Langston University

{{Short description|Historically Black college in Langston, Oklahoma, US}}

{{Infobox university

| name = Langston University

| image_name = Langston University seal.png

| image_upright = 0.9

| motto = Education For Service

| established = {{start date|1897|03|12}}

| type = Public land-grant historically black university

| parent = Oklahoma Agricultural & Mechanical Colleges

| academic_affiliations = Space-grant

| endowment = $49 million (2019)

| president = Ruth Ray Jackson

| students = 1,873{{Cite web|url=https://www.niche.com/colleges/langston-university/|title=Langston University}}

| city = Langston

| state = Oklahoma

| country = United States

| campus = Rural

| former_names = Oklahoma Colored Agricultural and Normal University (1897–1941)

| colors = Blue & Orange
{{color box|#213768}} {{color box|#f2682a}}

| sports_nickname = Lions

| athletics_affiliations = NAIA – Sooner

| website = {{url|https://langston.edu/}}

| logo = Langston University logo.png

| logo_size = 250px

}}

Langston University (LU) is a public land-grant historically black university in Langston, Oklahoma. It is the only historically black college in the state and the westernmost four-year public HBCU in the United States. The main campus in Langston is a rural setting {{convert|10|mi|0}} east of Guthrie. The university also serves an urban mission with centers in Tulsa (at the same campus as the OSU-Tulsa facility) and Oklahoma City. The university is a member-school of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund. In March 2025, [https://journalrecord.com/2025/03/07/langston-university-earns-carnegie-research-designation/ Langston University was named a Carnegie Research College and University].

History

The school was founded in 1897 and was known as the Oklahoma Colored Agricultural and Normal University. From 1898 to 1916 its president was Inman E. Page. Langston University was created as a result of the second Morrill Act in 1890. The law required states with land-grant colleges (such as Oklahoma State University, then known as Oklahoma A&M) to either admit African Americans or provide an alternative school for them to attend as a condition of receiving federal funds.{{cite web| url=http://digital.library.okstate.edu/encyclopedia/entries/L/LA021.html| title=OHS Publications Division| access-date=26 January 2017| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141007035506/http://digital.library.okstate.edu/ENCYCLOPEDIA/entries/L/LA021.html| archive-date=2014-10-07| url-status=dead}} The university was renamed as Langston University in 1941 in honor of John Mercer Langston (1829–1897), civil rights pioneer, first African-American member of Congress from Virginia, founder of the Howard University Law School, and American consul-general to Haiti, though it was always referred to as "Langston".

Poet Melvin B. Tolson taught at Langston from 1947 until 1964. Tolson was portrayed by Denzel Washington in the film The Great Debaters.

In August 2021, former university President Kent J. Smith Jr announced the university would use COVID-19 relief money to forgive the debt of students enrolled between spring 2020 and summer 2021, forgiving $4.65 million in student debt.{{cite news |last1=Martinez-Keel |first1=Nuria |title=Langston University erases $4.65 million in student debt |url=https://www.oklahoman.com/story/news/education/2021/08/07/langston-university-only-oklahoma-hbcu-forgives-millions-in-student-debt/5515686001/ |access-date=8 August 2021 |publisher=The Oklahoman |date=7 August 2021}}

Langston University commemorated the opening of a new allied health facility on its Tulsa Campus on March 30, 2023. The facility was dedicated as the Jack Henderson Allied Health Facility on August 2, 2024. The 17,000 square-foot building is home of the Langston University School of Nursing and Health Professions.{{cite web |url=https://www.kjrh.com/news/local-news/langston-university-dedicates-the-jack-henderson-allied-health-facility |title=Langston University dedicates The Jack Henderson Allied Health Facility | first=Sharon |last=Phillips |work=KJRH-TV |date=August 2, 2024 |accessdate=September 2, 2024}}

President Kent J. Smith Jr announced his retirement as the university's 16th president effective at the end of the Spring 2023 semester. The Oklahoma Agricultural & Mechanical Colleges Board of Regents unanimously appointed Ruth Ray Jackson as interim president beginning July 6, 2023. In April 2024, she was appointed the institution's 17th president with the investiture on March 14, 2025.{{Cite web |date=2024-05-06 |title=Ruth Ray Jackson Named the Seventeenth President of Langston University in Oklahoma |url=https://jbhe.com/2024/05/ruth-ray-jackson-named-seventeenth-president-of-langston-university-in-oklahoma/ |access-date=2024-05-12 |website=The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education |language=en-US}}

Academics

Six schools house the degree programs of Langston University: Sherman Lewis School of Agriculture and Applied Sciences; School of Arts and Sciences; School of Business; School of Education and Behavioral Sciences; School of Nursing and Health Professions; and the School of Physical Therapy. A total of 30 undergraduate and six graduate degree programs are offered at LU.{{cite web|url=http://www.langston.edu/sites/default/files/basic-content-files/School+Profile+10-19-15+updated.pdf|title=Langston University -|website=www.langston.edu}}{{Dead link|date=October 2024}}

According to US News and World Report, Langston had an 18% graduation rate within the standard four-year period of study in 2025.{{Cite web |title=Langston University |url=https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/langston-university-3157 |access-date=September 3, 2024 |website=US News and World Report}}

The university offers the Edwin P. McCabe Honors Program for highly motivated undergraduate students with exceptional academic records.{{cite web| url=http://www.langston.edu/academics/programs-centers/edwin-p-mccabe-honors-program| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131005064029/http://www.langston.edu/academics/programs-centers/edwin-p-mccabe-honors-program| url-status=dead| archive-date=October 5, 2013| title=The Edwin P. McCabe Honors Program - Langston University| access-date=26 January 2017}}

