American Association of Blacks in Higher Education

What American Association of Blacks in Higher Education does

The American Association of Blacks in Higher Education (AABHE) is a U.S.-based nonprofit professional membership organization headquartered at 1717 Pennsylvania Ave. NW #1025, Washington, DC, dedicated to advancing access, equity, and excellence in higher education for Black professionals. The organization serves individual members across career stages—undergraduate students, graduate students, faculty, administrators, and scholars—alongside institutional members including universities such as Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, University of Georgia, Wesleyan University, and Trinity College, which also use AABHE's Career Center (jobs.blacksinhighered.org) to post faculty and administrative openings. Leadership is provided by President Shewanee Howard-Baptiste, PhD, and the organization operates with a small team of approximately 10 employees.

AABHE delivers its mission through a portfolio of nine signature programs: the Annual Conference, Leadership & Mentoring Institute (LMI), Research Institute, Writing Bootcamp, Emerging Leaders Institute, Virtual Career Expo, International Study Tour, Rising Leaders Institute (RLI), and Members-Only Town Hall, supplemented by the WednesdayWord newsletter, webinars, academic scholarships, structured mentoring, and professional development workshops. The technology backbone is the YourMembership association management platform (aabhe.site-ym.com) for membership administration and a separate Career Center job board for employment matching. The organization currently has 1,000+ members and is in a stated growth phase called the "Era of the Comma," targeting membership expansion under its current president.

The business model rests on three revenue streams: recurring membership dues from individuals and institutions, transaction-based event registration fees across the signature programs, and recurring sponsorship/donation revenue from corporate and foundation partners including Lilly Endowment, Mellon Foundation, Thurgood Marshall College Fund, Strada Education, Casey Grants, and Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. Distribution is primarily direct through the AABHE website, the dedicated Career Center job board, and in-person/virtual events, supported by a multi-channel marketing presence across Instagram (@aabhe_official), LinkedIn, the WednesdayWord newsletter, and webinars. A strategic partnership with Western Governors University (WGU), announced April 2026, signals an emerging channel into formal educational pathways for members.

Name

American Association of Blacks in Higher Education

Legal name

American Association of Blacks in Higher Education

Website

https://aabhe.education

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The American Association of Blacks in Higher Education (AABHE) is a Washington, DC-based nonprofit professional membership organization that supports Black professionals, scholars, administrators, faculty, and students throughout their academic careers through membership, signature programs (annual conference, mentoring institute, research institute, leadership programs), scholarships, and a dedicated Career Center job board.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: Annual and multi-year membership fees for individual professionals, scholars, faculty, administrators, graduate students, and undergraduate students in higher education. Membership provides access to networking, reduced event fees, subscriptions, and professional development resources.
2. Event Registration Fees: Revenue from signature programs including Annual Conference, Research Institute, Writing Bootcamp, Emerging Leaders Institute, and other professional development events.
3. Sponsorships and Donations: Corporate and institutional sponsors provide financial support in exchange for visibility with the organization's national audience of scholars and leaders. Individual donations also accepted.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

AABHE is a national nonprofit membership association that supports Black professionals throughout their academic careers in higher education. It provides individual and institutional memberships, signature programs (Annual Conference, Leadership & Mentoring Institute, Research Institute, Writing Bootcamp, Emerging Leaders Institute, Rising Leaders Institute, Virtual Career Expo, International Study Tour, Members-Only Town Hall), academic scholarships, mentoring, professional development workshops, webinars, the WednesdayWord newsletter, and an online Career Center job board.

Product overview

AABHE operates as a membership-based professional organization offering a unified portfolio of programs and services designed to advance Black professionals in higher education. The core offering centers on membership access, supplemented by signature programs including the Annual Conference, Leadership & Mentoring Institute (LMI), Research Institute, Writing Bootcamp, Emerging Leaders Institute, Virtual Career Expo, International Study Tour, Rising Leaders Institute (RLI), and Members-Only Town Hall. Additional services include the WednesdayWord publication, webinars, a Career Center job board, academic scholarships, mentoring programs, and professional development workshops. These offerings work together to provide a comprehensive ecosystem supporting the academic and professional advancement of Black scholars, administrators, faculty, and students throughout their careers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Membership Program

Quantifiable outcome

• Growing membership base of 1,000+ professionals

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• WGU (Western Governors University)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 April 2026WGU and AABHE partnered to expand pathways for higher education scholars and leaders. The partnership aims to provide AABHE members with educational pathways and professional development opportunities through WGU programs.
• Thurgood Marshall College Fund (TMCF)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as a sponsor partner, supporting AABHE's initiatives for Black professionals in higher education.
• Southern Illinois University EdwardsvilleminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as a sponsor partner, supporting AABHE's programs and events.
• Leadership & Mentoring Institute (LMI)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAABHE operates the Leadership & Mentoring Institute as one of its signature programs, providing structured mentorship and leadership development for Black professionals in higher education. Hosted at lmiexperience.org.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU): National association representing Hispanic-Serving Institutions. Comparable to AABHE in serving underrepresented populations in higher education, though HACU's model is institutional advocacy rather than individual professional development.
• National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NODA): Association for orientation, transition, and retention professionals in higher education. Comparable to AABHE in offering targeted professional development institutes and a member community for higher ed practitioners.

Broad incumbents

• American Educational Research Association (AERA): The largest national professional organization for education researchers. Comparable to AABHE in supporting scholarly research and faculty development, with an overlapping Research Institute-style offering at a much larger scale.
• NASPA - Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education: A large, established professional association for student affairs and higher education administrators. Comparable to AABHE in serving higher ed administrators and faculty with conferences, publications, and institutes, but serves a much broader audience.
• NAFSA: Association of International Educators: A large professional association for international educators with conferences, institutes, and a career center. Shares AABHE's conference-plus-career-services plus membership model, though focused on international education.
• American Council on Education (ACE): The major coordinating association for U.S. colleges and universities, representing institutional leaders. Comparable to AABHE in advocating for higher education leadership development and convening senior administrators, though at an institutional rather than individual membership level.
• ACPA - College Student Educators International: Long-standing professional association for student affairs educators and administrators, offering conferences, institutes, and publications. Directly comparable professional development and networking model to AABHE, though serving a broader demographic.
• Association for the Study of Higher Education (ASHE): A scholarly and professional association for higher education researchers and faculty. Overlaps with AABHE's Research Institute and professional development programming, and shares the same academic member base.

Direct peers

• Thurgood Marshall College Fund (TMCF): An existing AABHE sponsor and partner organization supporting Black students and HBCUs through scholarships, leadership programs, and career services. Highly comparable mission and operating model, and an actual collaboration partner.
• American Association of Hispanics in Higher Education (AAHHE): Demographically focused national professional association for Hispanic higher education professionals, with similar mission, structure, programs, and membership model to AABHE—the closest peer in terms of niche and operating approach.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/aabhe_official/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/american-association-of-blacks-in-higher-education

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about American Association of Blacks in Higher Education