NASHVILLE – January 01: Harry Elson Memorial Gate at Fisk University on January 1, 2016 in … [+] Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo By Raymond Boyd/Getty Images)
In the 1940s and 50s, Fisk University was vibrant and boasted one of the most impressive faculties in the nation, including writer and poet Langston Hughes, author and composer James Weldon Johnson, sociologist Charles Spurgeon Johnson, poets Arna Bontemps and Countee Cullin, and painter Aaron Douglas. The Nashville-based university was the first Historically Black College and University (HBCU) to have a chapter of the prestigious academic honor society Phi Beta Kappa. In addition, the institution was on the minds of influential philanthropists who made consistent and hefty donations. However, beginning in the mid-1960s, the institution fell on hard times all while navigating the social turmoil of the era.
Portrait of African American painter Aaron Douglas (1899 – 1979), long time professor at Fisk … [+] University, and a leading figure in the Harlem Renaissance, painting at his easel, Tennessee, ca.1970s. (Photo by Robert Abbott Sengstacke/Getty Images)
In the subsequent decades, Fisk has endured unstable enrollment, frequent leadership turnover, and on and off financial instability. Despite these challenges the institution has always been academically strong, never losing footing in terms of its production of students who go on to earn graduate degrees, including Ph.D.s. and medical degrees. Fisk is consistently ranked in the top 10 on U.S. News and World Report’s ranking of HBCUs, and is currently ranked 13 on the news outlet’s ranking of Top Performers on Social Mobility.
In the midst of the nation’s financial difficulties, the recent racial turmoil, and the Covid-19 pandemic, Fisk University has been quietly making a turn around. Over the last few years, the institution’s enrollment has increased from 630 to 1,041, giving the institution its largest student body since 1979. Moreover, the academic caliber of the incoming students has increased dramatically with test scores up from the 54th to the 71st percentile in terms of national averages. Fisk has also benefited from stellar fundraising over the past few years, with the total endowment doubling.
According to Fisk University Executive Vice President, Jens Frederiksen, “Fisk has been incredibly effective at delivering and communicating amazing student outcomes and by extension, an extraordinary return on investment. Many of these unprecedented outcomes are the result of a concerted effort to invest in leadership and professional development programming.”
Fisk just added the new Roland Parrish Career Center, which was its first new building in over 35 years. The institution also secured financing this past week to build two new buildings: a living and learning facility that will accommodate the tremendous growth of the student body and deliver a more up to date living/learning environment; and a 21st century arts and science building. In Frederiksen’s words, “The competition for these elite students is intense and residential facilities remains a key factor in where students choose to attend. Fisk is their home away from home and we are committed to providing the best possible living/learning environment.”
A photograph of Fisk University Jubilee Singers, Nashville, Tennessee, 1871. (Photo by Afro American … [+] Newspapers/Gado/Getty Images)
Fisk has many comparative advantages in terms of its programming – from its extraordinary art galleries (much of which were donated by artist Georgia O’Keeffe) to the internationally known Fisk Jubilee Singers, from its social justice emphasis to its strength in STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, and math). As Frederiksen explained, “The life sciences have always been an essential component of the Fisk experience with Meharry Medical School across the street and the Vanderbilt Bridge Program [a master’s degree program focused on science]. Fisk has consistently ranked in the top 10 small liberal arts institutions for research expenditures and the lion’s share of that has come from the STEM areas.”
The goal of new arts and science building is to create an academic building with labs and resources on par with the institutions that Fisk students compete with on a daily basis. Frederiksen shared, “Fisk prepares its students to become the next generation of leaders and executives across every sector. Research and innovation are imperative to this mission and the University is making a strategic push to build infrastructure on par with this vision.”
NASHVILLE – January 01: Jubilee Hall at Fisk University on January 1, 2016 in Nashville, Tennessee. … [+] (Photo By Raymond Boyd/Getty Images)
As mentioned, Fisk has always been highly ranked academically. Most recently, the institution was ranked number one by AcademicInfluence.com for academic stewardship. According to Forbes contributer Michael T. Nietzel, academic stewardship is “a ratio calculated with a formula that quantifies how much academic impact a college achieves, given its overall resources. Think of it as comparing a school’s academic bang to its institutional bucks.” Frederiksen is excited about this ranking and from his perspective, the ranking “ is really a testament to everything that has happened at Fisk over the past 5-6 years and the unwavering commitment to delivering student outcomes that rival the top universities in the country. The academic stewardship ranking speaks to this outstanding return on investment model as well as the thoughtful running of the university as a sustainable small business that maximizes its resources to drive the greatest impact.”
Fisk has experienced some rocky decades but according to Frederiksen, “it is on its way back to that role as the ‘strongest HBCU in the nation.’ This is truly a unique institution that has contributed so much to the fabric of American life and we believe the next decade will see Fisk once again as a leading force in American education.” He added, stressing the importance of the small, historically Black institution, “So many brilliant minds depend on Fisk to help them realize their dreams and unlock new horizons of opportunities. The president as well as the entire leadership structure has remained laser focused on implementing this vision of the Fisk future.”
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