Business and Finance
Nike Inc.’s Black Community Commitment scholarship recipients they wonder about black pioneers
Dr. D’Wayne Edwards, Omi Bell and Tanya Van Court are a few of the entrepreneurs recognized through Nike Inc.’s Black Community Commitment program. as changemakers due to their work and impact on the Black community.
The Black Community Commitment program began in June 2020 after the murder of George Floyd. At the time, Nike, Converse, Jordan Brand and Michael Jordan committed a combined $140 million over 10 years to speculate in and support organizations focused on economic empowerment, education and social justice to deal with racial inequality amongst Black Americans.
These lively individuals draw inspiration from the work of black pioneers who made history and paved the way in which for them to do the work for which they are recognized today.
On Thursday, theGrio met with Edwards, Bell and Van Court on the “Path to Progress” event, a milestone for BCC in its fourth 12 months in Washington
Edwards is a footwear designer with over 30 years of experience and president of Pensole Lewis College of Business & Design, the one HBCU in Michigan and the one HBCU with a footwear design program. He can be the founding father of JEMS, the primary black-owned athletic shoe factory within the US
The inspiration to launch the Edwards sports shoe factory was Jan Ernst Matzeliger, the inventor of the shoe durability machine.
“Thanks to his invention 141 years ago, John Ernst Matzeliger increased the production of shoes in the United States from 50 pairs a day to 700 pairs a day,” Edwards reveals. “The Black man has played a pivotal role in advancing our history within the footwear industry, but so many individuals don’t even know this man even existed. Jan is one among countless Black people on this industry who’ve been forgotten.
Van Court is the founder and CEO of Goalsetter, a financial app and learning platform that makes financial education fun and interesting for each member of the family. Recognizes entrepreneur and philanthropist Robert F. Smith.
“Robert F. Smith is obviously the pinnacle example of what this (building wealth) looks like and what it means for the Black community,” Van Court says. “But I don’t admire him just because he has accumulated wealth. I admire him because he uses his wealth to truly impact our community in a significant and impactful way.”
Bell is the CEO and founding father of Black Girl Ventures. The nonprofit organization works to offer access to capital for Black and brown women business founders. For Bell, an important thing is the work of those that belonged to the pension parties through the great migration of the twentieth century.
“Black people migrated to Harlem and white landowners raised the rent,” Bell explains. “You had people like Fats Waller, Langston Hughes, Duke (Ellington) helping people organize these events; this is how they gained access to capital and then (paid) rent to live in their homes.”
Bell continues, “Fast forward and today we feel like we are fulfilling the wildest dreams of our ancestors.”
Click Here to learn more about Nike Inc.’s Black Community Commitment program. and beneficiaries of subsidies for 2024.