The 10-week internship program, which first launched in Los Angeles, is now expanding to Chicago and San Francisco for the Summer 2021 cohort
SAN FRANCISCO, CA – HBCUvc, a nonprofit fellowship program providing Black, Indigenous, and Latinx students with training and mentorship in venture capital, today announced that top venture capital firms in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Chicago will be participating in HBCUvc’s 2021 summer internship program. The 10-week program, which includes an 8-week paid internship with participating firms, aims to bring more diversity to the venture capital industry by nurturing emerging talent who self-identify as Black, Latinx, Native American, women, first-generation college students, veterans, persons with disabilities, LGBTQIA, and/or other historically overlooked groups.
“Landing a role or internship in venture capital is traditionally difficult. There are limited opportunities in the industry and often these opportunities stay within closed networks,” said Hadiyah Mujhid, founder of HBCUvc. “We are fortunate to partner with the Annenberg Foundation and PledgeLA team to create a new framework for inclusion in venture capital. Together with our host firms, this expansion builds a foundation for a more inclusive and equitable innovation economy across the United States.”
The gender and racial makeup of the VC landscape today remains largely male and white, according to data compiled by Harvard Business School. Only 8% of the investors are women, about 2% of VC investors are Latinx, and fewer than 1% are Black.
Now with the commitment of more than 30 firms including Crosscut, Slauson & Co., and Obvious Ventures, HBCUvc is furthering its mission of developing the next generation of check-writers and decision-makers in venture capital to increase opportunities for Black, Indigenous, and Latinx entrepreneurs. In addition to opportunities at venture capital firms, HBCUvc provides support and resources so interns can grow their networks and build relationships within the venture capital community.
HBCUvc serves as the operating and training partner and leads recruitment, selection, and training of the interns who participate in the 10-week long program. Selected interns participate in a 2-week immersive training at the start of the internship. After the training is completed, interns work with a host firm for the remaining eight weeks. They also participate with their cohort members in events organized by HBCUvc to continue their development.
In partnership with Annenberg Foundation and PledgeLA, HBCUvc launched the first VC internship program in Los Angeles in 2019 in response to a lack of representation in the local ecosystem. Now in its third year, the city-based program continues to operate in partnership with the aforementioned organizations and the Mayor’s Office of LA.
“While PledgeLA’s internship is focused locally on Los Angeles, we always hoped that other ecosystems would adopt similar models and make them their own,” said Cinny Kennard, Executive Director of the Annenberg Foundation. “What makes our partnership with HBCUvc so exciting is the clear benefit to participants – we’re already seeing our LA alumni access great opportunities in venture capital and tech.”’
This year, HBCUvc is expanding the VC summer program by joining forces with 50 South Capital in Chicago and Concrete Rose Community Foundation in San Francisco—opening the door for more emerging leaders from underrepresented groups to get involved in the venture capital ecosystem.
Applications for the VC internship program are now open and close March 19th. Full-time undergraduate students with at least 30 credit hours completed, full-time graduate students, those accepted into a full-time graduate program that starts Fall 2021, or recent university graduates with a commencement date of 2018 or later may apply.
ABOUT HBCUVC
HBCUvc is a fiscally sponsored project of Social Good Fund (EIN: 46-1323531), a 501c3 nonprofit organization. Its mission is to direct how capital is formed and distributed to increase opportunities for Black and Latinx innovators. HBCUvc accomplishes this by developing, connecting, and mobilizing the next generation of venture capital leaders in communities where entrepreneurs face barriers in accessing capital, and by empowering institutions to employ race-conscious investing practices to foster the development of inclusive innovation economies.
For more information, visit HBCU.vc.
ABOUT THE ANNENBERG FOUNDATION
The Annenberg Foundation is a family foundation focused on addressing the critical issues of our time through innovation, community, compassion, and communications for more than 30 years. Since 1989, it has funded programs in education and youth development; civic and community life; equity and social justice; health and human services; animal services and the environment; and arts, culture and humanities. To learn more about the Annenberg Foundation and its various initiatives, click here.
ABOUT PLEDGELA
PledgeLA is a first-of-its-kind partnership to promote civic engagement, diversity, and inclusion across LA’s booming and dynamic tech sector created in partnership with Mayor Eric Garcetti, the Annenberg Foundation, and over 220 Los Angeles venture capital (VCs) and tech leaders. PledgeLA members make a commitment to track their community engagement and diversity data each year and make that data publicly available, as well as expand their engagement with local nonprofits that support diverse talent and reflect the civic spirit of Los Angeles.
