It’s hard to focus on rigorous teaching and learning when the faucets run dry and the roof leaks.
Founded in 1869, Tougaloo College is a small institution that makes a big impact. Tougaloo produces 40% of the Black healthcare professionals and 35% of Black lawyers and educators practicing in Mississippi.
Despite its importance, Tougaloo, like many HBCUs, has long navigated disinvestment that led to challenges in maintaining its infrastructure. When a failing water and sewer system threatened to disrupt classes, HOPE helped Tougaloo secure more than $2 million in grants to strengthen the system across campus.
“HOPE’s assistance with the grant process was of the paramount importance, both as a thought partner in helping us structure the proposal, and in convening the necessary letters of support from elected officials and community leaders that were a part of the grant requirement,” says Professor Jacorius Linter, special projects officer at Tougaloo College.
HOPE also provided financing for a new roof on historic Holmes Hall. Built in 1926, Holmes Hall houses the Jackson Public Schools Tougaloo Early College High School Program. The program gives high school students the opportunity to earn college credit and is an entry point to higher education.
Tougaloo’s influence stretches beyond its campus. In the surrounding neighborhood, the poverty rate approaches 30%, homeownership stands at 24%, and nearly 80% of residents earn less than $50,000 annually. A vibrant, accessible campus is a critical anchor for community stability, jobs and economic stimulation, and long-term development.
“HOPE clearly understands the larger, long-term role HBCUs play in their communities,” Liner says. “They approached this as a project that would not only positively impact our student body and campus, but would also better connect Tougaloo to the development that’s happening around us. HOPE wasn’t here to check a box about repairs. They were here because they believe in our mission.”