Tracy “T-Mac” McGrady Launches Mobile HBCU Fundraising Campaign During Black College Tour

— HBCU Give 105 Initiative Focuses on Building Awareness and Increasing Enrollment at Historically Black Colleges & Universities —

Atlanta, GA — HBCU Direct, LLC (HD), a marketing collective specializing in HBCU relations, and former NBA superstar Tracy “T-Mac” McGrady announced the launch of the HBCU Give 105 fundraising initiative with a mission to build awareness of HBCUs and increase overall enrollment. McGrady’s donation of $105,000.00 helped fund the proprietary software, developed by Give.mobi, required for donations to all HBCU’s collectively or individual institutions. The goal of the program is to raise $105 million or $1 million per institution. The announcement was made during the first Tour stop of the Aspire Hoops-N-Hip Hop® Tour at Alabama State University in Montgomery, AL. Donations can be made at www.hbcugive105.org.

“The partnership provides a huge opportunity to use our voices to support the efforts of the nation’s 105 HBCUs to build awareness and attract talent,” said seven-time NBA All-Star Tracy McGrady. “HBCUs are a cornerstone of our community, having graduated some of the most notable African Americans across the spectrum including medicine, technology, the arts, sports and beyond. With more African Americans entering college today than ever before, it is imperative that we do all that we can to support HBCUs in every way as they continue to provide a high quality education.”

“This partnership perfectly aligns with our mission of servicing and creating positive awareness of HBCUs,” added Rod Chappell, CEO and Executive Director of HBCU Direct. “Collectively, HBCUs need more support in marketing and awareness to increase revenues through enrollment and fundraising. The statistics regarding increased college enrollment for African American students are encouraging, and we have to do all that we can to make sure that HBCUs are strong benefactors of this increase.” The U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) recently reported that among 2014 U.S. high school graduates, 70.9 percent of African American graduating high school seniors had enrolled in college by October, up from 59.3 percent college enrollment rate in 2013.

Through this partnership, the five-year-old HBCU Direct follows its mission of supporting the nation’s 100+ HBCUs through with partnerships to increase revenues and/or reduce expenses. For more information about HBCU Direct, visit www.hbcudirect.com.

 

ABOUT TRACY MCGRADY
Tracy “T-MAC” McGrady is an American professional basketball player who last played for the San Antonio Spurs of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the Quindao Eagles (China). He is a seven-time NBA All-Star, seven-time All-NBA selection and a two-time NBA scoring champion (2003-2004). Tracy is also managing partner with Rodney Woods in Diversity In Promotions and Playbook Investors Network (PIN), members of the Multicultural Communications (MULTICOM) network.

 

ABOUT HBCU DIRECT (HD)
Founded in 2010, HBCU Direct is a private, Atlanta, GA-based company focused on connecting Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) with corporate and government business opportunities. The company uses aggregation of HBCUs to drive additional revenues or reduced costs. The company has a specialized niche in driving workforce development and job creation for HBCU students and alumni. HBCU Direct is a member of the Multicultural Communications (MULTICOM) network.

 

ABOUT THE ASPIRE HOOPS-N-HIP HOP® (AHHH)
The AHHH is a multi-campus Tour focused on showcasing talent on HBCU campuses including music, poetry, comedy, basketball and fashion. The platform also identifies student talent seeking careers in S.T.E.M. and other fields. The Tour features a social media community that allows for member “expression” with other like-minded individuals. Street Execs and rapper 2Chainz’ T.R.U. University label are music partners. The Hoops-N-Hip Hop® Touring programs launched on HBCU campuses and will extend to other U.S. communities, China, Japan, Germany, Brazil and Africa.

 

ABOUT ASPIRE
ASPiRE is a television network that celebrates the groundbreaking achievements of African-Americans. ASPiRE offers a diverse programming mix of movies, series and specials featuring music, comedy, drama, faith/inspiration, theater/performing arts, lifestyle and news/information. The network was launched June 27, 2012 by Magic Johnson Enterprises, which acts as a catalyst for driving unparalleled business results for its partners and fosters community/economic empowerment by making available high-quality entertainment, products and services that answer the demands of ethnically diverse urban communities. ASPiRE is available in about 20 million homes in 22 of the top 25 African-American markets including New York City, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Chicago and Washington, D.C. For more information, visit www.aspire.tv, facebook.com/aspireTV and on Twitter @tvASPiRE.

 

ABOUT GIVE.MOBI
Give.mobi, LLC exclusive provides the mobile platform technology for use in the GiveNetwork Initiative. They have developed and currently provide a Mobile Web App platform to uniquely engage donors via mobile Smartphones/Tablets. Our platform provides both the software for donors to contribute, as well as robust reporting and donor engagement features for participants in the GiveNetwork Initiative. The give.mobi mobile platform is designed to be accessible from any web-enabled mobile device. For the benefit of the GiveNetwork Initiative, the coupling of QR access technology with the www.give.mobi platform, provides consumers with the utmost in convenience.

 

PRESS CONTACT:
HBCU Direct, LLC
Nichole Taylor – Taylor Communications Group
taylor@taylorcommunicationsgroup.com