JSU Raises Nonblack Enrollment, Gains Control of Endowment
JACKSON, Miss. (AP) – Jackson State University will become the second of Mississippi’s three historically black universities to gain control of an endowment set aside in a desegregation lawsuit.
Higher Education Commissioner Glenn Boyce announced the transfer of $24.3 million at a Thursday meeting of the College Board
JSU became eligible for the funds this year, its third straight year with nonblack enrollment greater than 10 percent.
Under the terms of the settlement of the Ayers desegregation case, the state agreed to endow JSU, Alcorn State University and Mississippi Valley State University with a total of $70 million. The College Board is also supposed to raise a $35 million private endowment.
The late Jake Ayers Sr. sued in 1975, citing inequitable funding for Mississippi’s three predominantly black universities. The case was settled in 2001.
