Here’s How — And Why — Morgan State is Trying to Become the Country’s Only R1 HBCU

What separates the run-of-the-mill research institutions from the world’s top research universities? The answer: R1 status, which can mark a difference of a billion dollars in grants and federal funding. Only 3.7% of the nearly 4,000 US colleges and universities are classified R1. None of these are historically Black colleges or universities (HBCUs). Baltimore’s own Morgan State University is one of the many HBCUs seeking to change that.