CHESTER COUNTY, Pa.- Lincoln University, a historically black college & university outside Philadelphia is investigating after someone racially spray-painted Lincoln N*gger University" which was discovered on a sign at an entrance on the campus, according to source.

Lincoln University says campus public safety officers discovered the vandalism at 1:50 a.m. Thursday and immediately took steps to correct the damage and it has been removed.

Acting president Valerie Harrison called the graffiti a display of ignorance and hatred and said in a letter to students that it's a sober reminder of hatred and intimidation past generations overcame.

Harrison says the university will put measures in place to minimize opportunities for defacing property on it campus about 45 miles west of Philadelphia.

She told Lincoln's 2,500 students they shouldn't be distracted by "the cowardly acts of others" or act out in a manner inconsistent with the state-related university's values.

Lincoln University was founded in 1854 to provide educational opportunities for African-Americans. It was the first degree-granting historically black college and university in the United States.