The university was accredited with a Doctorate of Physical Therapy (DPT) program in 2005. It is the university's only doctoral program and one of three DPT programs in the state.{{cite web| url=http://www.lunet.edu/pt_main.htm |title=Doctor of Physical Therapy Program |access-date=2007-02-21 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20060901131445/http://www.lunet.edu/pt_main.htm |archive-date = 2006-09-01}}{{cite web| url=http://tmcf.org/community-news/langston-university-welcomes-largest-freshman-class/7516| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161006014039/http://tmcf.org/community-news/langston-university-welcomes-largest-freshman-class/7516| url-status=dead| archive-date=October 6, 2016| title=Langston University Welcomes Largest Freshman Class| date=23 September 2015| access-date=26 January 2017}}

Langston University is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.{{cite web| url=http://www.langston.edu/academics/resources/accreditations| title=Accreditations - Langston University| access-date=26 January 2017}}

Langston currently has the lowest total cost per credit hour of any four year university in Oklahoma.https://secure.okcollegestart.org/Financial_Aid_Planning/Financial_Aid_101/Oklahoma_Tuition_Breakdown.aspx Langston was ranked as the #1 value among all HBCUs by BestValueSchools. https://www.bestvalueschools.org/hbcu-colleges/

Athletics

File:Langston University vs. North American University 10-14-23.jpg game between the Langston Lions (left) and North American Stallions in 2023]]

The Langston athletic teams are called the Lions. The university is a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), primarily competing in the Sooner Athletic Conference since the 2018–19 academic year. The Lions previously competed as a member of the Red River Athletic Conference (RRAC) from 1998–99 to 2017–18. They were also a member of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) from 1931–32 to 1956–57, which is currently an NCAA Division I FCS athletic conference.{{Citation needed|date=September 2024}}

Langston competes in nine intercollegiate varsity sports: Men's sports include basketball, football and track & field; while women's sports include basketball, cheer, softball, track & field and volleyball.

=Marching Pride=

File:New York Guardians vs. Dallas Renegades 2020 19 (Langston University Marching Pride).jpg game]]

Langston's marching band is known as the "Langston University Marching Pride". It is a major ambassador of the university, a supporter at athletic events, and serves as a training center for students interested in pursuing a career in music and/or developing pertinent life skills. Charlie Wilson, of The Gap Band, once served as Drum Major. The Marching Pride has performed for the Denver Nuggets, Oklahoma City Thunder, Kansas City Chiefs, and has marched in front of huge crowds at the Georgia Dome, AT&T Stadium, the former Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis, and has participated in four Honda Battle of the Bands, often marching in front of crowds of over 40,000. Members of the Marching Pride often receive an out-of-state fee waiver along with additional scholarships based upon their audition. {{cite web| url=http://www.langston.edu/marchingpride| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150902010326/http://www.langston.edu/marchingpride| url-status=dead| archive-date=September 2, 2015| title=Marching Pride - Langston University| access-date=26 January 2017}}{{clear left}}

Notable alumni and attendees

{{Alum|name=Maurice "Mo" Bassett|year=|nota=Former fullback for the Cleveland Browns|ref=}}

{{Alum|name=Bessie Coleman|year=|nota=First American woman to obtain an International Pilot's license. Coleman enrolled 1910, but completed only one term.|ref=}}

{{Alum|name=Brendan Crawford|year=2013|nota=Football quarterback|ref=}}

{{Alum|name=The Delta Rhythm Boys|year=|nota=Jazz vocal group inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame|ref=}}

{{Alum|name=Ada Lois Sipuel Fisher|year=1945|nota=Civil rights activist|ref=}}

{{Alum|name=Larzette Hale|year=1940|nota=First Black woman CPA to earn a Ph.D in Accounting; Department Head at Utah State University School of Accounting|ref=}}

{{Alum|name=Nathan Hare|year=1954|nota=Founding publisher of The Black Scholar (1969-1975) and author|ref=}}

{{Alum|name=Matthew Hatchette|year=1997|nota=football player|ref=}}

{{Alum|name=Thomas "Hollywood" Henderson|year=1975|nota=football player|ref={{cite web|url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/H/HendTh00.htm|title=Thomas Henderson|work=pro-football-reference.com|access-date=2008-11-06}}}}

{{Alum|name=Jennifer Hudson|year=2003|nota=singer, actress (did not graduate)|ref=}}

{{Alum|name=Dr. Austin Lane|year=|nota=former president of Texas Southern University|ref={{cite web |url=http://www.tsu.edu/about/office-of-the-president/presidents-bio.html |title=President's Bio |publisher=Texas Southern University |date=2019 |access-date=July 3, 2019}}}}

{{Alum|name=Odell Lawson|year=|nota=football player|ref={{cite web|url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/L/LawsOd00.htm|title=Odell Lawson|work=pro-football-reference.com|access-date=7 April 2020}}}}

{{Alum|name=Clara Luper|year=1944|nota=Civil rights leader |ref=}}

{{Alum|name=Helen Neal|year=1962|nota=first black graduate of West Texas State University |ref=}}

{{Alum|name=Dr. Henry Ponder|year=|nota=former president of several universities|ref=}}

{{Alum|name=Nancy Riley|year=|nota=former member of the Oklahoma Senate|ref=}}

{{Alum|name= Colonel Michael C. Thompson|year=|nota=21st Adjutant General of Oklahoma|ref={{cite web| url=http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?subjectid=16&articleid=20101221_16_A13_CUTLIN178224| title=Michael Thompson as DPS commissioner nominee| publisher=tulsaworld.com| access-date=January 24, 2011}}}}