NewsChannel5.com | Nashville News, Weather & SportsBlack Male Enrollment On Rise At TSU

Black Male Enrollment On Rise At TSU

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - A statistic being seen across the country is fewer black males on college campuses, but it appeared Tennessee State University is bucking the trend.

TSU students hope to serve as a shining example of what can be accomplished with a quality education.

"You can actually see it on campus. It's actually more black males on campus than it was when I came," said student Christopher Brown. "I believe influence is a big key."

Brown hoped he can be exactly that for youngsters coming up the ranks.

"My ultimate goal is to empower my young black brothers and sisters to educate themselves, to continue on, to go beyond a high school education," said Brown.

There is a growing number of black men enrolling at the school.

"I knew coming up that I was going to be a tiger," said student Jason Armstrong.

Armstrong stressed the idea of mentors being the key to motivating more black men to purse higher education.

"The individual males that are here are actually reaching back and grabbing other males and being a positive influence on them," said Armstrong.

Last year a little more than 100 black males were freshman at TSU, and this year there were more than 500.

"One of the largest freshman classes that we've had in over 5 years," said interim director of financial aid office Amy Wood.

Wood believed several factors contributed to the enrollment bump. Included among them, increased marketing and no doubt the economic downtown.

"They're realizing that the planning has to start a little sooner," said Wood.

TSU has also seen an overall enrollment bump. The university has a combination of nearly 9,000 undergraduate and graduate students.