln’s most famous graduates.

The Thurgood Marshall College Fund is a large charitable organization that helps support its 53-member historically Black colleges financially. Lincoln is one of those members.

Williams said $25 million, which will be distributed among eight colleges, is competitive and designated for infrastructure and innovation. It is not a tuition program.

The outcome of the contributions, he said, will hopefully increase enrollment and retention rates in those recipient colleges.

The source of the money that came to Thurgood Marshall College Fund is from the Lilly Endowment Inc., a private philanthropic foundation based in Indianapolis.

That endowment was created in 1937 by J.K. Lilly, Sr. and his sons – Eli and J.K. Jr. – through gifts of stock in their pharmaceutical business, Eli Lilly and Company.

Although the gifts of stock remain a financial bedrock of the endowment, according to its published statement, it is a separate entity from the company, with a distinct governing board, staff and location.

Williams said later that the proposals to be submitted by the colleges could be almost anything from building structures to new staff positions that would benefit the schools significantly.

Williams was among several officials who spoke at the event, including N. Joyce Payne, who founded the fund in 1987.  An educator who has been widely honored, she spoke of HBCUs as valuable and “as American as MIT and Stanford.”

She also announced that the projects submitted for grants by the colleges would be processed and researched by the Center for Social Justice. 

Lincoln University President Brenda Allen welcomed the audience, including the press, to the event.

She reiterated some of Lincoln University’s impressive history, and named some of its famous graduates. Additionally, she called the opportunity for the grant, “groundbreaking,” but she did not say precisely what the university would propose to do with the money if Lincoln were a recipient.

She added, “We could not have gotten through COVID but for [the support of] Thurgood Marshall College Fund.”

The Thurgood Marshall College Fund’s mission is “to ensure success by promoting educational excellence and preparing the next generation of workforce talent through leadership development.” It is located in Washington, D.C.

The project will be led by Aisha Brown, CFO and COO at the Thurgood Marshall College Fund. The starting date was Jan. 1, and the program is scheduled to cover three years.

The fund’s published profile states, “TMCF connects high-performing, career-ready students with top-tier employment opportunities. To date, TMCF has awarded more than $500 million in assistance to its students and member schools.”