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Winning with HBCUs: Supporting the Future of Diverse Talent

Winning with HBCUs: Supporting the Future of Diverse Talent

For nearly 200 years, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), have led the way to higher education for Black students. Initiated at a time when Black students were prohibited from attending most colleges and universities in America, HBCUs continue to be vibrant institutions, advancing educational opportunities for all students, regardless of race. While HBCUs make up just 3% of U.S. colleges and universities, they produce almost 25% of Black graduates in the field of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), a field otherwise dominated by non-diverse workers. By empowering the universities that support Black students, companies across the US will be better positioned to minify this gap in diverse talent, helping to create the more equitable and inclusive workforces of the future.

Primary Talent Partners (PTP) is a staffing and recruiting agency focused on helping their partners increase minority representation in their IT and STEM workforces, placing more than 3x the national average of Black STEM talent into contingent workforce programs with the Fortune 500(R). They’re able to achieve such great success due to addressing this talent gap at its source, focusing on helping reduce attrition rates among Black students. Through PTP’s “diversIT Scholars” program, they’re able to create more Black STEM candidates in the workforce by ensuring students finish a STEM course of study and get access to meaningful internships, executive mentorship, financial stipends, and more. By actively supporting Historically Black Colleges and Universities as a talent supplier, PTP is able to create real generational change to help overcome the systemic underrepresentation of Black talent while increasing access to high-quality, diverse candidates.

Join PTP Executive Partner Chad Douglas as he sits down with our host, Jim Lucier, to discuss:

  • The current state of Black STEM talent in the U.S. workforce
  • Why workforce diversity should matter to any organization
  • How to build a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive workforce
  • The continuing role of HBCUs and how you can support them
  • Advice for CEOs and leaders in HR, Talent Acquisition, and Procurement 

DEI Live™ with Chad Douglas

About Chad Douglas

Chad is the founder and Executive Partner for Primary Talent Partners (PTP). A graduate of the University of South Carolina-Lancaster, Chad is a results-oriented business executive with over 25 years of experience leading talent acquisition teams. He is continually focused on delivering innovative solutions for the most challenging talent acquisition issues facing Fortune 1000 executives. Chad was named a 2022 DEI Influencer by Staffing Industry Analysts.

Learn more about PTP here.