Simmons College owns student housing for first time in years. What's next for the HBCU?

For the first time in nearly a century, students at the Simmons College of Kentucky are living in a residential facility owned by the institution, marking the beginning of what school leaders believe will be an era of growth.

The opening of the new dorm at 947 S. 4th St. in August was the first step in a major $40 million development project on the property, which could eventually feature food services, lecture halls, more housing and a fitness center, the Rev. Kevin Cosby, president of Simmons College, told The Courier Journal.

School officials set the tone for further expansion when they announced a multi-million dollar windfall at a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the residence hall on Sept. 26. Winston and Alma Pittman, long-time supporters of the institution who will have the new dorm renamed in their honor, donated $2 million to the ongoing facility upgrades. Alma Pittman is also a member of the college's Board of Trustees.

The college is also receiving state-level support for the upgrades. Kentucky Sens. Robert Stivers and Gerald Neal announced a $1.28 million allocation of general funds to Simmons from the Kentucky General Assembly.

The time for Simmons College to reinvest in student housing, Cosby said, has been long overdue. The last time students at the institution had their own housing was in the 1920s, before the college lost its main campus in the throes of the Great Depression and relocated to a smaller campus in Louisville's Park Hill neighborhood.

Simmons College alum Richard Hughes, now a pastor at New Jerusalem Baptist Church in Cincinnati, spoke at the ribbon-cutting ceremony. He lived in various off-campus student housing offered by Simmons College through contractors when he was a student from 2014-2018, but he often felt out of place and alienated by his neighbors, he said.

"We never really had a place that was our own," Hughes said. "Now, we have a place that is our own."

How did Simmons College get a new residence hall?

Simmons College bought the residence hall from Spalding University in June for $6 million, according to Jefferson County property records.

When former Spalding University's president Victoria Murden McClure offered to sell the building to Simmons College last fall, school officials were tempted, but the question of how to fund the purchase — and subsequent renovations — remained. Funding shortfalls have badgered Simmons College since its inception in 1879, Cosby said, so college officials were facing a familiar problem.

"That is the challenge of the Black community. We just do not have the surplus. We have the sur-minus," Cosby said. "But where we lacked in provisions, we never lacked in vision and ambition."

Simmons was finally able to make the purchase from Spalding in June for $6 million, property records show. The college raised the money to buy the building entirely through fundraising, Cosby said and has invested an additional $1 million — also generated by fundraising — so far to rehabilitate the building's north wing, which roughly 200 students occupy currently.

Renovations made to the north wing so far include new flooring, repainted walls with school-themed colors and minor structural alterations. Rehabilitation to the building's south wing that will allow up to 350 students to utilize on-campus housing will come next, but a timeline for completion has not yet been finalized.

'This will just continue to grow as Simmons continues to grow'

Cosby's strategy for garnering donations is focused on educating the community about the historical significance and modern impacts of historically Black colleges and capitalizing on grants through the federal government. Among his main goals is to build Simmons College as a place where Black students from across the region will come and thrive, as long as the infrastructure to support students is present.

Enrollment data suggests that a growth period has already begun for Simmons College. Spokesperson Tyler Anderson said 508 students were enrolled for the Fall 2024 semester, more than double over the total just two years ago. The college's staff size has also grown, going from just 10 employees when Cosby took the helm as president in 2005 to now employing more than 270 people.

"We have [doctoral] scholars who are moving from all across the country to come to our city ... students from 28 different states who are moving to our city, hopefully to stay, if we can be a welcoming city," Cosby said. "And this will just continue to grow as Simmons continues to grow."

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Simmons College owns student housing for first time in years. What's next for the HBCU?