Etowah County: East Broad, Valley Street and Wallace Drive campuses in Gadsden, Ala.
Valley Street Campus benefits from HBCC status
Gadsden State’s Valley Street Campus is the only campus in the area with the Historically Black Community College status in the area. The designation was granted to the Valley Street Campus in 1997.
The prestigious designation is given to higher learning institutions that were originally founded to educate students of African American descent. The Valley Street Campus opened its doors in 1960 as Gadsden Vocational Trade School, a private vocational training school that was opened in response to discontent expressed by Black veterans of Etowah County for being denied admission to the all-white Alabama School of Trades.
As a result of the HBCC designation, the Valley Street Campus has benefited from the White House Initiative and the Thurgood Marshall College Fund.
In February 2023, a group with the White House Initiative visited the Valley Street Campus. The initiative is dedicated to a government-wide policymaking effort to eliminate barriers HBCUs and HBCCs face in providing the highest-quality education to a growing number of students.
A group of 15 were a part of the Valley Street Campus visit representing the U.S. Department of Labor, the U.S. Department of Energy, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, Jobs for the Future, the Alabama Office of Apprenticeships and the Alabama Department of Commerce. Other guests representing the City of Gadsden, Gadsden Career Center, Gadsden City Schools and the WIOA Board of Directors were also in attendance.
After touring the programs at Valley Street, the group ended with breakout sessions that provided opportunities to have more conversation about programs at Gadsden State as well as federal programs and partnerships available to the College.
In August 2023, the White House Initiative selected Jessica Parker as a scholar for her success in and out of the classroom. She was one of only 14 students who attended Alabama HBCUs to be named a scholar. In addition to receiving a $500 scholarship, Parker was offered professional and personal development opportunities through monthly master classes and cross-university networking opportunities. Parker is a native of Fayetteville, Ga. She will complete her training in Diagnostic Medical Sonography in August 2024.
On June 6, 2023, Gadsden State become one of six Alabama community colleges to be accepted into the Thurgood Marshall College Fund, which gives students additional access to scholarships and professional development opportunities. Joining Gadsden State are Bishop State, Drake State, Lawson State, Shelton State and Trenholm State. Named after the U.S. Supreme Court’s first Black justice, TMCF is a nationally recognized nonprofit member organization that supports more than 50 historically black colleges and universities.
Gadsden State and its fellow HBCCs are the first community colleges to be inducted into the TMCF in the country. To date, TMCF has provided more than $300 million in scholarships, programmatic and capacity building support to its member schools and students.
For more information about the Valley Street Campus and the programs and services it provides to Gadsden State students, visit www.GadsdenState.edu/HBCU.
