The Transformation Blueprint of the University of the District of Columbia: From a Commuter Institution to a Flagship University

Maurice Edington, who has served as president of the University of the District of Columbia (UDC) since August 2023, is working to make it difficult for local high school graduates to turn down the opportunity to stay in Washington, D.C., to attend this public institution. He stated clearly: "Our strategy is to continuously evolve and develop, making our reputation that of a high-quality, affordable, and accessible university in the District." This vision is not new; UDC and its past leaders have expressed similar goals on multiple occasions. However, under Edington's leadership—he previously served in administrative roles at Florida A&M University, another Historically Black College and University (HBCU), for 21 years—the university recently released its latest strategic plan aimed at turning this goal into reality.

The strategic plan includes nine broad goals, which Edington admits is quite a few for a strategic plan. "We are not seeking incremental improvement," he said. "I'm not saying the university is in bad shape, but we have ambitious aspirations for the future. And I firmly believe—deep in my soul—that to achieve a qualitative leap, you must have ambition and drive."

Although the plan lists nine priorities, one rises above the rest and serves as a guiding light for the others. Edington emphasized: "The truly only priority is student success."

UDC seeks to transform into a state flagship university model

UDC's history dates back to 1851, when it began as a normal school, dedicated from its inception to serving Washington, D.C.'s Black community. In 1976, three institutions merged, and UDC became a comprehensive university. Today, UDC houses both a research university and a community college. As of spring 2024, the university had a total of 3,708 students, of whom approximately 2,100 were Black.

Under Edington's leadership, UDC's newly launched strategic plan aims to make it a "national model for urban student success." To achieve this, the university plans to increase its second-year retention rate to 80% by 2029, a 14-percentage-point improvement over the baseline; boost its graduation rate by 25 percentage points to 65%; and strive to double the number of degrees awarded annually to 1,500.

However, achieving these goals requires a comprehensive overhaul of the university's operating model. One of the top priorities is establishing a student success center. Edington said the center will integrate academic and career advising, health services, and other functions into a one-stop hub. The academic advising model will also change: UDC will move from its current hybrid model, involving both professional full-time advisors and faculty, to a fully professional model where staff members accompany students throughout their entire college careers.

More broadly, Edington hopes to implement a university-wide "student success framework"—a term in higher education referring to a series of initiatives aimed at improving student outcomes. The framework developed by his team includes nearly 30 independent initiatives and programs, encompassing curriculum redesign, mandatory advising sessions, expanded internship opportunities, and early-alert analytics systems to identify and support at-risk students.

"The truly only priority is student success." —Maurice Edington, President of UDC

A key component of the student success plan is the construction of UDC's first dedicated student housing. Edington calls this part "critical." He noted: "Many students leave the District to study elsewhere, not necessarily far from home—maybe just 10, 15, or 20 miles away—but they get a campus residential experience." UDC is one of the few public universities without dormitories, currently leasing only about 50 nearby apartments for students. Edington said many locals view UDC as a commuter school. In spring 2024, approximately three-quarters of its 1,407 undergraduates were District residents, and over 80% of its 1,738 community college students were local residents.

For many students, commuting means it's hard to stay on campus beyond classes. Edington admitted: "Until recently, I didn't realize from a student's perspective how much effort it takes to get to campus." He also pointed to a broader correlation: "Students who live in dorms have higher retention and graduation rates than those who don't, and that's well-documented data." Research since the 1990s also shows that living on campus is associated with positive student outcomes, including the metrics Edington mentioned and the development of a sense of community. He added: "Many of our students come from underserved communities with weaker family support structures, so they need to be in a more nurturing and supportive environment in the evenings and on weekends."

Building a dormitory is Edington's top capital priority. He has been communicating the potential benefits to stakeholders. The District government, which plays a close role in university affairs, has allocated $1 million for a feasibility study on student housing. Edington noted that financing options could include District capital appropriations, partnerships with private real estate investors, or a combination of both. In the best-case scenario, he expects UDC could break ground within two years.

Reputation: a "concern"

When UDC declares in its transformation plan its ambition to become a "world-class flagship university," the implication is that it has not yet reached that level. In U.S. News & World Report's university rankings, UDC currently ranks 23rd among HBCUs (up one spot from last year) and 147th among regional universities in the North. The strategic plan's introduction, "Delivering on the Promise," states explicitly: "Reputation—an easily cited yet difficult-to-define factor—has historically been a concern for UDC; the university still struggles with perception issues, especially among District natives who remember past years of short-term leadership, underfunding, and stalled programs."

