SO. AMBITIOUS HBCU TOUR 2024

Bringing entrepreneurial training to HBCUs to create new pathways and opportunities for wealth creation for student entrepreneurs

Presented by Black Ambition, Techstars & Thurgood Marshall College Fund

Black Ambition, Techstars, and the Thurgood Marshall College Fund are collaborating to gather undergraduate, graduate, and alumni affiliated across disciplines at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) to experience the highs, lows, fun, and pressure that make up life at a startup. The Atlanta, GA tour stop will be open to both those affiliated with area HBCUs and the broader public.

Students will ideate, learn to validate business ideas and create real companies with support from the very best mentors, investors, and seasoned entrepreneurs – all of whom are committed to bridging the wealth and opportunity gap by investing in Black entrepreneurs at an early stage.

This multi-HBCU initiative will connect the network of HBCUs with a network of allies and resources curated for Black founders, including incubator and accelerator programs, business pitch competitions, boot camps, and access to capital. Tour dates and locations will be shared with those who submit a complete application, so make sure to apply today!

Are YOU ambitious? If so, come join us!

About Black Ambition
Black Ambition empowers Black and Hispanic innovators and communities to excel uninterrupted. Founded by Pharrell Williams in 2020, Black, Hispanic, and HBCU-affiliated ventures in consumer products and services, media and entertainment, healthcare, technology, and Web 3.0 are eligible to win up to $1M.

To date, nearly $6M dollars has been awarded to founders. Black Ambition’s endeavors have been recognized by Forbes, Essence, Complex, and many more for driving meaningful change. It also was the winner of Fast Company’s 2021 World Changing Ideas award for Impact Investing and named one of Fast Company’s 2022 Most Innovative Companies.

About Techstars
The Techstars worldwide network helps entrepreneurs succeed. Techstars began with three simple ideas: entrepreneurs create a better future for everyone, collaboration drives innovation, and great ideas can come from anywhere.

Today, their mission is to enable everyone on the planet to contribute to, and benefit from, entrepreneurs’ success. In addition to operating accelerators and venture funds, they connect startups, investors, corporations, and cities to help build thriving startup communities.

Techstars has 3000+ alumni including 19 unicorn-level valuation companies and operates 50+ venture accelerators around the world. In 2022, a new initiative was launched that includes the new 9-city Advancing Cities initiative Powered by JP Morgan that is investing $80M over the next 3 years in 400+ companies and targets recruiting underrepresented founders.

About Thurgood Marshall College Fund
Established in 1987, Thurgood Marshall College Fund (TMCF) is the only national organization exclusively representing the Black College Community. With a mission to ensure student success by promoting educational excellence and preparing the next generation of workforce talent through leadership development, TMCF is ambitiously focused on changing the face of leadership in business and beyond by amplifying the ambitions of those that society may overlook or underestimate. As part of this effort, the Innovation & Entrepreneurship (I&E) programming is focused on identifying, positioning, and preparing the next generation of global innovators to create and drive technology solutions that will change the world.

I&E programming takes a holistic approach to infusing education and professional development, creating opportunities for technology to converge with business acumen connecting “techie” students with “business-minded” students who are aspiring entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs. This commitment manifests as an investment in entrepreneurial-minded talent by training future innovators from HBCUs in skills needed to generate economic success through their own businesses or within today’s knowledge-driven organizations.