The Inspiration

Dr. Karen McCord, retired community college professor and Founder/CEO of Heritage Empowered, specializing in HBCU and Black Heritage Tours, invited our foundation into a collaboration to maximize the opportunities of community college students through the California Community Colleges Transfer Guarantee Pathway to Historically Black Colleges & Universities. Through this collaboration, our goals are to assist students in developing comprehensive strategies to qualify for competitive scholarships, match their educational and career aspirations to the right HBCUs, and develop debt-free or low-debt pathways through the next phase of their college journey.

To support this collaborative effort, our CEO/Founder, Mychal Wynn has drawn on his extensive experiences in expanding college access for first generation students. Mr. Wynn began his postsecondary journey at Chicago’s Kennedy-King Community College prior to matriculating to the Northeastern University College of Engineering. An adopted child and first in his family to attend college, Mr. Wynn is well aware of the unique challenges confronting first generation students in navigating their way through college and into careers without accumulating a lifetime of student loan debt.

Dr. McCord is supporting this collaboration through her vast network within the California Community College System and such programs as Umoja, A2MEND, EOPS, MESA, AANHPISAP, and the Puente Project. Mr. Wynn has written “HBCU Scholarships…and more*,” a 320- page book exhaustively covering the history of HBCUs, opportunities unique to each HBCU campus, guaranteed graduate school pathways, HBCU-specific scholarship opportunities, financial literacy, and post-degree employment pathways through HBCU partnerships with private-sector companies and federal agencies. Students participating in the HBCU Academy are further supported by a comprehensive online curriculum and provided with wrap around services to assist each student in developing a holistic set of strategies to achieve their educational and career aspirations through the transfer agreement.

Monthly All-virtual Meetings

Mr. Wynn currently developing the Why Attend an HBCU series of books as a reference source for students and is developing the online curriculum to further support students. All participating California Community College students will receive free books and 24/7 access to the online curriculum.

Mr. Wynn will be presenting all-virtual monthly sessions on the 3rd Saturday of each month to ensure that all students across the 116 California Community Colleges, have access to the Academy’s extensive resources, such as: 

  • 8 virtual monthly sessions covering pertinent topics and responding to questions as students work through the online curriculum.
  • A comprehensive 24/7 accessible online curriculum with a plethora of units from which students may select and work through at their own pace.
  • “HBCU Scholarships…and more*,” a 320 page book (also available on Amazon Kindle) providing comprehensive insight into the history of HBCUs and unique opportunities available at today’s HBCUs from guaranteed graduate school pathways to HBCU-specific scholarship and internship opportunities. The book contains examples and stories of real students and their scholarship outcomes.
  • “Why Attend an HBCU series” to support a more focused approach to specific HBCU pathways. The series is anticipated to contain between 6 and 12 volumes.
  • Wrap around support services providing guidance in:
    • developing résumés and CVs
    • developing high quality essay writing, that reflect your understanding of the mission, vision, and core values of the colleges and scholarship programs to which you are applying
    • developing the financial literacy needed to understand financial aid award letters and student loan exposure
    • developing a scholarship strategy as an admitted student to repay student loans prior to leaving college 
    • developing a pathway into and through an HBCU into graduate school
    • developing a pathway into and through an HBCU into a specific private sector company or government agency
    • maximizing available opportunities to developing the “body of work” in community college to compete for large dollar scholarships
  • Large group presentations and small group discussions reflecting the personal needs and future aspirations of participating students.

The first virtual session for the 2024-25 school year will be hosted on Saturday, August 17, 2024, from 10:00 am – 1:00 pm (PST). Interested students must register with Student Services on their campus. After their registration is confirmed, students will receive:

  • Login credentials to the online class
  • A registration link to the Zoom Meeting
  • A copy of “HBCU Scholarships…and more*”

During the first session, students will learn how to navigate the self-paced online classroom, receive an overview of available wrap around services, and be introduced to the plethora of opportunities available to students attending HBCUs, such as:

  • HBCU-specific scholarships
  • Guaranteed graduate school pathways
  • Research and internships opportunities
  • Post-degree employment opportunities through HBCU private sector and government partnerships
  • How to identify schools offering the best support for each student’s needs, e.g., childcare, part-time employment, k – 12 schools, dietary, and mental health support

How to Register

Interested students must contact Student Services at their campus and registration may be made by their counselor or campus support personnel. After registration is finalized, students will receive the Zoom Meeting registration information, login credentials to the online classroom, and a copy of “HBCU Scholarships…and more*” from Student Services. 

Registration is only open to California Community College students and must be submitted by an authorized CCC representative.

To register, someone from Student Services may submit this form or contact The HBCU Academy:

Ph: (470) 260-2470
Email: register@hbcu-academy.com

 

 

Heritage Empowered
P.O. Box 13336
Sacramento, CA 95813

Phone: (916) 616-5005 
Email: info@heritageempowered.com

The first virtual session will be held on:

Saturday, August 17, 2024
10:00 am – 1:00 pm

HBCU Academy Registration

 

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