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The first building constructed as part of Kentucky State University’s campus will receive nearly $500,000 in renovations as part of a recent Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) grant program, funded by the Historic Preservation Fund, and administered by the National Park Service (NPS), Department of Interior.

Jackson Hall, formerly known as Recitation Hall, was the first and now-oldest building on the Kentucky State campus. Jackson Hall was constructed in 1887 for $7,000. 

“In the late fall 2020, Congressman Andy Barr’s office alerted us to the National Park Service’s then upcoming RFP for their Historically Black Colleges and Universities Grant Program for the preservation of historic buildings,” Dr. Beverly Schneller, vice provost for academy quality, research and innovations, said. “When we applied, the Congressman also included a letter of support in our application packet, for which we are very grateful.”

Schneller said she and the grant principal investigator, Paul Cable, director of capital planning and facilities management, collaborated on the application. 

“The significance of the grant is that Jackson Hall is our most important campus building, rich in history for the University and our community,” Schneller said. “We are delighted to have the federal support for needed internal and external renovations that will allow us to bring Jackson Hall to its fullest potential.”

Cable said the upgrades will address structural issues, improve space use and accessibility and implement environmental upgrades that will directly support the museum and the Center for Excellence for the Study of Kentucky African-Americans (CESKAA). 

Cable and his team are working on the execution of the project as soon as it has gone through the parallel Commonwealth review and approval process as a grant-funded capital project.  

The $494,850 grant is part of the NPS initiative of $9.7 million in grants to assist 20 preservation projects for historic structures on campuses of HBCUs in 10 states. Since 1995, the NPS has awarded $77.6 million in grants to 66 HBCUs. Congress appropriates funding for the program through the Historic Preservation Fund (HPF).

Eligible costs for the grants include pre-preservation studies, architectural plans and specifications, historic structure reports, and the repair and rehabilitation of historic properties according to the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties.

For more information about the grants and the Historically Black Colleges and Universities program, please visit http://go.nps.gov/hbcu.