These challenges are not insignificant. Although UDC is the District's only public university, it faces stiff competition from Washington's private institutions in the battle for top students, including nationally renowned Georgetown University, George Washington University, and Howard University. Howard ranks second among HBCUs, behind Spelman College in Atlanta. UDC also faces competition from neighboring public universities in Maryland and Virginia, whose HBCUs (such as Morgan State University and Hampton University) attract students who might otherwise choose UDC. While Washington residents cannot access in-state tuition at neighboring state universities, they can receive tuition assistance through a grant program designed to expand higher education options for District residents.

At a strategic plan launch event in mid-November, Edington highlighted the dual meaning of "promise" in the plan's name: "These words were carefully chosen. 'Promise' is synonymous with responsibility, and it also means potential. So, delivering on the promise is fully committing and fully realizing our immense potential as an institution." He said this to the assembled local politicians, university and student leaders.

Reputation, though abstract, has tangible impacts, especially in enrollment. The strategic plan addresses this in part through communications efforts: including a comprehensive new branding and outreach campaign, as well as a new university website. Additionally, UDC hopes to enhance its research profile by seeking Carnegie Classification R2 (high research activity) status. Edington said in an interview that he hopes UDC's unique location will broaden its appeal. With its historical significance, position in the halls of power, and international importance, the District itself can attract top students. "Compared to our private peers, one of the keys to their success is location," Edington said. "I think there are many students across the country who want to come to Washington, D.C. If they're seeking an HBCU experience, they can't all go to Howard, right?"

An educational "urgency"

At the same time, UDC faces a balancing act common to many public universities: enhancing its national and international profile while continuing to serve its local community and funders. UDC's status as an HBCU is crucial to achieving both goals. At the plan's launch celebration, before an audience of about 100 predominantly Black attendees, the response was muted when Edington mentioned that UDC is the District's only public university; but when he added "and a proud HBCU," the room erupted in applause.

Nationwide, HBCUs are often powerful engines of regional and individual economic progress. According to the latest research from the United Negro College Fund (UNCF), they generate $16.5 billion in economic impact annually and boost graduates' lifetime earnings by 57%. Regional public HBCUs (like UDC), as HBCU scholars Felecia Commodore and Nadrea Njoku noted in a 2020 paper, "represent the cornerstone of the HBCU landscape," and they "consistently outperform predominantly white peer institutions in their regions in terms of available resources and service to Black students."

UNCF data shows that UDC's 752 graduates in 2021 are projected to earn a total lifetime income of $2.1 billion, 51% more than they would have without their degrees. UNCF notes that HBCUs have historically "overperformed," providing higher education opportunities to historically marginalized students who lack resources. However, the sector has been underfunded for decades. Additionally, Njoku (former assistant vice president at UNCF's Frederick D. Patterson Research Institute) noted in an interview that no HBCU currently has an endowment reaching $1 billion, while top public and private universities can hold tens of billions.

In Njoku's view, HBCUs achieve such results because of their educational approach. Many HBCUs have lower student-to-faculty ratios and employ what she calls "intrusive advising" to identify early signs of students struggling—exactly what UDC plans to build into its student success initiatives. She also cites innovative teaching methods, such as Xavier University of Louisiana's pre-med program, which breaks learning into modules to help students master complex scientific concepts step by step. Njoku says HBCUs also often delve deeply into the educational and programmatic needs of their local markets. UDC, under Edington's leadership, has made this a priority in its strategic plan, aiming to establish partnerships with local employers and focus programs on skills needed in the region.

Beyond these specific measures, Njoku believes HBCUs often operate with an educational "urgency" that other institutions lack. "These institutions were founded in the corners of barns, by candlelight, when people feared being killed for reading," she said. "That fear still resonates. These institutions have educated students with that same seriousness and urgency since day one. That shapes everything you do."

Funding the transformation (after years of underfunding)

In 2017, The Washington Post—the newspaper of UDC's hometown—published an editorial exploring whether the university could transform itself. The article mentioned a promising new leader, Ronald Mason Jr., a strategic plan then three years old, a mixed record of results, "dismal" graduation rates, and the recognition that UDC needed to serve local market demands and couldn't be "all things to all people." Although conditions have improved significantly since then, these narratives still feel familiar in 2024. For example, between 2017 and 2022, UDC's overall graduation rate rose nearly 20 percentage points to 35%—a figure that still has much room for improvement.