What you need to know
- Apple is expanding its partnership with HBCUs.
- It is adding 10 more regional coding centers to serve as hubs for their campuses and communities.
- It's all part of Apple's Community Education Initiative to help bring coding opportunities to learners of all ages.
Apple has today announced that it is expanding its partnerships with HBCUs to 10 further regional coding centers.
In a press release the company stated:
Apple today announced it is deepening its existing partnerships with Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), adding 10 more HBCU regional coding centers that will serve as technology hubs for their campuses and broader communities. This effort is part of Apple's Community Education Initiative, designed to bring coding, creativity, and workforce development opportunities to learners of all ages.
The news follows Apple's announcement of a Racial Equity and Justice Initiative last month.
Apple's VP of environment, policy, and social initiatives Lisa Jackson said:
"Apple is committed to working alongside communities of color to advance educational equity. We see this expansion of our Community Education Initiative and partnership with HBCUs as another step toward helping Black students realize their dreams and solve the problems of tomorrow."
Apple's community Education Initiative now extends to 24 US locations, including 12 Historically Black Colleges and Universities and 21 of which "predominately serve majority Black and Brown students." Apple has reportedly been working with Tennessee State University for the past two years to launch a new HBCU C2 initiative, a new coding experience available to all 100-plus HBCUs:
Tennessee State University now serves as a national hub for training educators and supporting its peer institutions as HBCUs expand coding and creativity opportunities to their own communities. A recent virtual HBCU C2 summit brought together nearly 300 educators from across the HBCU community to share best practices and hear from colleagues about workforce development, connecting with their communities, and bringing coding to students of all ages.
The 10 new locations are:
Arkansas Baptist College, Central State University, Claflin University, Dillard University, Fisk University, Lawson State Community College, Morehouse College, Prairie View A&M University, Southern University at Shreveport, and Tougaloo College.
