Delaware State University


Delaware State University is a public historically black university in Dover, Delaware. DSU also has two satellite campuses, one in Wilmington and one in Georgetown. The university encompasses four colleges and a diverse population of undergraduate and advanced-degree students. Delaware State University is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity".

History

The Delaware College for Colored Students was established on May 15, 1891, by the Delaware General Assembly. The name was changed to the State College for Colored Students by state legislative action in 1893 to eliminate confusion with Delaware College, which was attended by whites in Newark, Del. It first awarded degrees in 1898. In 1945, the Middle States Commission on Higher Education awarded the college provisional accreditation. Three years later, the institution became Delaware State College by legislative action. Although its accreditation was revoked in 1949, it was regained in 1957. On July 1, 1993, the institution changed its name yet again, this time to Delaware State University.
Delaware State University is one of the only historically black colleges and universities to have a no-smoking policy. In 2015 the university began phasing out smoking on campus by restricting it to four designated areas and providing educational resources on smoking cessation tools and programs. In August 2015 it implemented a completely tobacco-free policy. In 2017, the university received the ACAS Health Leadership Award in recognition of its efforts. The award was jointly presented by the Public Health Service Officers Foundation for the Advancement of Public Health, the Truth Initiative, Arizonans Concerned About Smoking and the Arizona NAACP.
In July of 2020, it was announced that Delaware State University will officially acquire Wesley College. This acquisition makes Delaware State the first historically Black university to acquire an institution that is not a historically Black college or university.

Campus

The main campus in Dover, the capital of Delaware, is an approximate two-hour motor drive from Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington, D.C., and three hours from New York City.
There are two satellite campuses in Wilmington and Georgetown.
The main campus in Dover contains thirty buildings, including:
There are seven campus residential halls: three for women, and three for men. There are also three apartment-style residence halls for upperclassmen. They include:
Two dining halls serve the more than 1,500 on-campus students.
As a part of the Internet2 initiative, the university maintains several research computer laboratories including a high-performance computational cluster in its DESAC center. Almost every building has a computer lab and each student has a dedicated data port for internet access, their own phone, a campus email address, and cable television access in all residence hall rooms. Most campus buildings also offer wireless connectivity.
DSU is one of 148 schools in the country to receive Tree Campus USA recognition from the Arbor Day Foundation. The university owns two farms near Kenton and Smyrna, and has an Airway Science Program based at Delaware Air Park in Cheswold.

Administration

Dr. Wilma Mishoe became the 11th president of Delaware State University on July 1, 2018, after serving the previous six months as the interim president. As the daughter of the institution's seventh president Dr. Luna I. Mishoe, she is the first woman to serve as a permanent president in the history of Delaware State University. She previously served from 2015-2018 as a member of the University's Board of Trustees; in July 2018 she was elected as the Board's chairperson, the first woman to be elected to that top Board office in the institution's history.
The business and affairs of the university are governed by the Board of Trustees. The Board of Trustees has all the powers accorded it by Title 14, Chapter 65 of the Delaware Code. The Board consists of 15 members whose appointment or election is provided for in the Delaware Code, and the governor of the state and the president of the university, both of whom shall be members of the board, ex officio, with the right to vote.

Academics

The university consists of four colleges:
The university offers 42 undergraduate degrees, 21 graduate degrees, and five doctoral degrees. The university also offers several cooperative and dual degree programs. Students receive instruction in classes with a 13:1 student-to-faculty ratio. About 83 percent of undergraduates receive scholarships, grants, loans or work-study income. It has a traditional Honors Program and a Minority Access to Research Careers Honors Program to increase the number of students in science interested in pursuing biomedical research and obtaining doctor of philosophy degrees in biology, chemistry, physics, mathematics, computer science, and biopsychology.
In addition to satisfying the requirements for the major or majors and any minor, all undergraduates are required to complete the General Education Program, which includes: seven core courses, twelve foundation courses, and the Senior Capstone Experience.
Accreditations include the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, the American Chemical Society, the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing, Inc., the Council on Social Work Education, the Accreditation Council for Programs in Hospitality Administration, the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education, and the Commission on Accreditation for Dietetic Education. The university's College of Business is accredited nationally and internationally by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business.

Aviation program

DSU's Aviation Program provides students with education and experience in preparation for careers in the aviation industry. Curricula in the program lead to a B.Sc. degree with concentrations in Aviation Management or Professional Pilot. Professional Pilot graduates will complete their Federal Aviation Administration requirements for Private Pilot, Instrument, Commercial, Multi-Engine and Certified Flight Instructor ratings while earning their bachelor's degree.
Delaware State operates the only full-service, university-based flight school in the mid-Atlantic area. The Aviation program is approved by the State of Delaware Education Department for Veterans Flight Training.

Research

The institution has greatly increased its research endeavors over the past several years, as it has developed the research infrastructure needed to attract federal grants for projects in the following DSU Research Centers and in the sciences and mathematics:
DSU is ranked 13th among the Historically Black Colleges and Universities in the U.S. News & World Report.
In 2018, the College of Business at DSU was named to the Princeton Review's Best Business Schools for the tenth consecutive year.

Global connections

The university has over thirty formal international partnerships with institutions in countries including China, Cuba, Egypt, France, Italy, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Nigeria, Poland and the UK which facilitate research and conference collaborations as well as student exchanges.

Student activities

Athletics

The university fields teams, who are known as the Hornets, in:
Men's
Women's
The athletic programs participate in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's 's Division I. The Hornets compete in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference as full members since the conference was founded in 1970.
The university's Department of Intramural Sports provides a wide variety of quality recreational programs for students, faculty and staff.

Notable alumni