NASHVILLE — Dr. Glenda Glover, former President of Tennessee State University, released the book "How Dare You" on June 26, 2026. The book details the underfunding of the university and coincided with Glover launching a national advocacy effort to close funding gaps at land-grant Historically Black Colleges and Universities.

Glover described the movement as "the next educational civil rights battle." Internal analysis by the State of Tennessee determined that it had underfunded the university by more than $544 million under the Morrill Act of 1890. Additionally, a 2023 federal review conducted by the U.S. Departments of Agriculture and Education found that Tennessee had underfunded the university by an additional $2.1 billion over three decades.

The $2.1 billion shortfall identified in the 2023 federal review represented the largest shortfall at any of the nation's 1890 land-grant HBCUs. Glover stated, "This is a book about elected and appointed state leaders and the decisions they made that inflicted lasting harm on TSU." In 2022, a state senator publicly questioned why Black students attend Tennessee State University during a legislative hearing.

Glover emphasized that her book is not a conflict with the university. She said, "It is not about a fight with TSU." The release of Glover's book and her national advocacy effort bring attention to documented funding disparities at Tennessee State University and other land-grant Historically Black Colleges and Universities. The state of Tennessee's own analysis and a federal review have identified underfunding stretching over decades, with the federal review citing a $2.1 billion shortfall at Tennessee State University alone.