Bowie State University

Bowie State University is a public historically Black university located in Bowie, Maryland, in Prince George’s County. Founded in 1865, it is the oldest historically Black college or university in Maryland and is part of the University System of Maryland. Bowie State offers undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral programs across disciplines including education, business, computer science, cybersecurity, nursing, and the liberal arts. Originally established to train teachers, the university continues to emphasize educator preparation while expanding in STEM and professional fields. Its suburban campus provides access to Washington, D.C., and Baltimore, attracting students seeking a public university with strong community ties and a legacy rooted in access to higher education.

Bowie State University was founded on January 9, 1865, when the Baltimore Association for the Moral and Educational Improvement of Colored People opened School No. 1 in Baltimore to educate African American teachers. The institution soon became the Baltimore Normal School for Colored Teachers and, in 1911, relocated to a new campus in Bowie, Maryland, where Don Speed Smith Goodloe served as its first principal. Over the decades, the school expanded its teacher training programs and in 1938 became Maryland Teachers College at Bowie. In 1963, it was reorganized as Bowie State College with a broader liberal arts mission, and in 1969 it introduced its first graduate program. In 1988, Bowie State University joined the University System of Maryland. Since then, Bowie State University has expanded academic offerings, particularly in STEM and professional fields, while maintaining its historic commitment to teacher education.