Alcorn State University officials said they will have to step up efforts to recruit other-race students after a judge ruled about the state’s historically black colleges.

On Monday, U.S. District Judge Neal Biggers Jr. made public his ruling regarding endowment trust fund money from the Legislature. The state’s three historically black universities – ASU, Mississippi Valley State and Jackson State – must use 65 percent of the endowment trust fund income to provide scholarships to attract white students to their campuses. Biggers is overseeing the 25-year-old college desegregation case, known as the Ayers case.

&uot;We have no problem with (the ruling),&uot; said Alcorn Executive Vice President Rudolph Waters. &uot;We’re going to have to intensify our efforts to get other race students to accept our scholarships.&uot;

The Ayers lawsuit was filed 25 years ago by a man who believed his son was not getting as equal an education as students at the state’s historically white schools.

&uot;I think (Monday’s ruling is) excellent,&uot; Alcorn President Clinton Bristow said Tuesday. &uot;It positions us to say to other race students if you want strong academic programs, we can finance your education.&uot;

Attracting other race students to Alcorn’s Natchez campus – which offers nursing and MBA programs – is not as difficult as attracting students to the main campus in Lorman, Waters said. About half of the students on the Natchez campus are non-black students, he said. &uot;We don’t have any programs here (in Lorman) that aren’t offered at any of (the state’s other four-year schools,)&uot; Waters said. &uot;We’re going to have to increase our marketing efforts to try to change the attitude of other race people about our programs.&uot;

Waters said Alcorn has had several recent examples of its strong academic presence – including one graduate who was able to choose from among 11 law schools, including Harvard.