University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff

University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff is a public historically Black land-grant university located in Pine Bluff, Arkansas. Founded in 1873, it is part of the University of Arkansas System and is the only public HBCU in the state. The university offers undergraduate and graduate degree programs across disciplines including agriculture, business, education, science, engineering, and the arts. As an 1890 land-grant institution, it maintains a strong emphasis on agriculture, aquaculture, community outreach, and applied research. Students are often drawn to its supportive campus environment, agricultural and fisheries programs, STEM initiatives, and its role in serving communities throughout Arkansas and the Mississippi Delta region.

University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff was founded in 1873 as Branch Normal College by the Arkansas Reconstruction legislature to educate African American teachers. The school opened in 1875 under its first principal, Joseph Carter Corbin. As a segregated institution, it later became a land-grant college under the 1890 Morrill Act amendments. In 1927, it separated from the University of Arkansas and was renamed Arkansas Agricultural, Mechanical & Normal College, relocating to its current Pine Bluff campus in 1929. During the Civil Rights era, the institution played a role in student-led activism, including visits from leaders such as Martin Luther King Jr. In 1972, Arkansas AM&N rejoined the University of Arkansas System and adopted the name University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, gaining university status and expanding graduate programs. Today, University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff continues its land-grant mission in teaching, research, and public service.