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Michael B. Jordan, Serena Williams Giving Founders From HBCUs a Chance at $1 Million

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The Invesco QQQ Legacy Classic is all about basketball and showcasing the talents of athletes at several Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). This year, the game will get national exposure. On Dec. 18, TNT will air the b-ball battles between Hampton University versus North Carolina Central University and Howard University versus North Carolina A&T University.

Also, the game is getting a boost of philanthropic star appeal from Serena Williams and Michael B. Jordan.

The Invesco QQQ Legacy Classic has teamed up with MaC Venture Capital and the tennis legend’s investment firm Serena Ventures to establish a startup pitch competition for HBCU founders.

“At MaC we like to say that talent is ubiquitous but access to opportunity is not,” MaC Venture Capital General Partner Michael Palank said in an official statement shared with AfroTech. “Two of our partners are HBCU alumni and we could not be more excited to uncover and support the amazing entrepreneurial talent we know is thriving at these universities.”

The participants can submit investor decks and business proposals from now until Nov. 18 for the chance to be awarded up to $1 million from Serena Ventures and MaC Venture Capitol in structured, safe investments. Williams, joined by another celeb investor, actor Jordan (Creed), who will be on hand during the halftime of the basketball tournament’s finals to award the winning founders.

“HBCUs are an integral part of our educational ecosystem and have long been centers of entrepreneurial excellence,” Serena Ventures General Partner Alison Stillman said in a written statement. “We are thrilled to be partnering with Michael B. Jordan and MaC ventures on highlighting the brilliant student and alumni founders.”

The winning founders of the Startup Pitch Competition will be advised by executives from MaC Ventures, Serena Ventures, Invesco, Thirty-Five Ventures, Harlem Capital Partners, and Cake Ventures after the competition.

The Invesco QQQ Legacy Classic will take place at the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ. Tickets can be purchased online via Prucenter, Ticketmaster, and at Prudential Center’s Box Office. Partial proceeds will go toward organizations that make it their mission to advance HBCUs and the Newark community.





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