Hampton, VA – Hampton University’s Scripps Howard School of Journalism and Communications today announced a $500,000 Challenge Grant from 21st Century Fox, the world’s leading portfolio of film and television brands. The funds, which are conditional on the school raising a matching amount of $500,000, will support activities inside the Scripps Howard School’s new Center for Innovation in Digital Media. Established through initial funding provided by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, the Center is designed to enable Hampton University students to learn about and explore new ways of gathering and distributing media content.
“The media industry has an insatiable need for innovation and ideas that leverage the power of digital technology,” said Brett Pulley, dean of the Scripps Howard School. “This generous grant not only recognizes the extraordinary potential that these students possess, it also challenges other media companies to step up and acknowledge that the future of the industry is dependent upon developing a broad and diverse workforce. This challenge grant will help us establish a program that will place our students among the great young minds now focused on creating new media platforms and pioneering the future of our industry.”
“This grant exemplifies 21st Century Fox’s continuing mission to cultivate and nurture the next generation of storytellers on all platforms,” said Julie Henderson, Executive Vice President and Chief Communications Officer of 21st Century Fox. “The invaluable work done by Hampton’s Center for Innovation in Digital Media underscores the need to empower young people with the necessary tools to realize their dreams within the creative industries, and we are immensely proud to be a part of that process.”
The Center’s mission is to foster diversity within digital media, providing the industry with broader ranks of innovative and competitive talent and aspiring entrepreneurs.
The grant will cover, among other initiatives, digital media projects by students, which include producing research, business plans, media products such as apps, and also assist in placing graduates in digital media jobs.
For more information or to inquire about contributing, please contact The Scripps Howard School, at 757-727-5405.
About the HU Scripps Howard School of Journalism and Communications
“Give light and the people will find their own way.” This is the motto of the Scripps Howard Foundation, and it has been the guiding inspiration of Hampton University’s Scripps Howard School of Journalism and Communications since its inception in 2002. At that time, the Foundation provided more than $10 million to build new facilities and turn Hampton’s former department of Mass Media Arts, which started in 1967, into a separate school within the university. The school prepares students for careers in media and provides a special environment that teaches the core principles of journalism and communications, while producing ethical and competitive leaders who pursue excellence in their field.
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Media Contact: Yuri R. Milligan, University Relations, 757.727.5253, yuri.milligan@hamptonu.edu
