Livingstone College Gets $10M for Third Time Within a Year

Private HBCU Livingstone College has received a $10 million donation from an anonymous benefactor for the third time in over a year.

The Salisbury-based HBCU has now secured more than $60 million from the same donor to advance its position as the premier private HBCU in North Carolina.

Funding to Drive Livingstone College’s Ambition to be The Premier Private HBCU

Dr. Anthony Davis, President of Livingstone College, announced on Tuesday to a crowd gathered at Aggrey Student Union. He called the gifts “Miracle on Monroe Street” and a multi-phase campus transformation that has already modernized key facilities, which is poised to expand even further. 

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“Everyone can look and see that we’ve invested every dollar, every dime into renovating this campus,” Davis said. “Now we are the premier private HBCU in North Carolina, creating an experience that is second to none for our students.”

The new funding will help advance the next stages of campus revitalization, including planned upgrades to Goler Hall and Honors Hall. With over $40 million in private fundraising over the past two fiscal years, combined with recent investments, Livingstone is poised to grow faster than any other private HBCU in the state. 

Livingstone College initially received eight-figure private gifts from this donor in July 2024 and again in February 2025. President Davis has raised more than $56 million since being installed as the college’s president in 2022. His $30 million capital improvement plan is designed to rehabilitate student housing, the dining hall, administration buildings, and other “crumbling infrastructure” on campus.

Enrollment has skyrocketed from 221 freshmen two years ago to an expected 500 this fall, driving demand for new housing and facilities. “We’re one of the fastest-growing HBCUs in the country,” the president said. “It’s a good problem to have, but it means we have to think creatively about how to house our students.”

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A Retention Strategy That’s Working

A notable recent upgrade is the Aggrey Cafeteria, now revamped as the Luxe Life Café, operated by Thompson Hospitality. According to Davis, this dining overhaul is a key part of the college’s retention strategy, complemented by residential improvements. 

“It’s part of our retention model—creating a student experience that is second to none,” he said. “While we’re enhancing the student experience, we take care of where they sleep and where they eat. They want to be here at Livingstone College.”

This approach is yielding results, with Livingstone boasting a 92% return rate for upperclassmen and a 78% freshman retention rate – figures that rival top-tier institutions, public or private.

“Investments like this are why Livingstone will move into the ranks of the top 20 HBCUs in the nation,” Davis said. “Transformational gifts are just one way that our supporters demonstrate their belief in our future. Our college is poised to impact our region, our country, and our nation in an unbelievable way.”

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The announcement comes at a time when federal funding for higher education is being impacted, both at the institutional and individual levels. However, charitable giving to education saw a boost, rising 13.2% according to the 2024 Giving USA Annual Report on Philanthropy.

Image Credit: Livingstone College