Google has announced grants totaling $50 million to ten historically Black colleges and universities in support of efforts to build a more diverse tech workforce.

Through a grant to UNCF and the Thurgood Marshall College Fund, each HBCU will receive $5 million to fund scholarships, invest in technical infrastructure for in-class and remote learning, and develop curricula and career-support programs. The recipient institutions are Claflin University (Orangeburg, South Carolina), Clark Atlanta University (Atlanta, Georgia), Florida A&M University (Tallahassee, Florida), Howard University (Washington, D.C.), Morgan State University (Baltimore, Maryland), North Carolina A&T State University (Greensboro, North Carolina), Prairie View A&M University (Prairie View, Texas), Spelman College (Atlanta), Tuskegee University (Tuskegee, Alabama), and Xavier University of Louisiana (New Orleans, Louisiana).

The grants build on Google's Pathways to Tech initiative, a collaborative effort announced in February to build equity for HBCU computing education, help job seekers find tech roles, and ensure that Black employees have growth opportunities and feel included at work.

"Google's leadership gift of $50 million to UNCF and TMCF on behalf of our HBCUs represents a great opportunity to leverage the pioneering work we have been doing in partnership with Google to enhance the competitiveness and capacity of our institutions in computer science education and technology," said UNCF chief executive Michael L. Lomax, "and catapults our campuses to the forefront as higher education institutions preparing the next generation of Black leaders in technology."

"Initiatives like this will help to eliminate the barriers our students face as they pursue academic and professional careers in the STEM fields," said Howard University president Wayne A.I. Frederick. "We are elated that Google has taken this momentous step toward creating a more diverse tech industry workforce by investing in HBCU students."

(Photo credit: Claflin University)