Wilberforce University is a private historically black university in Wilberforce, Ohio. Affiliated with the African Methodist Episcopal Church (AME), it was the first college to be owned and operated by African Americans. It participates in the United Negro College Fund.

Central State University, also in Wilberforce, Ohio, began as a department of Wilberforce University where Ohio state legislators could sponsor scholarship students.

Wilberforce University

The college was founded in 1856 by a unique collaboration between the Cincinnati, Ohio, Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church and the African Methodist Episcopal Church (AME) to provide classical education and teacher training for black youth.

The first board members were leaders both black and white. However, during the American Civil War (1861–65), the student population declined and financial losses closed the college in 1863. The AME Church purchased the institution to ensure its survival. AME Bishop Daniel Payne was one of the university’s original founders and became the first president after re-opening, the first African American to become a college president in the United States. Prominent white supporters and the US government donated funds for rebuilding after an arson fire in 1865.

During the 1890s, W. E. B. Du Bois taught at the university. In the late 19th century, it enlarged its mission to include black students from South Africa.

Notable alumni

Name Class year Notability Reference(s)
Victoria Gray Adams Pioneering civil rights activist
Regina M. Anderson Playwright, librarian, and member of the Harlem Renaissance
Helen Elsie Austin 1938 U.S. Foreign Service Officer
Myron (Tiny) Bradshaw Jazz and rhythm and blues bandleader, singer, pianist, and drummer
Gurley Brewer (1866-1919) 1888 [22]
Hallie Quinn Brown 1873 Educator, writer and activist
Isaac M. Burgan president of Paul Quinn College 1883-1891, 1911-1914
Richard H. Cain Minister, abolitionist, and United States Representative from South Carolina from 1873–1875 and 1877-1879
Floy Clements First African-American woman to serve in the Illinois House of Representatives (1959-1960) [23][24]
William B. Derrick 1885 Minister, AME bishop
Charity Adams Earley First female African-American officer in the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps; commanding officer of the first battalion of African American women to serve overseas during WWII
Wade Ellis 1928 Twelfth African-American to earn a Ph.D. in mathematics (University of Michigan, 1944). First African-American faculty member at Oberlin College. Former associate dean of graduate studies at the University of Michigan.
Mary G. Evans pastor at Cosmopolitan Community Church in Chicago from 1932 to 1966
Floyd H. Flake U.S. Congressman, Wilberforce President
Frank Foster Musician; member of the Count Basie Orchestra
John R. Fox Recipient of the Medal of Honor
Raymond V. Haysbert Business executive and civil rights leader
Gilbert Haven Jones 1902 First African-American to receive a Ph.D. from a German university; first African American with a Ph.D. to teach psychology in the United States [25]
Leon Jordan 1932 Politician and civil rights activist; considered one of the most influential African Americans in the history of Kansas City, Missouri
Orchid I. Jordan served in the Missouri House of Representatives from 1970 to 1984
Florence LeSueur The first female NAACP president in 1949, civil right leader and activist. [26]
James H. McGee City commissioner and first African American mayor of Dayton, Ohio
Arnett “Ace” Mumford 1924 Former college football coach at Southern University from 1936 to 1961. He also coached at Jarvis Christian College, Bishop College, Texas College; member of College Football Hall of Fame
Demetrius Newton Civil rights attorney [27]
Bill Powell Owner and designer of Clearview Golf Club, the first integrated golf course in America and the first owned and designed by an African American [28]
Leontyne Price Opera singer and first African American prima donna of the Metropolitan Opera
George Russell Jazz composer and theorist
Jimmy Rushing Blues musician
Bayard Rustin Labor leader, civil rights organizer [29]
Susie Lankford Shorter writer, educator [30]
Theophilus Gould Steward 1881 U.S. Army chaplain and Buffalo Soldier
William Grant Still Composer and conductor; the first African American to conduct a major American orchestra, the first to have a symphony performed by a leading orchestra, and the first to have an opera performed by a major opera company
Ossian Sweet African-American doctor notable for self-defense in 1925 against a white mob’s attempt to force him out of his Detroit neighborhood, and acquittal at trial
Dorothy Vaughan 1929 American mathematician whose work at the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), predecessor agency to NASA; inspired the 2016 biographical drama film Hidden Figures
Ben Webster American jazz musician
Albert Orlando Wilson Theologian, sociologist and President of Shorter College; first African American chairman of Little Rock Hospital Board
Milton Wright 1926 Economist

wilberforce university tuition

Undergraduate Tuition

Tuition for Wilberforce University is $12,020 for the 2019/2020 academic year. This is 59% cheaper than the national average private non-profit four year college tuition of $29,191. The cost is 41% cheaper than the average Ohio tuition of $20,293 for 4 year colleges. Tuition ranks 43rd in Ohio amongst 4 year colleges for affordability and is the 62nd most expensive 4 year college in the state. Price does not vary by residence.

