July 6, 2025
The university celebrates 114 years at the second oldest HBCU in Alabama.
The fourth of July holds another special meaning in American history besides Independence Day. The day is also the 114th anniversary of Tuskegee University, the second oldest HBCU in Alabama.
Founded on July 4, 1881, the establishment held name of the Tuskegee Normal School for Colored Teachers. The initial vision of Lewis Adams, famously spearheaded by Booker T. Washington, resulted in Washington leading the school within a church.
Now, it has grown into a top-ranked HBCU that also holds status as a designated National Historic Site. With over 60 degrees offered, the institution specializes in its engineering programs. It also serves as a leading producer of African American graduates in chemical, electrical and mechanical engineering.
To mark the occasion, the school’s president and CEO, Dr. Mark A. Brown, joined a wreath-laying ceremony with the Tuskegee Historic Preservation Commission to honor these founders at their grave sites.
In this monumental anniversary year, the HBCU highlighted its connection to another historically Black institution. Hampton Institute’s, now University, initial founder, Samuel C. Armstrong, recommended Washington take on the task of reshaping Tuskegee as a traditional college.
The HBCUs’ shared connection remains strong. Hampton’s president, Darrell K. Williams, previously spoke at the Founders’ Day celebration in Tuskegee last March. There, Williams highlighted the similarities between the two storied institutions.
Beyond the relationship between Armstrong and Washington, the university president emphasized the shared names of many of their buildings, and how their leaders graced both schools. However, he expressed that their bond goes “much deeper” than the surface, proclaiming that their mission to educate Black people remains undeterred.
“I contend that the bond is much, much deeper,” he said, as reported by HBCU Gameday. “We share the same values…We share the same ideals. We share the same commitment to excellence and the knowledge that education remains the door to opportunity, economic empowerment, and the continued advancement of a people.”
Williams’ speech also ended a historic weekend for Tuskegee, in which alumni raised over $1.3 million for their alma mater. While Tuskegee celebrates its continued support to educate the masses, its unofficial “sister school” honors its dedication to academic excellence.
“The names Hampton and Tuskegee will forever be spoken together in history,” added Williams. “They have always been inseparable in their singular and collective brilliance, and our destinies forever shall be intertwined. Hampton and Tuskegee; Crimson and Old Gold, Reflex Blue and White, Tuskegee and Hampton. May God bless our communities, and may God continue to richly bless America.”
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