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Supporting HBCU/MSI students, faculty, staff and residents of surrounding communities
WHAT WE DO
HBCU CDAC is a non-profit coalition dedicated to creating programs that benefit HBCU/MSI students, staff, and residents of the communities surrounding the campuses. Each of our programs is also designed with the underlying principle that our sponsors can benefit from their financial investment and do well by doing good. Below are examples of our active sponsored programs. HBCU CDAC is also in the process of developing more customized opportunities in order to partner with additional corporations, foundations, and government agencies. Please contact us for information on how to get involved >
Founded in 2020, Our Money Matters (OMM) is an innovative financial wellness hub. Our mission is to equip HBCU and MSI students and the residents of their surrounding communities with the skills needed to reach financial freedom.
Unlike most financial literacy programs, Our Money Matters offers a broadened approach, including:
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Online programming
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In-person education and counseling
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Support services such as food pantries, career days, and emergency funding
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Outreach and collaboration with surrounding community leaders
With hundreds of thousands of students attending HBCUs and MSI’s every year, Our Money Matters has the opportunity to make an impact on the next generation of college graduates and their families. Many are first-generation college attendees, with more than 70 percent qualifying for the Federal PELL grant due to their family’s low socioeconomic status. Our Money Matters is funded by the Wells Fargo Foundation and is designed to help transform the mindset of HBCU and MSI students' so they are prepared to become high wage earners, financial and social entrepreneurs, investors, and philanthropists.
The Renaissance HBCU Opportunity Fund
The Renaissance HBCU Opportunity Fund is committed to focusing on real estate-oriented economic development projects on or near the campuses of HBCUs. Organized by Renaissance Equity Partners, with support from HBCU CDAC, the Fund adheres to the principle that investors can do well by doing good. Renaissance and HBCU CDAC have been recently recognized by the first annual Forbes OZ 20 list of opportunity zone catalysts created to honor leaders who are igniting the equitable revitalization of distressed communities. The Fund has also received organizational support from the Kresge Foundation, The Rockefeller Foundation, and Calvert Impact Capital.
The Renaissance HBCU Opportunity Fund is unique compared to other OZ opportunities because the capital is specifically earmarked for projects that enhance the economic vitality of HBCUs and their surrounding neighborhoods. In addition, each partner HBCU will share in the net income generated by the project and have the opportunity to acquire the Fund’s interest upon the conclusion of the 10-year Opportunity Fund compliance period.
Clean Energy Initiative
The HBCU CDAC Clean Energy Initiative (CEI) helps to lower costs and increase solar accessibility for those who need it the most. CEI secures funding and manpower to increase solar awareness, accessibility, and workforce training for institutions, students, and residents in low-to-moderate income (LMI) communities surrounding HBCUs and MSIs. Through generous support and grants from philanthropic partners, corporations, and federal and state agencies. CEI’s most recent projects have provided free solar to homeowners in Greensboro and Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
Small Business Development
While still in the planning phase, the Small Business Development program's goal is to support businesses surrounding HBCU and MSI campuses. As the economic lifeline of many communities, small businesses employ millions of people nationwide, but they are also the most vulnerable during economic downturns. In fact, COVID-19 has hit black-owned businesses incredibly hard. According to research conducted by the University of California, Santa Cruz, and another report by the National Bureau of Economic Research, 41 percent of Black-owned businesses—some 440,000 enterprises—have been shuttered by COVID-19, compared to just 17 percent of white-owned companies.
Andre Perry, a fellow at the Brookings Institute, says the lack of wealth in the Black community has had an enormous impact on its ability to survive the pandemic. “Because a lot of Black business owners don’t have the kind of equity due to structural racism, they have less of a cushion to withstand this particular moment in time.” The companies that have survived need help more than ever. The Small Business Development Program is designed to provide that help and teach businesses how to compete and thrive during a strong economy but, more importantly, how to survive during an economic downturn.
