Delaware State University’s acquisition of Wesley College, a PWI, is complete, making it the first historically Black college or university to acquire another institution on its own.
Wesley College will now be known as the Wesley College of Health & Behavioral Sciences and considered part of Delaware State, reported Inside Higher Ed. DSU will take over Wesley’s campus in downtown Dover and $32 million in capital assets.
“This is an unprecedented landmark in the long history of HBCUs,” former DSU president Harry Williams told WHYY. “I am not surprised that Delaware State University is leading the way.”
No money was exchanged. Instead, DSU will be responsible for Wesley’s financial obligations and promised to accept students in good standing.
“My intention is to grow our institution to about 10,000 folks over the next couple years, and this is a jump-start to that opportunity,” Tony Allen, president of Delaware State, told WHYY. “There is real, and I do mean real, opportunity for us to grow the organization and to do that smartly.”
Delaware State University, a public institution, was founded in 1891 as the Delaware College for Colored Students. Wesley started as a Methodist prep school in 1873 and became a two-year college in 1918. Wesley has struggled financially and relied on more than $6 million in state funding to keep its doors open even though it was a private institution.
Considered a majority-minority institution, 39 percent of Wesley’s students are Black, and 8 percent are Hispanic, per Inside Higher Ed. Another 37 percent identify as white.
About 80 percent of Wesley’s students will enroll at DSU to complete their programs. Their new tuition will be about $24,000 a year, a discount from the $43,000 they paid at Wesley College.
Additionally, more than 60 percent of Wesley College’s staff were offered positions at Delaware State.
“I’m very excited about what this prospect brings for more students who need an open door, just need an opportunity to change their economic trajectory for themselves, their families, and their communities,” Allen said.