The school charges an additional fees of $1,230 in addition to tuition bringing the total effective in-state tuition to $13,250.

Housing Costs

On campus room and board is provided by the school at a cost of $7,000 per academic year. Students electing to live off campus elsewhere in Wilberforce should budget at least this amount.

Books and Supplies

The estimated annual cost for books and supplies is $1,200.

Other Living Expenses

If living on-campus, students should budget for $2,000 in additional living expenses. Off-campus students should budget for $2,000 in other miscellaneous living expenses.

Total Costs

The annual tuition and living expense budget to go to Wilberforce University was $23,450 for the 2019/2020 academic year. The cost is the same for all students regardless of Ohio residence status as there is no in-state discount.

Citation: Price data from the U.S. Department of Education’s 2020 IPEDS survey response for Wilberforce University and represent reported costs for the 2019-2020 academic year.

Estimated Budgets
Ohio Resident Total Budget	$23,450
In-State Tuition	$12,020
Other Fees	$1,230
Room and Board	$7,000
On-Campus Other Budget	$2,000
Books and Supplies	$1,200
Non-Resident Total Budget	$23,450
Out-of-State Tuition	$12,020
Other Fees	$1,230
Room and Board	$7,000
On-Campus Other Budget	$2,000
Books and Supplies	$1,200

Will you get in?

Find out which students are getting accepted at Wilberforce University, which are not, and how your GPA, SAT, or ACT scores compare.CALCULATE MY CHANCES

WHAT IT REALLY COSTS

Depending on many factors including student and parent income and assets, the total cost of attendance may be less than the $23,450 published price if scholarship or grant aid is made available to you.

Net Price

The net out-of-pocket total cost you end up paying or financing though student loans is known as the net price. The reported Wilberforce University net price for in-state students is $13,014* for the 2018/2019 academic year. This net price includes housing and meal expenses.

Pell Grants and other Grant Aid

100% of Wilberforce University students received grant aid in 2018/2019. The average total aid amount was $10,225. 100 percent of students received aid in the form of Pell Grants from the U.S. Federal Government. The average Pell Grant awarded for 2018/2019 was $5,190. To apply for a Pell Grant to attend Wilberforce University, the first step is to fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).

Financial Aid Summary
Average Annual Net Price	$13,014*
Percent of Students Receiving Grant Aid	100%
Average Total Grant Aid	$10,225
Percent of Students Receiving Pell Grants	100%
Average Amount of Pell Grant Aid	$5,190

Average Net Price by Family Income

The average net total cost of attendance for different levels of family income after federal, state or local government, institutional grant and scholarship aid are awarded. Data last published for the 2018/2019 academic year.

Family Income	Avg. Net Price
$0 to $30,000	$15,304
$30,001 to $48,000	$15,729
$48,001 to $75,000	$16,563
$75,001 to $110,000	$20,050
$110,000+	$19,491

Average Financial Aid Mix – $23,450 In-State Total Cost

CollegeCalc has estimated typical coverage of the annual in-state tuition and living expenses of $23,450. Breakdown is based on average grant aid and federal loan aid which will vary based on your family income.48%35%18%

Grants and Scholarships

 48% – $10,225

Money granted to you by the U.S. Department of Education, Wilberforce University or other organizations. These are not loans and do not need to be repaid.

Federal Loans

 35% – $7,467

Low interest student loans funded by the U.S. Department of Education. This amount will need to be repaid.

Out of Pocket

 18% –  $3,758

Covered by family savings, work or private student loans which you will have to repay.

*Reported Average Annual Net Price for students receiving grant or scholarship aid reported to the U.S. Department of Education’s Academic Year 2018/2019 IPEDS Survey. Financial aid is only available to those who qualify. Consult this school’s net price calculator for further understanding of your potential net price.

Note that for colleges with no reported on-campus room and board, the average net price has been increased to account for living expenses. This number may not only reflect the net price paid to the school for tuition.