Beyonce and JAY-Z to HBCUs’ rescue

(Medium, Inc.) Two million dollars are being donated to HBCUs via Beyoncé and JAY-Z who partnered with Tiffany & Co. Over the last few years, HBCUs have been struggling financially, some have practically closed their doors, especially after the Covid-pandemic.

Per HBCU Lifestyle, historically black colleges or universities (HBCUs) are schools that were founded on the belief that every individual deserves access to a college or higher education. More specifically, the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended defines an HBCU as:

“any historically black college or university that was established prior to 1964, whose principal mission was, and is, the education of black Americans, and that is accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting agency or association determined by the Secretary of Education.”

The two million dollars was poured into the About Love Scholarship for students who are pursuing degrees in the arts and creative fields. This partnership between Tiffany and Co., and the couple’s philanthropic initiatives (BeyGOOD and the Shawn Carter Foundation) are providing these scholarships for students attending five Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) — Lincoln University in Pennsylvania, Norfolk State University in Virginia, Bennett College in North Carolina, University of Arkansas Pine Bluff and Central State University in Ohio.

Per the Shawncarters’s website, the mission of the Shawn Carter Foundation is to help students facing socio-economic hardships to further their education at post-secondary institutions. The Shawn Carter Foundation was established in 2003 as a public charity (“Shawn Carter Scholarship Fund”) by Shawn Carter and his mother, Gloria Carter.

The About Love Scholarship program’s intent is to support the next generation of Black Americans and create opportunities for students who will one day create the culture indicative of the American dream and become future leaders.

Students attending the five selected schools to receive this scholarship should be either currently attending or incoming to one of the selected HBCUs and must qualify per their university’s guidelines in addition to pursuing degrees in the arts, creative fields, history, or communications. Students that are facing financial difficulties will be given priority and the award amounts are based on individual student’s needs.

Students that are interested should ensure their online applications are done between September 10 and September 26 for eligibility. This is a good way to ensure the recipients are on top of their game and really want an education. Therefore the philanthropists are ensured that their monies are making a difference and being applied to a deserving and proactive applicant/student.

Tiffany & Co. has high regard for Beyoncé and JAY-Z and how they have dedicated their time and resources to uplifting underrepresented groups, which is the reason why Tiffany & Co. decided to partner with them in making a difference in the HBCUs’ students’ lives. This is the inspiration behind the About Love Scholarship program, changing lives one at a time.

This is one of the many ventures that the Carters have pursued. Other existing philanthropic pursuits such as Beyoncé’s charitable foundation BeyGood pledged $6 million for the COVID-19 relief effort, which included $500,000 in grants to families facing eviction, and have gone global with their dollars with global initiatives in South Africa, Haiti, Burundi, Australia, the United Kingdom, and the Caribbean.

Beyoncé is unstoppable and is affecting lives every day and in every way possible with her dollars and love for humanity. Also, she launched the Black-Owned Small Business Impact Fund in partnership with NAACP and helped to fund the education of three budding gemologists with the Beyonce Knowles-Carter x Lorraine Schwartz GIA Scholarship.

Not only the HBCUs are benefitting from Beyoncé and JAY-Z and Tiffany & Co.’s dollars but they are changing lives for the present and the future with equal opportunities for many who may not be able to get an education.

In conclusion, education is like the lotto, you have to be in it to win it. Education can and will make a difference in a better life for today’s underprivileged in becoming one of the privileged. While these three are making a difference, many others who are in a position to share the wealth need to follow their example. There is no better or greater legacy than to lend a hand to the needy. “Each one reach one and that one reach another, as the chain continues.”