Saint Augustine's University is a private unaccredited historically Black Christian college in Raleigh, North Carolina. In 2026, it filed for bankruptcy and discontinued academic degree offerings, subsequently suspending all educational activities. Founded in 1867 by Episcopal Church clergy to educate formerly enslaved Black people, Saint Augustine's has traditionally focused its mission around first-generation college students and students "who otherwise wouldn't get the opportunity" to receive a college education. Over its history, it progressively evolved from a normal school to a junior college to a four-year liberal arts institution.
From the early 1990s, Saint Augustine's was challenged by legal problems, low graduation rates, significant enrollment declines, and corresponding revenue shortfalls. Following years of serious financial mismanagement and general instability, the institution's accreditor, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) derecognized it for noncompliance on July 14, 2025, automatically revoking its accreditation. Although a subsequent injunction temporarily secured its provisional accreditation, Saint Augustine's filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on April 27, 2026 due to its dire fiscal crisis. The institution discontinued its degree programs and reverted to unaccredited status after May 15, ultimately suspending all educational activities.
History Early years Incorporated as Saint Augustine's Normal School and Collegiate Institute on July 19, 1867, Saint Augustine's opened on January 13, 1868, with Jacob Brinton Smith as its first principal. The first classes were held at the state fairgrounds in a former army barrack donated by Major General Oliver Otis Howard, the head of the Freedmen's Bureau. On January 16, 1869, the school moved to its present site, and its first building was dedicated. Brinton Smith died suddenly in October 1872 and was succeeded by John Eston Cooke Smedes. By 1875, less than a decade after the school had been established, 58 alumni had become teachers or pastors. In 1883, all of the classroom buildings were destroyed by fire due to the refusal of White fire companies to fight the blaze, which had to be fought by an underequipped Black fire company. Within a week of the fire, however, instruction resumed in a converted women's dormitory.
In the 1883–1884 academic year, collegiate instruction, roughly equivalent to the first year of university, was introduced. Under Robert Bean Sutton, who succeeded Smedes in 1884, the first diplomas were granted in 1885, and the Lyman Building, the school's first brick main building, was completed the same year. Aaron Burtis Hunter, who became the school's fourth principal in 1891, introduced industrial training, which was provided to all students until 1933. The institution became Saint Augustine's School in 1893, and the school chapel and a new library were built in 1896. On October 18, 1896, the St. Agnes' Hospital and Training School for Nurses opened, becoming one of the primary Black healthcare facilities between Richmond and Atlanta. The following year, the school acquired 64 acres of land and expanded its campus to 110 acres. Electric lighting began to be installed from December 1906.
From school to university In 1916, Edgar Hunt Goold became the institution's fifth principal and introduced the first courses for college credit that year. The number of junior college-level courses increased over the next two years, and the school became a junior college in 1924, with Goold as its first president from 1925. A new administration building, the Hunter Building, was built in 1924, replacing the Lyman Building. In 1925, the first junior college class graduated, and the institution was incorporated as the four-year Saint Augustine's College on January 19, 1928, with the first 12 baccalaureate degrees awarded in 1931 and accreditation from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) following in 1942.
In 1947, Harold Leonard Trigg became the first Black president of Saint Augustine's and oversaw an expansion of the curriculum and the college facilities, including completion of a science building. In 1949, the college joined the United Negro College Fund. Trigg was succeeded in 1955 by James Alexander Boyer, the first alumnus to head the institution. Under Boyer, enrollment doubled, several new buildings were built, and the curriculum further shifted from that of a normal college to a primarily liberal arts focus, although new graduates predominantly entered teaching as late as 1965. The former college main building, the Lyman Building, which had later been converted to a men's dormitory, was demolished in the summer of 1959 due to structural issues.
In 1967, Boyer relinquished the presidency and returned to teaching. He was succeeded by Prezell Russell Robinson as the eighth leader of the school and the second alumnus to head it. During Robinson's administration, enrollment reached 1,800 students, an ROTC program was instituted in the 1974–1975 academic year, and a new library, student union, and fine arts center were built. In 1982, Saint Augustine's created a Department of Communications and began operating a radio station, WAUG 750-AM, in 1983, followed by a television station, TV-68 (later WAUG-LD), in 1988. The Division of Allied Health was established in 1992. Robinson retired in March 1995, and was succeeded by Bernard Wayne Franklin, who led a successful effort to modernize the college's infrastructure and provide it with universal Internet access. Receiving criticism over his management style, Franklin resigned in 1999 to accept the presidency of Virginia Union University. He was followed by Dianne Boardley Suber as the 10th and the first female leader of the college. Under Suber, the college officially became Saint Augustine's University in 2012 as it prepared to offer master's degrees.
