Home Depot Awards 30 HBCUs Grant To 'Retool Your School'

As Blavity previously reported, the home improvement retail giant recently ushered in the 2022 installment of its Retool Your School program.

Through the million-dollar initiative, the Home Depot invited the public to vote on which HBCUs should receive “improvement grants that allow HBCUs to make sustainable improvements to their campuses.”

There were three different “clusters” of HBCUs, and each cluster consisted of 15-22 institutions. However, only 10 universities from each cluster could receive the grants, which ranged from $20K to $75K.

Now, the results are in.

Hats off to all the winners of #RetoolYourSchool campus improvement grants last night 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼 We can’t wait to see your projects come to life soon. You and all HBCUs who participated have made 2022 so fantastic! pic.twitter.com/ywgky3PyG8

— Retool Your School (@HomeDepotRetool) April 27, 2022

The HBCUs that won in the first cluster includes Alabama A&M, Alabama State, Jackson State, Southern, Albany State, Prairie View A&M, Grambling State, Winston-Salem State, Florida A&M and Fayetteville State.

As for the second cluster, Coahoma Community College, Alcorn State, Tuskegee, Benedict College, South Carolina State, Mississippi Valley State, the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, Elizabeth City State, West Virginia State and Hampton came out on top.

Finally, the third cluster comprised Tougaloo College, Texas College, Fisk, Johnson C. Smith University, Lane College, Southwestern Christian College, Wilberforce, Saint Augustine University, Rust College and Edward Waters University.

It’s also worth noting that Alabama State won Campaign of the Year.

These institutions were honored in a hybrid ceremony earlier this week. Laz Alonso hosted the event and Terrence J was also present.

“HBCUs are never not needing resources. Every year, you have new students and a whole new set of challenges that parents have to now overcome to send their kids to this new school. They’re going to be away from home. The comforts of home may not be there,” Alonso said. “What Home Depot has done is provide those things that we might take for granted.”

“This is so exciting for a number of reasons,” Terrence J added of the ceremony. “I want to make sure I dedicate as much time to inspiring, influencing and helping as many HBCU students as I possibly can, so this program is great for that aspect. And then working with a company like Home Depot is great — I go in there all the time. I’m always in a Home Depot. It’s a great program.”

TONIGHT! Find out which HBCUs nailed 🛠 the 2022 @HomeDepotRetool program at the Winners’ Announcement Ceremony LIVE🎥 at 6pm EST on our Facebook.
Join host Laz Alonso, guest speaker Terrence J + DJ Stormy🎧 at the after party as we celebrate + uplift our HBCUs. #RetoolYourSchool pic.twitter.com/47MwtxUvIT

— HBCU Buzz (@HBCUBuzz) April 26, 2022

Shoutout to the 30 aforementioned HBCUs, as well as the Home Depot for providing this great opportunity!