Hampton Univeristy set to unlock new money funding source

Hampton University may soon regain its land-grant status more than a century after it was revoked, following renewed efforts by Virginia lawmakers to correct what supporters describe as a historic injustice. Restoring the designation could unlock access to special state and federal funding to support agricultural research, education, and community development programs at the Hampton-based HBCU.

Senate Bill 274, sponsored by Sen. Mamie Locke (D-Hampton), seeks to reverse a federal exclusion that stripped Hampton of its land-grant status in 1920, effectively cutting the university off from related funding streams. The legislation would formally reinstate Hampton within both the 1862 and 1890 land-grant systems.

During a recent Senate Higher Education Subcommittee meeting, Hampton University President Darrell Williams emphasized that multiple land-grant institutions can and do coexist within the same state. He pointed to Alabama, where Alabama A&M University, Auburn University, and Tuskegee University all hold land-grant status.

“We have been promoting this cause for the last two to three years because we believe it is fair and just,” Williams said Monday.

The original Morrill Land-Grant Act of 1862 established institutions such as Virginia Tech to advance education in agriculture, engineering, and mechanical sciences, using proceeds from federal land sales—much of which was taken from Native American communities. At the time, Virginia’s public institutions barred Black students. That exclusion led to the Second Morrill Act of 1890, which created separate land-grant institutions for Black students, including Virginia State University. Virginia Tech would not admit its first Black students until 1953.

Sen. Locke has stressed that Senate Bill 274 would not reduce or redirect funding from Virginia Tech or Virginia State, a concern raised during subcommittee discussions.

“Senate Bill 274 is not designed to revisit the past with grievance but to complete the historical record and align Virginia’s policies with present-day values and needs,” Locke said.

She added that the proposal “does not take away from VSU or Virginia Tech, but instead expands opportunities for Hampton by reintegrating the university into the national land-grant system to strengthen its research and educational initiatives.”

The bill appears poised for advancement, having received unanimous support from the Senate Higher Education Subcommittee.

Meanwhile, Virginia State University is also the focus of separate higher education legislation. House Bill 1374, introduced by Del. Michael B. Feggans, would place the Virginia Military Institute under the governance of Virginia State by dissolving VMI’s current Board of Visitors and transferring oversight to Virginia State’s 17-member board. If approved and signed into law, the measure would represent a significant shift in governance for the state’s higher education landscape.

If approved, Senate Bill 274 would mark a historic step toward restoring equity in Virginia’s higher education system, formally returning Hampton University to a national land-grant framework it was denied for more than a century. Supporters say the measure is about more than funding—it represents a long-overdue acknowledgment of Hampton’s role in public service, research, and workforce development. As the legislation continues to advance with bipartisan support, its passage could signal a broader shift in how the Commonwealth addresses historical exclusions while investing in the future of its HBCUs.

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