[10][11][12] United States Senator Hiram R. Revels resigned his seat when he accepted the position as Alcorn's first president.

The state legislature provided $50,000 in cash for ten successive years for the establishment and overall operations of the college.

This money was to be used solely to support the agricultural and mechanical components of the college, which Congress wanted to develop nationally.

[10] After a group of white Democrats known as Redeemers took over the legislature, Alcorn's appropriation was slashed by almost 90 percent, to $5,500 per year, and an all-white board of trustees was appointed.

The goals for the college set by the Mississippi legislature following the Reconstruction era emphasized training for blacks rather than academic education.

Governor William L. Waller signed House Bill 298 granting university status to Alcorn and the other state-supported colleges.

It provides an undergraduate education that enables students to continue their work in graduate and professional schools, engage in teaching, and enter other professions.

In 1994 Jay Searcy of the Philadelphia Inquirer said that except for its football team, Evers, and "an occasional Olympic athlete," "Alcorn rarely gets mentioned outside the state of Mississippi" although attention on the university increased after Steve McNair made athletic successes.

[20] The Myrlie Evers-Williams Honors Program is available to highly motivated undergraduate students seeking to enhance their academic experience and leadership skills.

Both programs are 30 hour credited and structured on an eight-week model, allowing students to complete their degree within one year.

[22] Alcorn offers pre-professional programs to better prepare students for a transition to specialized studies in the fields of law, engineering, nursing, physical therapy, medicine, pharmacy and dentistry.

The main campus is located in Alcorn State University census-designated place,[24] an unincorporated area in Claiborne County, Mississippi.

Faculty housing, which is open to full time employees,[28] and their dependents, is zoned to the Claiborne County School District.

[30] Alcorn State is a member of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) and participates in NCAA Division I FCS.