Harris Stowe State University is one of twenty Historically Black Colleges and Universities that will receive stimulus grant funding to help preserve historic buildings on their campuses. They will receive $1 million to make repairs to the Vashon Community Center.

20 Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) will be the beneficiaries of a total of $14.25 million for historic preservation grants. The Department made these funds available under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) for projects that will repair and preserve campus buildings listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

“The recovery funds not only will restore historic buildings on these campuses but also will provide a boost to individuals and companies performing the repairs, college communities and related local economies,” Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar said today.

The National Park Service invited all HBCUs to submit grant applications for grants to repair and preserve historic buildings on their campuses. The buildings selected for this apportionment of grant funds were assessed as being the most architecturally and historically significant buildings on these HBCU campuses, and as needing essential repairs to preserve them and make them useable.

These much needed repairs will address issues such as termite and wood rot damage, leaking roofs and water damage, asbestos and lead paint removal, masonry work, electrical rewiring, heating, air conditioning and ventilation systems and achieving accessibility for disabled persons.