Wikipedia

North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University (also known as North Carolina A&T State University, North Carolina A&T, N.C. A&T, or simply A&T) is a public, coeducational, historically black, research university located in Greensboro, North Carolina, United States. It is a constituent institution of the University of North Carolina, one of the Oldest public universities in the United States. Founded by act of the North Carolina General Assembly, on March 9, 1891, as The "Agricultural and Mechanical College for the Colored Race;" it is the second college established under the provisions of the Morrill Land-Grant Acts; and first for people of color in the state of North Carolina. Initially, the college offered instruction in Agriculture, English, Horticulture, and Mathematics. In 1967, The college was designated a Regional University by the North Carolina General Assembly and renamed "North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University."

Today, with an enrollment of well over 10,000 students, North Carolina A&T is the largest historically black university in the nation. According to the U.S. News & World Report, the university was ranked 8th nationally, and 1st among public historically black institutions. The university is also well recognized for its degree program in engineering. The university's College of Engineering has consistently ranked first in the nation for the number of degrees awarded to African-Americans at the undergraduate level, and is a leading producer of African-American engineers with master's and doctorate degrees. The university is also a leading producer of African-American psychology undergraduates; minority certified public accountants, landscape architects, veterinarians, and agricultural graduates.

The university offers 177 Undergraduate, 30 master, and 9 doctoral degrees through its two professional colleges and seven schools; The university awards over 1,900 degrees annually, and has an alumni base around 40,000 in numbers. The main campus encompasses over 200 acres (0.81 km2) in area, additionally, the university operates a 600 acres (2.4 km2) working farm, and two research parks totaling a combined 150 acres (0.61 km2).The university is classified as a high activity research university by The Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. The university ranks third in sponsored funding among University of North Carolina system institutions, As of 2012, the university conducts over $29 Million in academic and scientific research annually, and operates 16 research centers and institutes on campus. The university's designation as a land grant institution reflects its broad range of research with ongoing projects funded by agencies such as the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. Department of Defense, National Institutes of Health, and the National Space Foundation

The school's students, alumni, and sports teams are known as "Aggies." The university's varsity athletic teams, are members of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, in all sports with the exception of women's swimming, and compete in the NCAA's Division I. The football team are three time Black College Football National Champions, and enjoyed much success in the 1990s. The men's basketball team has earned 16 total conference regular-season and tournament championships, including an eight consecutive titles in the 1980s. In 2013, the program won their first NCAA tournament game after nine previous appearances. The women's basketball program is the first team from a Division I historically black university to win two games in a post-season tournament when the Lady Aggies advanced to the regional semifinals in the 2010 Women's National Invitation Tournament

North Carolina A&T's history can be traced back to 1890 when the United States Congress passed the The Second Morrill Act. Aimed mainly at the confederate states, the second Morrill Act of 1890 required that each state show that race was not an admissions criterion, or else to designate a separate land-grant institution for persons of color. In order to comply with the Second Morrill Act and yet prevent admission of African Americans to the North Carolina College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts, now known as North Carolina State University, the college's Board of Trustees were empowered to make temporary arrangements for students of color.

On March 9, 1891, the "Agricultural and Mechanical College for the Colored Race" was established by an act of the North Carolina General Assembly as an annex of the private Shaw University in Raleigh. The act read in part: "That the leading objective of the college shall be to teach practical agriculture and the mechanic arts and such learning as related thereto, not excluding academic and classical instruction." The college, which started with four teachers and 37 students, initially offered instruction in Agriculture, English, Horticulture, and Mathematics. The college continued to operate in Raleigh until the Board of Trustees voted, in 1892, to relocate the college to Greensboro. With monetary and land donations totaling $11,000 and 14 acres (57,000 m²), the new Greensboro campus was established the following year and the college's first President, John Oliver Crosby, was elected on May 25, 1892.

The college granted admission to both men and women of color from 1893, until the Board of Trustees voted to restrict admission to males only in 1901. This policy would remain until 1928, when female students were once again allowed to be admitted. In 1899, The college conferred its first degrees to seven graduates. In 1904, the college developed a 100-acre farm equipped with the latest in farm machinery and labor-saving devices. During that time, the university farm provided much of the food for the campus cafeteria. In 1915, the North Carolina General Assembly changed the name of the college to Negro Agricultural and Technical College of North Carolina