Sad news in HBCU athletics as Fisk University has announced that it is ending its history-making women’s gymnastics program.
The program, first announced and launched in 2022, was “the first HBCU Intercollegiate Women’s Artistic Gymnastics Team.”
“Woman’s gymnastics exemplifies the values of Fisk University: determination, excellence, and a commitment to a more just and equitable future,” said Fisk University President Vann Newkirk in a statement at the time. ”These values have consistently been at the forefront of women’s gymnastics and Fisk could not be more excited to welcome these remarkable student-athletes to the campus starting this coming fall.”
Unfortunately, after three exciting seasons that captivated Black fans and the general HBCU community, the program will come to an end after the Spring 2026 season.
“While we are tremendously proud of the history our gymnastics team has made in just three years, we look forward to focusing on our conference-affiliated teams to strengthen our impact in the HBCU Athletic Conference,” said Valencia Jordan, Director of Fisk Athletics. “Fisk is grateful for the hard work, dedication and tenacity of its gymnasts, staff members, and coaches who made this program possible.”
While Fisk made HBCU athletics history, gymnastics wasn’t sanctioned by its conference, the HBCU Athletic Conference (HBCUAC), which creates major challenges in recruiting and scheduling competitions.
But the program made big waves thanks to star athlete Morgan Price, who decommitted from Arkansas to sign with Fisk in its inaugural season.
And she became the first HBCU gymnast in history to win a national championship.
Last month, Price announced that she was headed to Arkansas for her final season in college.
Fisk’s decision to enter gymnastics was a bold one, one followed by Talladega College in Alabama. The college, like Fisk, partnered with Brown Girls Do Gymnastics and HBCU Gymnastics Alliance and launched the school’s first-ever women’s artistic gymnastics team in 2023.
Unfortunately, the program was ended a year after it started due to dire budget cuts, cuts that also included men’s volleyball, acrobatics and tumbling, men’s and women’s golf and men’s and women’s indoor track.
Both NAIA schools are facing budget crunches that other HBCUS, such as Tennessee St., are facing, and unfortunately history-making programs like gymnastics don’t have the revenue to justify the expense (estimated to be roughly $500,000 annually at Talladega) it takes to run it.