Instability and accreditation concerns From the 1990s, Saint Augustine's began experiencing increasingly serious financial problems. During the decade, enrollment declined by 29 percent, the most of any North Carolina college. Enrollment had peaked at 1,918 students in 1992, and subsequently declined, which was partly attributed to higher admissions standards implemented under president Franklin. By the fall of 1998, decreased enrollments led to Saint Augustine's resorting to fundraising to cover operating expenses. Since then, the institution has been severely challenged by persistent financial and administrative instability and other controversies.
In December 2001, the college's accrediting agency, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC), placed Saint Augustine's on warning; in addition to insufficient financial resources, the college was cited for inadequate library, planning, and educational support services; failing to evaluate academic effectiveness; and having faculty without appropriate credentials. Continuing financial problems resulted in Saint Augustine's being placed on probation in December 2003. The college subsequently eliminated its deficit, and was removed from probation in December 2004. In September 2013, a financial audit uncovered disorganized accounting and checks being improperly issued. Due to these and other instances of mismanagement, coupled with decreasing enrollment, President Dianne Suber was dismissed in April 2014, a month before her planned retirement.
Following President Suber's dismissal, Everett Ward was appointed president in 2015 after serving as interim president. In December 2016, the institution was reverted to probationary accreditation for financial and institutional effectiveness issues. After reforms, including implementing computer-based accounting, the probation was lifted in December 2018. In March 2019, Saint Augustine's board of trustees dismissed Ward four months prior to his intended retirement. Gaddis Faulcon, the institution's former vice president of enrollment management, was appointed to replace Ward as interim president. In March 2020, Faulcon was himself dismissed. In October 2020, the new president of Saint Augustine's, Irving Pressly McPhail, died from COVID-19 after three months in office. He was succeeded by his widow, Christine Johnson McPhail, in 2021. In December 2022, the institution was placed on probation "for good cause" for a third time by its accreditation agency. After Christine McPhail was dismissed in November 2023, Marcus Burgess, vice president of institutional advancement at Claflin University, was appointed interim president.
Accreditation revocations, subsequent appeals, and continued decline On December 3, 2023, the SACSCOC rescinded Saint Augustine's membership for continued governance and financial management issues. A successful appeal by leadership maintained the institution's probationary accreditation. The institution's Faculty Assembly, however, issued a unanimous no-confidence motion against the board of trustees and the administration. In January 2024, only five days before the spring semester began, students were notified that on-campus classes would begin online due to maintenance issues, resulting in complaints about the short notice. On February 27, 2024, the SACSCOC denied Saint Augustine's appeal; the institution then submitted the matter to arbitration. From April, it transitioned to online learning, and Wake County Schools announced they would discontinue leadership academy classes at Saint Augustine's after 2024, eventually announcing their students would instead attend the neighboring Shaw University, another HBCU.
On July 21, an arbitration panel unanimously reversed the SACSCOC decision, continuing the institution's status as an accredited institution on probation for good cause. The panel ruled the institution should have been permitted to submit updated financial information. After a delayed opening on September 3, Saint Augustine's began the 2024–2025 academic year with just 200 students enrolled. On November 22, in an attempt to stem financial losses, it announced the dismissal of half of its employees, totaling 67 staff and 69 faculty members; several programs with low enrollment were also discontinued. The institution returned to fully remote instruction from November 27, 2024.
On December 10, 2024, the SACSCOC again voted to remove Saint Augustine's from membership, finding it remained noncompliant with six core requirements and standards; it had also reached the end of its maximum allowable probation period. The same day, having previously suspended the Saint Augustine's Falcons from their conference for 2024–2025, the CIAA indefinitely suspended all Saint Augustine's athletics from conference participation until the institution was able to support an athletics program "in accordance with NCAA and CIAA bylaws." On January 7, 2025, interim president Burgess was cited for allegedly failing to secure Saint Augustine's workers' compensation insurance. The institution filed an appeal of the SACSCOC decision on January 24. On February 3, Burgess said Saint Augustine's would indefinitely continue fully remote instruction to address deferred maintenance. On March 5, 2025, a SACSCOC appeals committee upheld revoking Saint Augustine's accreditation. The institution then requested another arbitration process, during which it retained accreditation on a probationary basis.
Removal from athletics conference and derecognition