A group of students at Spelman College are receiving a rare opportunity to start an investment journey through a new social impact initiative. The financial wellness initiative will offer a cohort of students a finance and investing course plus a seeded Stackwell account to begin building wealth during their college career.
The pilot program results from a new partnership between investment platform Stackwell and social impact organization Fintech In Action and part of a broader strategic partnership to focus on Black college students and student-athletes.
Dr. Venette Coleman, director of Institutional Effectiveness at Spelman, says the new initiative aligns with the school’s mission of helping students at an historically Black college for women gain a competitive advantage as they pursue lifelong learning and acquire leadership skills.
“I just want people to understand that this is part of Spelman's ongoing mission to prepare Black women to be successful in the future," says Coleman. “Our motto is a choice to change the world, whether that world is your house, your job, or the world. All the tools that you can add to your tool belt help you in effecting that change.”
Coleman says that the initiative began with a partnership with Braven, a national nonprofit organization that helps college students develop a path to economic mobility. The partnership offers all Spelman sophomores a two-part career-accelerating experience and additional support to land employment after graduating or assisting students with applying to graduate school through a three-credit course. At the end of the course, students complete a capstone project by analyzing a real-life problem from a partner organization and solving it.
The inaugural cohort
The first cohort of students will comprise 16 sophomore students who won the Braven Accelerator Capstone Challenge, a program funded by Fintech In Action coalition members Zogo Finance and MEMX. Each winner will receive their own seeded Stackwell account with $250 to begin their three-year investment journey.
