$97.1 Million in Defense Funding Heads to 10 HBCUs Pursuing R1 Status
Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-GA) announced on October 5 that ten HBCUs will split $97.1 million in federal funding for research in science, technology, engineering, and math. The money comes through the Department of Defense’s HBCU/MSI program as congressionally directed funding, and it is aimed at schools working toward R1 status, the highest research classification a university can hold in the United States.
Florida A&M, Morgan State, and North Carolina A&T each received $10 million. Delaware State and Texas Southern came in just under that mark. Clark Atlanta, the only Georgia school on the list, received about $9.8 million, and Jackson State received the smallest award in the group at $7.6 million.
“For too long, HBCUs have gone unrecognized for their contributions to our nation’s leading STEM industry,” Warnock said. “These institutions serve as stewards of academic excellence and innovation, and this federal investment specifically in STEM programs honors that legacy of greatness and expands opportunity for the next generation of scientists.”
The Full List
| School | Award |
|---|---|
| Florida A&M University | $10,000,000 |
| Morgan State University | $10,000,000 |
| North Carolina A&T State University | $10,000,000 |
| Delaware State University | $9,998,873 |
| Texas Southern University | $9,997,847 |
| University of the District of Columbia | $9,982,865 |
| Fayetteville State University | $9,905,607 |
| Prairie View A&M University | $9,858,194 |
| Clark Atlanta University | $9,784,632 |
| Jackson State University | $7,573,527 |
| Total | $97,101,545 |
Eight of the 10 schools are among the 14 HBCUs tracked in the Data Driven HBCU Research Hub, which covers every HBCU that currently holds an R1 or R2 designation. Those eight account for $77.2 million of the total. The University of the District of Columbia and Fayetteville State University are not part of the hub.
How Big Is $10 Million?
The answer depends a lot on the school. For the largest research programs on the list, the award is a meaningful boost. For smaller programs, it is equal to a large share of everything the school spends on research in a year.
The table below compares each award to the school’s research spending in the 2023-24 school year, the most recent year in our dashboards. The comparison is meant to show scale only. The announcement does not say over what period the money will be spent.
| School | Award | 2023-24 research spending | Award as share of spending |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clark Atlanta University | $9,784,632 | $13.4M | 72.9% |
| Texas Southern University | $9,997,847 | $19.0M | 52.5% |
| Prairie View A&M University | $9,858,194 | $31.6M | 31.2% |
| Jackson State University | $7,573,527 | $24.7M | 30.6% |
| Delaware State University | $9,998,873 | $43.7M | 22.9% |
| Morgan State University | $10,000,000 | $55.5M | 18.0% |
| Florida A&M University | $10,000,000 | $68.7M | 14.6% |
| North Carolina A&T State University | $10,000,000 | $81.8M | 12.2% |
Clark Atlanta’s award equals nearly three-quarters of the $13.4 million the university spent on research in 2023-24. Texas Southern’s nearly $10 million award is more than half of its $19.0 million in research spending that year.
Prairie View A&M and Jackson State sit in the 30 percent range. Delaware State, which spent $43.7 million on research in 2023-24, is at about 23 percent.
At the other end, NC A&T, Florida A&M, and Morgan State already spend more than $50 million a year on research. For those three, the award accounts for 12 to 18 percent of their 2023-24 totals.
Where the R1 Race Stands
Carnegie’s R1 designation, now titled Research 1: Very High Research Spending and Doctorate Production, set its 2025 thresholds at $50 million in research spending and 70 research doctorates. For that cycle, Carnegie measured each school using the higher of its three-year average or its most recent year. The classifications are published on a three-year cycle, and Carnegie has said future releases will use only a three-year average, with any threshold changes shared ahead of each release.
Among the schools on this list, NC A&T is the only one that cleared both of the 2025 thresholds in 2023-24, with $81.8 million in research spending and 72 research doctorates. Morgan State crossed the $50 million spending threshold for the first time that year, reaching $55.5 million, and awarded 62 research doctorates.
Florida A&M has been above the spending mark since 2021-22 and reached $68.7 million in 2023-24. Its research doctorate count that year was 41. Tracking the R1 Chase: NC A&T Clears Both Thresholds as Morgan State Surpasses $100 Million in Research Funding breaks down year by year how NC A&T and Morgan State have moved toward both thresholds.
Howard University, which regained R1 in February 2025, is not among the 10 recipients.
A Broader Push on Research Funding
The award builds on the HBCU Research Capacity Act, a bipartisan bill from Warnock and Sen. Katie Britt (R-AL). The bill would set up a federally coordinated website that compiles HBCU-eligible STEM research and development funding opportunities in one place. In March, Warnock hosted more than 30 HBCU presidents at the U.S. Capitol for an event focused on the legislation.
Warnock graduated from Morehouse College in Atlanta.
