(BPRW) National Park Service Awards $10.6 Million to Preserve Historically Black Colleges and Universities in America | Press Releases

(BPRW) National Park Service awards $10.6 million to preserve historically black colleges and universities in America

(Black PR Wire) WASHINGTON – The National Park Service today awarded $10.67 million to 15 projects in eight states as part of the Fund for Historical Preservation‘S Historically Black Colleges and Universities Grant Programwhich focuses on the restoration of historic structures on the campuses of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).

“It is vital for America’s HBCUs to preserve their vibrant history and ensure that the places and events that took place there are not forgotten,” he said. National Park Service Director Chuck Sams“I am proud that the National Park Service can support this locally led management.”

This year’s grants will help preserve sites such as Steward Hall at Simmons College, Hope House at Delaware State University and Melrose Cottage at Cheyney University of Pennsylvania.

• Simmons College, the only private HBCU in the state of Kentucky, will renovate Steward Hall, one of only two remaining buildings built during the college’s heyday in 1924. The architect and builder, Samuel Plato, is a celebrated black architect who also graduated from Simmons College. The grant funds will be used to renovate windows and doors and perform foundation repairs and repointing.
• Delaware State University (DSU) Downtown campus in Dover, Delaware, will renovate a pre-1885, three-story, frame building with Queen Anne architectural features, including a mansard roof and expansive porch. The building was originally owned by Wesley College but was acquired by DSU in 2021. The building renovation will address the building envelope, interior water damage, and mold remediation. The renovated building will be called Hope House and will provide social services to students and the community.
• Cheyney University of Pennsylvania will renovate Melrose Cottage, a cottage dating back to approximately 1785. The building served as the university president’s home from 1913 to 1951 and was listed as a World Heritage Site. National Register of Historic Places in 1986. The renovated building will serve as a hub for the admissions team and a welcome center for campus tours. The funding will address electrical repairs, a fire suppression system, and accessibility issues.

Prices

Congress has appropriated funds for the Historically Black Colleges and Universities Grant Program in FY2023 via the Fund for Historical Preservation (HPF). The HPF uses revenues from federal oil and gas leases on the Outer Continental Shelf, and assists in a wide range of conservation projects without spending taxpayer dollars, with the goal of limiting the loss of nonrenewable resources in favor of conserving other irreplaceable resources.
Established in 1977 with a budget of $150 million per year through 2024, the HPF has awarded more than $2 billion in historic preservation grants to states, tribes, local governments and nonprofit organizations.

HPF funds are administered by the NPS and can be appropriated by Congress to support various historic preservation projects to help preserve the nation’s cultural resources. Other HPF grant programs administered by the NPS fund the preservation of America’s Most Important Cultural Resources and historical places in Underrepresented communitiesas well as sites that are crucial to the representation of Tribal heritage, African American Civil Rightsand the History of Equal Rights in America.

For more information about NPS programs and grants for historic preservation, visit nps.gov/stlpg/

www.nps.gov

About the National Park Service. More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America’s 429 national parks, working with communities across the country to preserve local history and create recreation opportunities close to home. Learn more at www.nps.govand further Facebook, Instagram, TwitterAndYouTube.

Source: National Park Service