Morgan State Fights to Protect Its Academic Turf

In 2005 Morgan State University, the historically black educational institution in Baltimore, sought to prevent the establishment of a joint MBA program between the University of Baltimore and Towson State University. Morgan State argued that the new duplicative MBA program would draw white students away from its own MBA program and as a result serve to increase racial segregation in the state’s higher education system. Under a desegregation agreement with the U.S. Department of Education, Maryland is prohibited from establishing academic programs at predominantly white universities that are “unnecessarily duplicative” of programs at the state’s historically black universities. Morgan State lost the legal battle. Today the joint MBA program at Towson and the University of Baltimore enrolls far more students than the small program at Morgan State.

Now Morgan State is fighting the establishment of an educational doctorate program for community college administrators initiated by the University of Maryland University College. Morgan State offers a similar degree program. About 70 students are currently enrolled in the doctoral program at Morgan State.