Rate this HBCU Day 69: Southern University and A&M College

[DrBanneker]

We last covered Lincoln University (Missouri) which received an average score of 7.

See the updated leaderboard here

Today we head to the Boot, to visit the eminent Southern University and Agricultural & Mechanical College. Usually known as just Southern University or SUBR, due to its location in the state capital of Baton Rouge, Southern is one of the largest HBCUs and one of the most legendary in terms of school culture, especially its world renowned band, The Human Jukebox.

Southern University is a land grant university, supported by the 1890 Second Morrill Act in order for Black students to have a parallel education during segregation. Its origins are in the Reconstruction Era where eminent Louisiana politicians such as P.B.S. Pinchback (2nd Black governor ever), Henry Demas & Theophile Allain (Reconstruction era state legislators) and T.B. Stamps (Reconstruction era state senator) worked for an improvement in Louisiana education generally and specifically an institute of higher education for Blacks. Southern was thus formed, originally in New Orleans. In 1912, it moved to Scotlandsville and finally to Baton Rouge in 1914.

Southern today is the 5th largest HBCU in terms of Black enrollment. It is also well-known for its Human Jukebox marching band and Dancing Dolls dance team. Many of Louisiana's prominent Black politicians at the local and state level count Southern as their alma mater. It is also a significant destination for students from out west, particularly California.

Academically, Southern has one of the better engineering programs amongst HBCUs with high starting salaries, particularly for mechanical engineers (who have a lot of oil & gas opportunities in LA and TX). It is also one of the top 5 producers of registered nurses amongst HBCUs.




Founded: 1880

City, State: Baton Rouge, LA

Type: 4-Year Public

Nickname: Jaguars

Enrollment and percent Black enrollment: 8,317 (6,560 undergraduate), 97% Black

Part-time student percentage: 23%

First Generation Student Percentage: 40%

Percentage of students from households under $30k/over $100k: 60% / 5%

Out of State Percentage: 29% (Top States: Texas, Georgia, California, Alabama, Florida)

Student-to-Faculty Ratio: 20:1

Admissions Acceptance Rate: 59%

4-yr/6-yr graduation rates: 10% / 32%

Transfer out rate: N/A

Male/Female percentages (Female:Male Ratio): 34% male/ 66% female (1.8:1 ratio)

Tuition: In-state: $10k, Out-of-state: $17k

Median Federal Debt After Graduation: $31k

Median Parent PLUS Loans After Graduation: $15k

Median Earning 10-Years after 10 years from freshman year: $39k

Median Earnings for specific majors after 3 years after graduation:
Mechanical Engineering: $75k, Registered Nursing: $58k, Business Administration: $38k, Accounting: $36k, Psychology: $30k

Top Majors by Degrees:
Business Administration, Public Administration, Mechanical Engineering, Computer Science, Civil Engineering, Criminal Justice, Communications, Psychology, Nursing, Speech Pathology


Endowment: ~$10M

Alumni Engagement: N/A

Athletic Conference: SWAC NCAA Div 1

Mascot: Jaguars

Main Campus

College of Engineering

Residence Hall (Camille Shade)

SU MBA Student Association Officers

School of Nursing

A.W. Mumford Stadium

F.G. Clark Activity Center

The Human Jukebox

Cheerleaders

Dancing Dolls

Miss Southern University

@Driving Squirrel @Freedman @Ineedmoney504 @Matt504 @NO-BadAzz @Hacksaw Jim Thuggin @Freedman
@invalid @Originalman @#1 pick @Ziggiy @SupaVillain @Tug life @Idaeo @get these nets @MostReal @Bryan Danielson @Rollie Forbes @Sonic Boom of the South @staticshock @Charlie Hustle @BigAggieLean. @Optimus Prime @How Sway? @DropTopDoc @Anerdyblackguy

 

[DrBanneker]

Notable Alumni:
See also here.
Avery Johnson - former basketball player and head coach of Mavericks, Nets, and U Alabama

Sherian Cadoria - first Black woman to achieve a general officer rank in the military

Randy Jackson - Musician and American Idol judge

Branford Marsalis - saxophonist and composer

David Banner - rapper/producer

Jewel Prestage - first Black woman PhD in political science

 

[DropTopDoc]

Pride of Br, and it’s so many alum in New Orleans, beautiful women, great campus and many great programs, got a few homies that graduated from there

 

[Dad]

10 no argument

I still want a southern univ hockey jersey

 

[Heafcliffe]

Breh, I gotta say I appreciate the thoroughness of these HBCU posts.

 

[Ineedmoney504]

Elite man. Elite.

