The organizers of the sporting event World Games 2022 and Microsoft recently announced their new program aimed at getting students from Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and Historically Black Community Colleges (HBCCs) noticed and increased their interest in the tech field.
Known as “The World Games 2022 HBCU Experience presented by Microsoft,” the initiative will help HBCU and HBCC students from Alabama- the location where the 2022 World Games are being held- find their way throughout the tech world and inspire collaborations.
The students will be offered multiple online events where they’ll learn to better their tech and business skills as well as network. They’ll also be given the opportunity to participate in a Minecraft Challenge to work on game development.
“From the start, we’ve wanted The World Games 2022 to be not only a once-in-a-life sports experience, but also a tremendous opportunity to bring lasting, positive changes to Birmingham and to the entire state of Alabama,” said Chairman of the Board for the World Games 2022, Jonathan Porter, in a statement on the event’s website.
Through the program, the schools themselves will also be supported. In addition to a scholarship fund for both the HBCUs and HBCCs, the schools will receive exposure at the World Games Plaza with an HBCU Experience.
Every four years since its creation in 1981, the World Games are held for the athletes of sports that aren’t included in the Olympic Games to compete. This year, the World Games will be held in Birmingham from July 7 to July 17. According to a statement by the organizers on the World Games 2022 website, the event will host 3,600 participants from over 100 countries as well as HBCU and HBCC students.
“Our partnership with The World Games 2022 enables Microsoft to help close opportunity gaps and deepen engagement with HBCUs and HBCCs,” said Corporative Vice President for Microsoft and Alabama A&M University graduate, Michael Ford, in a press release.
While tech companies have pledged to be inclusive, technology still isn’t a diverse field. In their 2021 Diversity Annual Report, Google reported that Black people make up only 4.4% of their workforce as there’s only an increase of only 0.7% from 2020. Meanwhile, 50.4% of the workforce is made up of white people.
When they received an opportunity in the tech world, Black tech workers reported that they had difficulty prospering. In a report by management firm Russell Reynolds Associates, out of 400 tech companies in the U.S, 47% of Black tech workers said that they often had to move to different companies to build on their career.
“Our partnership with Microsoft provides an excellent platform to work alongside Alabama’s HBCUs and HBCCs and ensure a diversified technology workforce that is well-prepared to lead our state and our world toward the future,” said Porter in the press release.
