Published On: 04.21.23 | 

By: Alabama News Center Staff

Innovation Power Hours engages Alabama HBCU students, supports development of local tech talent

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Students at Tuskegee University take part in an Innovation Power Hours event. (contributed)

Innovate Alabama and The Alabama Collective have joined forces to launch Innovation Power Hours, an initiative to provide students and faculty in Alabama access to digital skills learning labs.

The initiative is part of the Innovate Alabama HBCU Innovation Experience, which focuses on recruiting and retaining Black talent at the state’s historically Black colleges and universities. The program already has engaged 85 students and faculty at Tuskegee University, with sessions upcoming at Miles College, Stillman College and Talladega College.

Innovation Power Hours provides hands-on digital learning labs to engage students and faculty with emerging technology. It will help identify internship opportunities, explore entrepreneurial paths and obtain industry-level certifications for employment. Innovate Alabama and the Alabama Collective have developed six tech and innovation programs within the HBCU Innovation Experience initiative to elevate minority talent and entrepreneurs, and to spur excitement around information technology, computer science and digital skills development.

“As an HBCU graduate with a STEM education background, I understand the great impact this program can have on empowering collegiate talent to pursue careers in tech and innovation,” said Innovate Alabama CEO Cynthia Crutchfield. “We have taken a multiphase approach to reaching HBCU students and educators by collaborating with community stakeholders, such as The Alabama Collective, Ed Farm and Bronze Valley, in an effort to better invest in Black talent and encourage them to grow roots here in Alabama.”

Tuskegee students at the recent Innovation Power Hours event. (contributed)

Ed Farm cultivates change and promotes innovation in education with programs aimed at increasing educational equity, improving learning outcomes through technology and preparing the workforce of the future. Bronze Valley is a nonprofit, early-stage venture investment platform that supports high growth, innovation and technology-enabled companies created by diverse, underrepresented founders. It is certified as a Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI). Both organizations are based in Birmingham. Alabama Power and the Alabama Power Foundation are among supporters.

“HBCUs are natural hubs for innovation and entrepreneurship,” said Charisse Stokes, executive director of The Alabama Collective. “As we seek to narrow the gap of open tech jobs in Alabama, we recognize how integral HBCUs are in solving this challenge for our state.”

The HBCU Innovation Experience began in March with a Tech Brunch hosted by Innovate Alabama. The event brought HBCU students and faculty together with community leaders from across Alabama to learn about the initiative’s purpose, goals and upcoming programs for 2023. Innovation Power Hours are the next step.

“We are a student-centered institution that prides itself on bringing our students the best programs and opportunities, such as the Innovation Experience,” said Miles College President Bobbie Knight. “This event gives our students access to professionals excited to share knowledge that prepares students for their futures and engages them directly with tools, software and platforms created for them.”

Students at Tuskegee take part in the recent Innovation Power Hours event. More Power Hours are taking place at Alabama A&M University, Miles College and Talladega College. (contributed)

In addition to Innovation Power Hours, Alabama HBCU Engagement Experience programs include:

  • Intern Program – which gives select students the opportunity to work at a local coding club during the academic semester.
  • Tech Pathways – eight-week courses that provide instruction on coding, augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR) and SWIFT, Apple’s programming language for building iOS applications.
  • Entrepreneurship Training – four-week venture-creation workshops to help entrepreneurially minded students.
  • SWIFT Courses – college-level classes that provide students with college credit and certificates for courses focused on app development.
  • HBCU App Design Competition – a collaborative competition that gives students a platform to showcase their talents to key stakeholders, scheduled for fall 2023.

Innovate Alabama is the state’s first public-private partnership focused on entrepreneurship, technology and innovation. It was established to implement initiatives and recommendations set forth by the Alabama Innovation Commission, including smart policy solutions for creating a more resilient, inclusive and robust economy for the 21st century. Innovate Alabama has an 11-member board of directors, appointed by Gov. Kay Ivey, that collaborates across sectors to help facilitate an environment where innovation and entrepreneurship thrive.

The mission of The Alabama Collective is to expand and enhance emerging tech, innovation and entrepreneurial programs, said Stokes. By fostering growth and diversity across the state’s tech and entrepreneurial landscape, The Alabama Collective is creating a hub for minority tech talent and entrepreneurs while perpetuating existing infrastructure essential to economic prosperity.

To register for an Innovation Power Hours event, visit thealabamacollective.com.