Atlanta University Center


The Atlanta University Center Consortium is the largest contiguous consortium of African Americans in higher education in the United States. The center consists of four historically black colleges and universities in southwest Atlanta, Georgia. The institutions included in this consortium are Clark Atlanta University, Spelman College, Morehouse College, and the Morehouse School of Medicine. The consortium structure allows for students to cross-register at the other institutions in order to attain a broader collegiate experience. They also share the Robert W. Woodruff Library, a Dual Degree Engineering Program and Career Planning and Placement Services.

History

The Atlanta University Center was created in April 1929, when John Hope, then president of both Morehouse College and Atlanta University saw the potential gains from such a consortium. The former Atlanta University, Spelman College, and Morehouse College signed the affiliation agreement and became the original members of the AUC. Clark College and Morris Brown College joined in 1957, followed by the Interdenominational Theological Center in 1959. Morehouse School of Medicine joined the AUC in 1983. Morris Brown ended its affiliation when the school lost its accreditation in December 2002.
The Atlanta University Center has undergone several administrative and governance changes since its inception. In 2004, the business operating as AUC, Inc. was dissolved. A new corporation, known as the AUC Consortium, Inc., was established in its place and Marilyn Jackson became the first female Executive Director. In 2011, the current Executive Director, Dr. Sherry Turner, was selected to expand the Consortium's community revitalization efforts.

Former members and closely related institutions

To be eligible for membership in the AUC Consortium, a college or university must be regionally accredited, maintain tax-exempt status, and pay a membership assessment. Morris Brown College was a member of the AUC Consortium until it lost its accreditation and federal funding in 2002 during the 1998–2002 tenure of Dr. Dolores E. Cross as school president.
The Interdenominational Theological Center is eligible for membership in AUC Consortium, but is not currently a member. However, the ITC is a member of the library consortium Robert W. Woodruff Library, which includes all AUC Consortium members.

Location

The AUC campuses are located in the Atlanta University Center District, near downtown Atlanta and immediately southwest of Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

Museums

The Spelman College Museum of Fine Art and Clark Atlanta University Museum of Art are the two designated museums in the AUC.

Olive Branch tradition

Olive Branch is a long-standing tradition where new first-year students from Clark Atlanta, Morehouse, and Spelman gather for an official AUC unity ceremony and celebration every late August before the beginning of the fall semester.

Homecomings

Spelman and Morehouse annually hosts homecoming festivities in the same week during the fall semester. The parallel homecoming activities are traditionally referred to as "SpelHouse Homecoming." Clark Atlanta usually annually hosts homecoming festivities in a different week from Spelman and Morehouse. Homecomings significantly contribute to the cultural identity of the AUC and attract tens of thousands of alumni, students, celebrity guests, and visitors.

Dual Degree Engineering Program (DDEP)

In 1969, the AUC Consortium established a dual degree engineering program that allows its undergraduate students to receive two degrees in approximately five years. Students must first complete a science, technology or mathematics curriculum at an AUC institution, followed by the completion of an engineering curriculum at the engineering institution. Upon successful completing both curricula, students earn two degrees: a Bachelor of Science degree awarded from an AUC institution, and a Bachelor of Science degree in a specific engineering discipline from an affiliated engineering institution. Engineering institutions affiliated with DDEP include Georgia Institute of Technology, University of Michigan, University of Notre Dame, Auburn University, Clarkson University, Indiana University – Purdue University Indianapolis, Missouri University of Science and Technology, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Rochester Institute of Technology, University of Alabama in Huntsville, and North Carolina A&T State University. Since its inception, over 1,100 students have successfully completed the dual degree program.
Spelman never offered engineering degrees which is most common among liberal arts colleges. In 2003, Clark Atlanta's leadership voted to end its engineering programs for budget reasons. In 2019, Morehouse established its first undergraduate engineering degree program with software engineering.

AUC Data Science Initiative

In 2019, United Health Group donated $8.25 million to the AUC Consortium to establish the AUC Data Science Initiative. This initiative offers technical classes to AUC students who want to specialize in data science or learn data analysis to give them a competitive edge in the job market. A major objective of this initiative is to increase the number of underrepresented minorities in the data science and analytics fields.

3+3 Law Program

In 2019, three AUC institutions established an admissions agreement with Syracuse University College of Law allowing their students to receive a bachelor's degree and law degree in approximately six years.

Religious institutions

Three denominational campus ministry centers have been established to serve the students of the Atlanta University Center. The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Atlanta operates the Lyke House Catholic Student Center, the Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta operates the Absalom Jones Episcopal Student Center and Chapel, the Absalom Jones Student Center also houses the Lutheran Campus ministry which serves both students and the members of the adjoining community.
Two of these campus ministry facilities are named after notable Black American clerics.