Braven Solidifies Partnership Agreement at First Public HBCU with Delaware State University
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Posted By: Reginald Culpepper on October 02, 2023 Delaware State University (DSU) and Braven, a national nonprofit organization that is helping promising college students on a path to economic mobility, have signed a 5-year Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). This new partnership will serve 2,100-2,500 students over the first 5 years. “A lot of Delaware State University students are first-generation college students and might likely be the first in their families to work in a high-paced, knowledge economy type role,” said DSU President Tony Allen. “To understand what you want to do for a living, to really be your authentic self in those settings, you have to talk to people who’ve been there. That’s the secret sauce that Braven will help to bring.” The Braven experience begins with a 3-credit course (The Braven Leadership Accelerator), as part of the core curriculum for most undergraduate majors. Students, who Braven calls Fellows, complete weekly online modules on Braven’s online platform and then apply that content through weekly virtual Learning Labs in a cohort of 5-8 peers led by a volunteer professional, called a Leadership Coach. Fellows complete assignments to grow their leadership in five professional competencies: operating and managing, problem solving, working in teams, networking and communicating, and self-driven leading. Upon completion, Fellows receive additional opportunities to develop leadership and career-readiness skills, engage in an enduring professional network, and stay on track to securing strong internships and jobs. These optional post-course activities include engagements such as: 1) the Professional Mentor Program, which provides some students a 15-week 1:1 mentor in their desired field as they get closer to the time of the job search, 2) access to Braven’s bi-weekly jobs blast which shares internship and job opportunities, and 3) one-off professional development and networking events. In Spring 2024, about 100 DSU students are expected to take the course, joining a growing group of 7,400 Braven students nationwide. Already in partnership with Spelman College in Atlanta, Braven’s partnership with DSU will be its second site with an HBCU, though first with a public HBCU, demonstrating the potential for creating a systemic solution for the college-to-career pipeline. “We’re proud to be in partnership with DSU to help Hornets take flight into their careers which will allow them to put their hard earned degrees to work,” says Aimée Eubanks Davis, Braven’s Founder & CEO. “We couldn’t do this without the support of incredible champions like Capital One, Barclays, Morgan Stanley, and M&T Bank who have made it possible for us to start this new site in Delaware.” Nationwide, Braven is showing promising results. Braven Fellows have outpaced the national average for strong job attainment both before and amid the pandemic. Within six months of graduation, 61% of Braven’s 2022 graduates secured quality full-time jobs worthy of their bachelor’s degree, or enrolled in graduate school compared to 56% of all graduates and 47% of students from similar backgrounds. Furthermore, 68% of Braven 2022 college graduates have at least one internship during college compared with 48% of all college graduates and 41% of graduates of color. For more information about Braven, visit braven.org. ABOUT BRAVEN Founded in 2013, Braven empowers promising, underrepresented young people—first-generation college students, students from low-income backgrounds, and students of color—with the skills, confidence, experiences, and networks necessary to transition from college to strong first jobs. Braven is embedded within institutions of higher education and partners with employers to build cutting-edge career education into the undergraduate experience for low-income and first-generation college goers and provides students with a network of supporters and a sense of belonging. Braven Fellows are persisting in college and achieving exciting levels of internship and job attainment. For more information about Braven, visit braven.org. ABOUT DELAWARE STATE UNIVERSITY Delaware State University is the nation’s #3 public Historically Black College/University (US News & World Report) with a 132-year history of providing a high-quality, low-cost education for ALL. The University is the nation’s #1 provider of professional pilots of color and Delaware’s #1 provider of nurses, teachers, social workers, and accountants of color. Expanding its footprint throughout the state, the University recently completed the historic acquisition of Wesley College in downtown Dover. For more information, visit https://www.desu.edu/. If you enjoyed this article, Join HBCU CONNECT today for similar content and opportunities via email! |
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Reginald Culpepper
President, Fulfillment and Web Services, HBCUCONNECT Clark Atlanta University class of 1998 Member Since September 2000 |
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