Br is also a fun city for a 18-22 year old

 

[BrehWyatt]

The campus itself ain't much to look at as far as the buildings but in my experiences, those who roll through SUBR love it to death and back again. That said, it seems a place where it consistently overachieves as far as alums, sports, etc.

Also, co-eds are elite.

 

[AggiePride336.]

HBCU powerhouse.

Worked with quite a few engineers that graduated from Southern when I was back home in MS. I have fam in BR and they were the ones that put me on Southern long ago. Great school, and best color scheme amongst the HBCUs.

Amazing that this school is 97% black, and as large as it is. One of the larger HBCUs.

 

[NO-BadAzz]

Aint no school like SU. Let me go in for a quick min.
In the 80s and 90s (here me out) Southern University was a household name. Believe it or not SU, name's sake was bigger than LSU, How LSU has their name popping now, SU had this much if not more notoriety than LSU amongst black folks in the entire world. I would go on to say Howard U can maybe say that they could hold a candle next to SU in that time the 80s and especially the 90s Let me keep going. The 90s, early, mid and the end of 90s, Southern University was the leader of the HBCU world, that's not an opinion, that's a fact, and how can I prove this fact: Look at the movie "Low Down Dirty Shame" You see Jada Pinket wearing a what?? A SU hoodie
There's a Fresh Prince EP where Will Smith has on a what? SU jersey. Why not have on a Howard U or any other school paraphernalia? I can go on to display the number of SU paraphernalia folks rocked that displayed Southern University.
I look back at old EPs of black sitcoms from the 90s and see SU gear.
The engineering program has always been Top 3 in the country, the nursing program has always been top 3 if not the best, the law program has always been top 3 or the best, the agriculture program has been top 30-50 or so, the sports programs, baseball, to football, to the band has always been at the very top in the HBCU world.

Baseball was on another level, and when football started to hit in the early 90s, that was all she wrote. SU was that school, no other school was that school like SU, with MAYBE the exception of Howard.

Man I can go on and on. The 90s?? Ask Bill Clinton about Southern University, who band he sought to get for his Presidential parade thing. Ask the NFL what band that they wanted to have for their festivities etc. The NBA, MLB. etc.

Ask No Limit about Southern University in the 90s,
Ask Charlie Ward who he came to see in 1998 when he was at Florida State, buddy came to a JSU vs SU in 1998, crazy. He came to the game with Warrick Dunn on the track, etc. I can go on

Those who were old enough to understand the 90s and was outside outside, know that what I'm saying is 1000% facts


In the 90s, Southern University fan base was the largest traveled fan base in the COUNTRY, tagging them as the "JAGUAR NATION" This was the only school to have the tag/term Jaguar Nation, now every school has the tag nation associated with their name. There was an actual special done around this act/feature in the 90s

Also, (those flags that folks put on their car windows showcasing their team) SU fans were the first to have the car flags posted on their cars. I remember them flag being sold at this place called Bowies in Scotlandville. This was in the 90s, and traveling to SU away football games, you would see 1000s of car flags on folk's cars who was traveling to the games.

Nothing like being on the "yard" Fun Fact the term "the yard" was coined back in the early 90s and it referred to Southern University and its layout as being an actual "yard" before the newly buildings that it has now, other HBCUs weren't calling their campus "the yard" in the 90s. That term was coined at SU. Now every university is being called a "the yard"

Other HBCUs used to want to be a part of anything SU had going on, whether it was HC, Bayou Classic or Spring Festival, folks knew SU was the place to be. Again, I'm speaking of the days of the late 80s through the 90s, up until 2003. I think after 2003, that's when other schools started to get their fame and climb the ranks.

SU dominate the SWAC. IT was stated at times, many times, that the S.W.A.C. stood for Southern.Wins.Another.Championship. That's how dominate we were in the 90s.


I can go on about the essence of this University. You ask any player, student, band member, family member what school who they like to play against or what school that they would like to visit and I bet you say SU. (90s era)

I remember I used to talk to brehs that were in the band, and I would always ask them about the ass-whoopings that the Jukebox gave them. They would tell me how much longer their practices were, how much more that they had to do leading up to the week they were facing SU.

(In the 90s and up until 2003, and still somewhat today) Southern University was circled on your schedule. That was a game that you did not want to miss, even if you didn't go to football games, or basketball games, your HC, and that Southern University game was the games that you weren't going to miss.

