Hot on the heels of a mobile sports betting market access partnership launch in Virginia, FanDuel and the Washington Football Team have rolled-out a $1m contribution to the United Negro College Fund.
The Emergency Student Aid Fund will be dedicated to supporting current students enrolled in Virginia’s five Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and will provide aid grants for those seeking emergency assistance for technology, housing, food security, tuition, and other education-related expenses.
“The United Negro College Fund is pleased to see FanDuel and the Washington Football Team support Virginia’s HBCU students throughout the state, and this investment cannot come at a more critical time as students confront harsh realities resulting from a disrupted and disjointed academic year,” said Dr Michael Lomax, president and CEO of UNCF.
To celebrate Black History Month and support students at Virginia’s five HBCUs, FanDuel and Washington Football Team provide the contribution as an extension of the pair’s legal sports betting partnership in the state.
UNCF says that it will be working with the HBCU institutions to ensure students demonstrating need have access to the critical aid.
“For decades, UNCF and the HBCUs they support have been driving Black socio-economic elevation in unparalleled fashion and I’m proud that our team and FanDuel are able to support them at an important moment in history,” stated Jason Wright, Washington Football Team president.
“Dr Lomax and the Virginia HBCU presidents are the type of leaders we can all trust to achieve remarkable feats with the resources they are given.”
The Emergency Student Aid Fund is expected to begin supporting Virginia HBCU students as expeditiously as possible, FanDuel advised. Aid will be disbursed to students from their attending institution.
“Supporting these institutions and these hard-working students, amidst enormous challenges related to COVID, is the right thing to do,” said Matt King, CEO of FanDuel Group.
“As we celebrate Black History Month and recognize the critical role HBCUs play in developing the next generation of leaders in business, academia, and civic participation, our hope is that this investment in students keeps them on the path to realize their academic and personal goals while enrolled at these universities.”
