Based on a 2021 report in the Washington Post, flagship universities say diversity is a priority.  As Black enrollment falls behind in many states, this TSU freshman class alone contains more Black first-year students than the entire minority population at numerous universities.

“We are excited that this is the largest first-year class in the history of TSU,” shared President Glenda Glover. “This growth is quite positive for TSU as more and more students seek to attend our university.”

The increase in freshman class enrollment comes two years following the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, along with the social turmoil due to the deaths of Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, and Ahmaud Arbery.

According to President Glover, the growth for TSU is impressive, considering the enrollment rate for Black first-year students has decreased post-pandemic.

As reported by The National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, in comparison to one year ago, the first-year enrollment decreased by 6 percent for Black students this past spring, following a 13 percent decline.  The report also showed there were 36,655 first-year Black students enrolled for this spring compared to 45,077 enrolled in higher education when the pandemic started.

While the first-year student enrollment numbers climb, university officials believe there are several factors contributing to the increase.  These factors include Vice President Kamala Harris as the spring commencement speaker, first-rate academic programs and faculty, an extensive recruitment program, a new residence hall, the promotion of student and university achievements on a national stage, and its biggest ambassadors, the Aristocrat of Bands marching band.

In this past year, the dearly recognized AOB band performed on some of the biggest stages, which include the Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, California, halftime performance at a Los Angeles Lakers game, and was named 2022 Top Marching Band by HBCU Buzz.

“TSU is one of the few HBCUs with a business information system program and they have computer information systems as well” Shared Kollin Gutter.  “I want to pursue my career path in that.”  Continued the freshman from Virginia.  He shared he will be majoring in business information systems, and upon his research on the University, he was pleased with what he learned.

Gutter feels the campus is like one big family, and fellow freshman Kennedy Holloway concurs.

“I came here because it felt like a family environment and there are a lot of great people here,” shared the mechanical engineering major from Birmingham, Alabama.

According to a report from the Washington Post, TSU is making history by their class of first-year students outnumbering the total Black population at various institutions.  While Tennessee and neighboring states hold the greatest population of incoming students, there is also a substantial increase in students from California, Texas, Michigan, and Wisconsin.

This freshmen class also carries outstanding academic credentials with an average high school GPA of 3.4.  Along the most popular STEM majors among the new freshman class are agricultural sciences, engineering, health sciences, business, and education.

Frank Stevenson, associate vice president for student affairs and dean of students, shared that the university happily welcomes the new students, also assuring them of a safe and exciting learning environment.

“This is a really exciting time to have this level of uptick of students who are ready to be back on campus,” noted Stevenson. “We have a lot of things planned for the campus and I think our first-time freshmen are going to see the energy and excitement of the TSU campus.”

The University is currently accepting applications for fall 2023.