 

[Rollie Forbes]

Southern vs Grambling back in the day

 

[DrBanneker]

Aint no school like SU. Let me go in for a quick min.
In the 80s and 90s (here me out) Southern University was a household name. Believe it or not SU, name's sake was bigger than LSU, How LSU has their name popping now, SU had this much if not more notoriety than LSU amongst black folks in the entire world. I would go on to say Howard U can maybe say that they could hold a candle next to SU in that time the 80s and especially the 90s Let me keep going. The 90s, early, mid and the end of 90s, Southern University was the leader of the HBCU world, that's not an opinion, that's a fact, and how can I prove this fact: Look at the movie "Low Down Dirty Shame" You see Jada Pinket wearing a what?? A SU hoodie
There's a Fresh Prince EP where Will Smith has on a what? SU jersey. Why not have on a Howard U or any other school paraphernalia? I can go on to display the number of SU paraphernalia folks rocked that displayed Southern University.
I look back at old EPs of black sitcoms from the 90s and see SU gear.
The engineering program has always been Top 3 in the country, the nursing program has always been top 3 if not the best, the law program has always been top 3 or the best, the agriculture program has been top 30-50 or so, the sports programs, baseball, to football, to the band has always been at the very top in the HBCU world.

Baseball was on another level, and when football started to hit in the early 90s, that was all she wrote. SU was that school, no other school was that school like SU, with MAYBE the exception of Howard.

Man I can go on and on. The 90s?? Ask Bill Clinton about Southern University, who band he sought to get for his Presidential parade thing. Ask the NFL what band that they wanted to have for their festivities etc. The NBA, MLB. etc.

Ask No Limit about Southern University in the 90s,
Ask Charlie Ward who he came to see in 1998 when he was at Florida State, buddy came to a JSU vs SU in 1998, crazy. He came to the game with Warrick Dunn on the track, etc. I can go on

Those who were old enough to understand the 90s and was outside outside, know that what I'm saying is 1000% facts


In the 90s, Southern University fan base was the largest traveled fan base in the COUNTRY, tagging them as the "JAGUAR NATION" This was the only school to have the tag/term Jaguar Nation, now every school has the tag nation associated with their name. There was an actual special done around this act/feature in the 90s

Also, (those flags that folks put on their car windows showcasing their team) SU fans were the first to have the car flags posted on their cars. I remember them flag being sold at this place called Bowies in Scotlandville. This was in the 90s, and traveling to SU away football games, you would see 1000s of car flags on folk's cars who was traveling to the games.

Nothing like being on the "yard" Fun Fact the term "the yard" was coined back in the early 90s and it referred to Southern University and its layout as being an actual "yard" before the newly buildings that it has now, other HBCUs weren't calling their campus "the yard" in the 90s. That term was coined at SU. Now every university is being called a "the yard"

Other HBCUs used to want to be a part of anything SU had going on, whether it was HC, Bayou Classic or Spring Festival, folks knew SU was the place to be. Again, I'm speaking of the days of the late 80s through the 90s, up until 2003. I think after 2003, that's when other schools started to get their fame and climb the ranks.

SU dominate the SWAC. IT was stated at times, many times, that the S.W.A.C. stood for Southern.Wins.Another.Championship. That's how dominate we were in the 90s.


I can go on about the essence of this University. You ask any player, student, band member, family member what school who they like to play against or what school that they would like to visit and I bet you say SU. (90s era)

I remember I used to talk to brehs that were in the band, and I would always ask them about the ass-whoopings that the Jukebox gave them. They would tell me how much longer their practices were, how much more that they had to do leading up to the week they were facing SU.

(In the 90s and up until 2003, and still somewhat today) Southern University was circled on your schedule. That was a game that you did not want to miss, even if you didn't go to football games, or basketball games, your HC, and that Southern University game was the games that you weren't going to miss.

I grew up in 80s/90s ATL and outside of ATL HBCUs I primarily knew Howard, FAMU, and Southern until I started applying to college.

 

[NO-BadAzz]

I grew up in 80s/90s ATL and outside of ATL HBCUs I primarily knew Howard, FAMU, and Southern until I started applying to college.

You can throw in FAMU in the mix along with GSU.

 

[get these nets]

Southern vs Grambling back in the day

Yeah, before the recent resurgence in mainstream coverage of HBCU sports, the Bayou Classic airing nationally on NBC was a big look for those two programs and HBCU sports & band culture in general.

 

[NO-BadAzz]

The Jukes had them cacs going crazy in Tiger Stadium. 100k in that bytch rocking to the Jukebox, blowing that shyt, and they blew that NECK (who LSU stole from) at them bytches. bytch



Steve McNair in 93 (this was the best college game I ever been, look how pack that bytch is) the uniforms them 90s brehs, were something special. You have to be there.


The night 2pac died (Look at this shyt) This was Black HBCU. (this shyt was an hour before the game started) What the fukk happened to us man. Every Home game and Away game was like this shyt when SU was in the building.

 

[NO-BadAzz]

Look at that dude McNair smh. Breh was killing that game