The Home Depot recently unveiled the 2022 incarnation of its Retool Your School initiative, a program that provides “improvement grants that allow HBCUs to make sustainable improvements to their campuses.”
The home improvement retail giant is committed to providing $1 million in grants, which will be split between 30 HBCUs. To determine which institutions will get a grant, The Home Depot is having the public vote on the matter.
Within the Retool Your School campaign, there are 3 “clusters” comprised of 15-22 historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs)—putting the number of participating schools at 59. The top 10 schools within each group will be awarded campus improvement grants ranging from $20K to $75K.
Time for a campus glow up? Help your favorite HBCU on their way to a campus improvement grant worth $20K-$75K by voting nonstop through March 27th. Go to the link in our bio to vote now. pic.twitter.com/ZMCGAlKXpK
— Retool Your School (@HomeDepotRetool) March 12, 2022
The contest will run until Mar. 27. Participants can cast votes on the Retool Your School website or Twitter via hashtags. Some of the HBCUs with the most votes across all clusters include Texas College, Fisk University, Alabama A&M University, Tougaloo College, and Coahoma Community College — though it’s not too late for voters to shift the playing field.
Other HBCUs in the contest include big-name institutions, such as Jackson State and Howard, and lesser-known colleges like Huston-Tillotson University and Wiley College. Additional noteworthy schools include Florida Memorial University, Delaware State, the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, and Prairie View A&M.
Hey Panthers! Retool your school contest has started! Vote for PVAMU now until March 27th! #PVAMU https://t.co/bR3VK3HDwW pic.twitter.com/E8B7svBBUz
— Prairie View A&M (@PVAMU) March 15, 2022
“The Home Depot strives to give back to our nation’s historically Black colleges and universities what they have so generously given to their communities: a strong foundation, renewed purpose, and distinctive character,” the program’s website reads.
The Retool Your School program was founded back in 2009, and The Home Depot has awarded $4.2 million through 152 grants so far. The 2022 grants will be awarded on or about Apr. 25. and a Winners Ceremony will occur the next day.