LUHI first learned in May 2013 that Azikiwe-Nkrumah Hall, the oldest building on the campus, was slated for demolition to make way for a new welcome center. Over 1,000 alumni and friends then signed a petition urging Dr. Robert Jennings, president of Lincoln University, to abandon plans to raze the historic building and relocate the welcome center to another location on the campus. The recent "Strategic Plan Report 2013-2018," however, published by Dr. Jennings in October 2013, reiterated his intention to "replace Azikiwe-Nkrumah Hall with a new structure" in Goal 4 of the Plan.
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With the future of Azikiwe-Nkrumah Hall threatened with demolition, LUHI took the fight to the public. LUHI issued nationwide pleas, press releases, and calls to action urging alumni, preservationists, historians, elected officials, and supporters of Historically Black Colleges and Universities to help save the campus's oldest building. What began as a local preservation concern quickly grew into a national movement to protect an irreplaceable part of American educational and African American history.
A major turning point came in 2016 when the National Trust for Historic Preservation designated Azikiwe-Nkrumah Hall—“the oldest building on the oldest degree-granting HBCU”—as one of the “11 Most Endangered Historic Places in America.” That prestigious national recognition generated widespread concern and support from preservation advocates, alumni, and public officials across the country. Soon afterward, significant financial support from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania helped make restoration possible. Today, the beautifully restored Azikiwe-Nkrumah Hall stands as a symbol of perseverance and preservation, housing classrooms, conference space, and the offices of Institutional Advancement and the Lincoln University Foundation, while continuing to inspire future generations.
A major turning point came in 2016 when the National Trust for Historic Preservation designated Azikiwe-Nkrumah Hall—“the oldest building on the oldest degree-granting HBCU”—as one of the “11 Most Endangered Historic Places in America.” That prestigious national recognition generated widespread concern and support from preservation advocates, alumni, and public officials across the country. Soon afterward, significant financial support from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania helped make restoration possible. Today, the beautifully restored Azikiwe-Nkrumah Hall stands as a symbol of perseverance and preservation, housing classrooms, conference space, and the offices of Institutional Advancement and the Lincoln University Foundation, while continuing to inspire future generations.