Shaw University, founded as the Raleigh Institute, is a private liberal arts institution and historically black university (HBCU) in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Founded on December 1, 1865, it is the oldest HBCU in the Southern United States.
Shaw University has been called the mother of African-American colleges in North Carolina, as the founding presidents of North Carolina Central University, Elizabeth City State University, and Fayetteville State University were all Shaw alumni. The founder of Livingstone College studied at Shaw, before transferring to Lincoln University. What became North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University was located on Shaw’s campus during its first year.
Shaw University is affiliated with the General Baptist State Convention of North Carolina and a member of the National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc. which supports the Shaw University Divinity School. Along with Howard University, Hampton University, Lincoln University, PA and Virginia Union University, Shaw was a co-founding member of the NCAA Division II’s Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) Conference, the oldest African American athletic association in the U.S. The university has won CIAA championships in Football, Basketball (women’s and men’s), and Men’s Tennis.
The university won a 5-year grant with University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill to create a Partnership for the Elimination of Health Disparities for minorities, and a 7-year grant with Johns Hopkins University for Gerontological Research. In 2007, Shaw received $2.5 million from the National Science Foundation to support its Nanoscience and Nanotechnology program. In 2004, Shaw University received $1.1 million from the U.S. Department of Education to develop an Upward Bound Program.
Shaw University is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, the Council on Social Work Education, and the American Psychological Association. The Divinity School is accredited by the Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada as its Allied Health Professions programs are accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs, the Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education, and the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education.The University offers undergraduate degrees in natural science, business and accounting, religion and philosophy, education and computer science. The University also offers graduate programs in Divinity, Religious Education and Early Childhood Instruction. The Center for Alternative Programs in Education (CAPE) has centers in Greenville, Kannapolis, High Point, Rocky Mount, Ahoskie, Fayetteville, Durham, Wilmington, and Asheville.