Washington, DC, July 30, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Building on the immense momentum of its annual UNITE Summit, UNCF’s Institute for Capacity Building (ICB) officially opened the application process for the third cohort of Project ACCLAIM (Accelerating Learning in Asset Investment Management).
Alongside the cohort application launch, UNCF unveiled a major structural expansion to the initiative: a newly established seed-grant program funded by visionary philanthropists Phill and Elizabeth Gross and Adage Capital Management, providing up to $350,000 over two years in operational funding for up to six additional historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) over the next three years who follow the ACCLAIM path to a for-credit student managed investment fund of their own.
Project ACCLAIM accelerates UNCF’s mission to diversify the asset management industry by equipping a growing network of HBCU students with the advanced financial acumen, industry mentorship and real-world capital management experience required to thrive in top-tier financial sectors.
Launched in fall 2025 at Morehouse College and Howard University through an initial $10 million foundational gift from Adage Capital Management and Elizabeth and Phill Gross, the initiative expanded to a second cohort in February 2026, adding Morgan State University and Florida A&M University (FAMU). Following that expansion, Phill and Elizabeth Gross and Adage Capital Management committed an additional gift providing $4 million to each of those institutions for their student-managed investment funds, along with $350,000 over two years for operational support.
The launch of the third cohort application window, unveiled before hundreds of higher education leaders, policymakers, and industry partners at the UNITE Summit, signals a profound shift toward permanent, scalable institutional wealth-building across the HBCU landscape. Selected partner institutions joining this upcoming third cohort will receive these same structural benefits, anchoring each new school with a $4 million student-managed investment fund and $350,000 in dedicated operational support over two years.
A New Pathway to Long-Term Sustainability: The Project ACCLAIM Seed Grant
The newly announced grant program lowers the barrier to entry for institutions eager to replicate Project ACCLAIM’s early triumphs. Providing up to $350,000 over a two-year period, this seed funding allows up to six selected schools over the next three years to adopt the official UNCF curriculum model, establish rigorous for credit student managed investment funds, and tap directly into UNCF’s centralized infrastructure and professional support network.
The grant is strategically designed to incentivize long-term financial self-reliance by backing schools that choose one of two foundational paths:
- Fundraising: Providing seed capital to institutions actively raising new, standalone capital specifically to sustain a local Project ACCLAIM for credit student managed investment fund.
- Endowment Carve-Outs: Delivering resources to schools that strategically carve out a portion of their existing internal endowment assets to back a for-credit managed investment fund.
This structural innovation ensures that even more institutions can establish a sustainable classroom environment where academic theory meets real-world asset management responsibilities, ultimately aligning local talent with UNCF’s broader shared pooled endowment strategies.
“The UNITE Summit brings together the best minds in higher education and philanthropy to solve social and economic challenges, and Project ACCLAIM sits at the very heart of that mission,” said Dr. Michael L. Lomax, president and CEO, UNCF.
“Thanks to the continued, visionary generosity of Phill and Elizabeth Gross and Adage Capital Management, this expansion allows us to scale this innovative program. Students are not simply studying the market from afar, they are actively managing capital, building generational acumen and directly closing the racial wealth gap.”
The multi-year initiative addresses the historical underrepresentation of minority professionals in the financial services workforce and taps into the talented student base at HBCUs for the benefit of the investments business. By cultivating a collaborative community of practice among HBCU business faculty and providing students with hands-on portfolio analysis experience, Project ACCLAIM bridges the gap between academic theory and institutional market realities.
“Our commitment to Project ACCLAIM stems from firsthand witness to the extraordinary capability and drive within the HBCU community,” said Phill Gross, co-founder and managing director of Adage Capital Management.
“By expanding to a third cohort and launching this new grant program, the Partners of Adage Capital Management and my family are deepening our partnership with UNCF to provide more undergraduates with real-world portfolio experience. Whether schools apply to join the centralized cohort or utilize our new grant structure to mobilize their own endowments, these students who participate will graduate ready to drive sophisticated investment strategies, build personal and community wealth and ultimately pay it forward to sustain their alma maters,” Gross said.
“Announcing the opening of this application cycle and the new grant framework at UNITE allows us to engage directly with campus leaders who are ready to bring this institutional asset to their students,” said Dr. Shawn Thomas, director of investment leadership programs and lead for Project ACCLAIM.
“With up to $350,000 in seed funding over two years, we are providing the vital runway for up to six additional institutions over the next three years to adopt the official UNCF recipe for applied investment management,” Thomas noted. “This grant ensures that schools don’t have to build from scratch; they can immediately plug into UNCF’s centralized infrastructure, curriculum models and professional network to give their students a definitive competitive edge in the financial sector.”
By embedding live portfolio risk management, credit-bearing coursework and rigorous industry accountability directly into the undergraduate experience, Project ACCLAIM ensures that HBCU graduates enter the financial services workforce as seasoned practitioners with a proven, verifiable asset management track record. The application window is now officially open to eligible institutions.
HBCU leadership can receive detailed submission criteria, timeline requirements and application materials for both the third cohort and the new grant program by contacting Dr. Shawn Thomas, director, UNCF’s Investments Leadership Programs at UNCF’s Institute for Capacity Building at [email protected].
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About UNCF
UNCF is one of the nation’s largest and most effective supporters of higher education and serves as a leading advocate for college-bound students. Since its founding in 1944, UNCF has raised more than $6 billion to support students’ access to higher education, provide scholarships and strengthen historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs). Each year, UNCF awards more than 11,000 scholarships totaling more than $62 million. The scholarships support students attending more than 600 U.S.-based colleges and universities including 36 UNCF-member HBCUs. Through its efforts, UNCF has helped generations of students to get to and through college. We believe a college education plays a vital role in fortifying the pipeline of leaders and professionals who contribute to the advancement of our society. Our logo features the UNCF torch of leadership in education and our widely recognized trademark is, “A mind is a terrible thing to waste.”® Learn more at UNCF.org or, for continuous updates and news, follow UNCF on Instagram.
- Phill Gross
- Project ACCLAIM