Alumni and students of Lincoln University have filed a federal lawsuit against the state of Missouri, alleging that decades of underfunding violated federal land-grant laws and constitutional obligations. Filed on Wednesday in the U.S. District Court of Western Missouri, the legal action claims the historically Black university was deprived of hundreds of millions of dollars that should have been matched dollar-for-dollar under federal statutes.
The plaintiffs are pressing for structural reform and financial redress, pointing to a legacy of disparity between Jefferson City-based Lincoln University and other institutions within the state’s public higher education framework.
Missouri Underfunded Lincoln University by Millions
At the center of the litigation is the Morrill Act, a federal measure requiring states to match federal funding for historically African American federally-charted land grant institutions dollar for dollar. Attorney Don Calloway, representing the plaintiffs, stated that Missouri failed for years to adequately match federal allocations for Lincoln University, creating what the lawsuit defines as a constitutional violation.
According to court filings, federal Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System records indicate that Missouri underfunded Lincoln University by $361,569,760 between fiscal years 1987 and 2020. The figure is derived from letters previously issued by the Biden administration to states with Morrill Act institutions regarding funding disparities.
The lawsuit requests the establishment of a $549 million fund. This total combines a documented shortfall of $223,780,941 in nominal dollars from the years it accrued, alongside $324,972,497 in prejudgment interest.
Calloway noted that across all applicable institutions nationwide, the aggregate funding gap reaches approximately $12.6 billion. He added that an executive order issued by the Trump administration in April 2025 similarly urged states to rectify their matching obligations, a directive he said many states have yet to fully implement.
State Officials Decline to Comment on Lawsuit
The lawsuit names several state officials and entities as defendants, including Gov. Mike Kehoe, the Coordinating Board for Higher Education, and University of Missouri System President Mun Choi.
Gabby Picard, a spokeswoman for Governor Kehoe, confirmed on Wednesday that the governor’s office had not yet been formally served with the complaint. “Because this is pending litigation, the governor does not have a comment at this time,” Picard said.
A spokesperson for the Missouri Department of Higher Education & Workforce Development declined to comment on the pending legal action. Representatives for Lincoln University also declined to comment, while a spokesperson for the University of Missouri System did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Calloway indicated that the legal team hopes the state will engage in settlement discussions rather than protracted litigation. He asserted that the petition’s legal merits are clear-cut based on historical funding data.
Notably, St. Louis-based Harris-Stowe State University is not a party to the current lawsuit because it is a state-based land-grant institution. Calloway maintained, however, that Harris-Stowe has also experienced separate funding disparities under the state’s public obligations.
Plaintiffs Seek Funding for Capital and Staff Improvements
Should the litigation succeed, the plaintiffs intend for the awarded funds to support capital improvements, program enhancements, and staff salary increases, particularly in key instructional departments. Calloway emphasized that plaintiffs explicitly “do not want the money to go to a university slush fund.”
The primary objective, according to the legal team, is securing injunctive relief through a federal consent decree. Such a decree would legally mandate that Lincoln University receive funding on par with the University of Missouri in every subsequent fiscal cycle.
John Bowman, a former state legislator and former head of the St. Louis County NAACP who is supporting the effort, argued that equitable funding for the university would benefit the broader Mid-Missouri economy. Several NAACP branches and organizations representing HBCU graduates have signed on to support the initiative.
Co-counsel Jared Boyd, former chief of staff to then-St. Louis Mayor Tishaura Jones, noted that the case carries profound personal significance. Boyd’s grandfather previously served as president of a now-defunct Tennessee HBCU, managing severe financial pressures that contributed to his early passing. Boyd described the lawsuit as a necessary step toward achieving financial stability and parity for institutions that have historically operated under constrained resources.
