'House Facts

The Wall Street Journal recognizes Morehouse College as one of the top 50 feeder schools in the nation in sending students to top-tier professional and graduate school programs in its September 23, 2003, issue.

Morehouse College is the first Historically Black College to produce a Rhodes Scholar. The school has produced a total of three Rhodes Scholars—two in the last four years. Oluwabusayo “Topé” Folarin ’04, now studying at Oxford University, is the College’s most recent Rhodes Scholar.

James Dessin ’07, a history and French major, is the only student in the nation to be granted the prestigious Luard Scholarship in 2005. To date, Morehouse has produced 10 Luard Scholars, an honor given to students attending United Negro College Fund institutions by The English-Speaking Union of the United States to fund their junior year of study at a British university.

Morehouse College triumphs as the national champion of the Honda Campus All-Star Challenge (HCASC) for three of the last five years (2000-2004). The three-day competition pits students from 64 Historically Black Colleges and Universities against one another to determine who is best at showcasing intellectual skills.

The Leadership Center, a 73,000-square-foot, $13-million facility, opens in August 2006. It houses the Leadership Center at Morehouse College, the Andrew Young Center for International Affairs, the Bonner Office of Community Service, the Emma and Joe Adams Public Service Institute and the Division of Business and Economics.

In 2004, Oprah Winfrey gives the second of two $5-million gifts to Morehouse College. The first $5-million gift was given in 2003 during the public launch of the Campaign for a New Century. In 1989, Winfrey gave the College her first gift of $1 million, which funded the Oprah Winfrey Endowed Scholarship Fund. In 1997, the year after the start of the campaignperiod, she made another $1 million gift to support scholarships. Her total contribution to the College is now $12 million, making her the College’s top donor to date.

Morehouse College celebrates the extraordinary life of musician and College supporter Ray Charles with A Tribute to Ray Charles on September 29, 2004, in Beverly Hills, California. The star-studded Tribute launches a fund-raising campaign for the Ray Charles Performing Arts Center, which is a part of the larger Morehouse College Center for the Arts complex. The $20-million campaign was jump-started several years ago with two $1-million gifts from Ray Charles.

Morehouse College establishes the Oprah Winfrey South Africa Leadership Program with a $1-million gift from Winfrey. The exchange program encompasses ethical leadership training and community service through cross-cultural immersion and international exposure in South Africa and Atlanta for Oprah Winfrey Scholars and South African students.

Morehouse College launches the program phase of Project Identity in 2004. Project Identity is a federally funded Title III program designed to help African American and other minority males in middle school build self-confidence and get an early start on enrolling and succeeding in college. Its curriculum includes speakers, workshops, cultural excursions and courses in learning skills and test preparation.

Morehouse receives a grant of $4.5 million from the Corella & Bertram F. Bonner Foundation. The funds are used by the Bonner Office of Community Service to enhance the College’s culture of service.

The Kellogg Foundation awards the Morehouse College Research Center on Health Disparities a grant for $4 million. The grant funds the development of a new model for eliminating disparities in health status by targeting the major social factors that cause disease and working with communities to improve their health.

The Department of Defense awards the Morehouse College Chemistry Department $1.25 million in 2003. The money is disseminated over a five-year period to develop a college-level materials science course that will be taught at U.S. colleges and universities. The goal of the course will be to expand the freshman experience in science and technology in order to attract more students to the science, specifically materials science careers.

The National Institutes of Health awards the Morehouse College Minority Biomedical Research Support (MBRS) RISE Program a total of $1,086,477, which will be be disseminated from 2004 to 2007. The MBRS RISE Program is designed to enhance student and faculty research training through peer-led teaching, interdisciplinary courses and mentoring, as well as intensive academic advising and standardized test preparation.

The Center for Excellence in Telecommunications and Space (CETS), a joint research hub created by Morehouse College and Ohio University, is awarded $891,625 by NASA to prepare students—especially minorities—for careers in space technology. The center’s key activities include developing curriculum and program elements, including a distance—learning program, that teach students about the design, operation and management of telecommunications and space systems.

Morehouse College and the Center for Behavioral Neuroscience (CBN), the largest academic research center in the world for the study of behavioral neuroscience, partner to develop an interdisciplinary program in neuroscience at the College. CBN helps provide: the funding for laboratory equipment; the development of an upper-level course curriculum; the hiring of faculty; and the creation of student research opportunities in neuroscience.

Morehouse College begins the second phase of the Technology Transfer Project (TTP) during the 2005-06 school term. TTP integrates technology and business by creating a curriculum that teaches students e-business applications, as well as entrepreneurship and networking through classroom instruction, case studies, lectures and internships.

Morehouse College makes improvements to its technology infrastructure by establishing 450 computer workstations and a computer help desk, and by creating several campus wireless access zones.

The Morehouse College Maroon Tiger Basketball team wins the SIAC Division Championship in 2004. The team advances to the first round of the NCAA Division I.