ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--AltFinance, a program created to increase diverse representation across the alternative investment industry, announced today that 44 new historically Black college and university (HBCU) students have been accepted into the second AltFinance Fellowship class, which kicked off in mid-August. The second cohort of fellows includes students from the program’s founding partner schools – Howard University, Clark Atlanta University, Morehouse College, and Spelman College—as well as four new HBCUs—Florida A&M University, Hampton University, Morgan State University, and North Carolina A&T University. Building upon its first Fellowship class, AltFinance now has 75 students participating in the program, which provides them exposure to careers and opportunities in alternative investments.
“We are proud and excited that AltFinance is gaining momentum among all of its key stakeholders—students, HBCU faculty and administrations, other academic institutions, and the alternatives industry itself,” said Marcus Shaw, Chief Executive Officer of AltFinance. “More than doubling the size of our Fellowship program and adding representation from additional HBCUs are two key metrics in realizing our goal of creating sustainable impact at scale in the alternative asset industry for HBCU students.”
AltFinance was established in June 2021 by leading alternative investment firms collectively committing to contribute $90 million over 10 years to address the challenges in developing a diverse talent pipeline across the alternative investment industry by helping HBCU students interested in finance gain exposure, mentorship, and hands-on experience to jumpstart a long-term career in the sector. AltFinance has built a successful fellowship program in partnership with nonprofit Management Leadership for Tomorrow (MLT) and is creating the AltFinance Institute, an innovative mix of virtual co-curricular finance content in partnership with The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
More than 77% of the students from AltFinance’s first Fellowship class recently completed highly-competitive summer analyst programs in the alternative asset management and banking industry. With the support of AltFinance’s original programming, the students were able to maximize their candidacy for these positions, which are a launching point to a career in finance.
About AltFinance
AltFinance: Investing in Black Futures is a 10-year, $90 million initiative established by Apollo Global Management, Inc., Ares Management Corporation and Oaktree Capital Management, L.P. to help diversify the financial services industry. The AltFinance initiative will be administered by ALT Finance Corporation, a non-profit organization established by the three founding firms. The initiative is intended to provide clear pathways for students at partnering Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) into careers in the alternative investment industry. The program provides access to education, training, mentorship, scholarship funding, internships and full-time career opportunities. The fellowship program will be managed in partnership with Management Leadership for Tomorrow (MLT). The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania will create a virtual institute.
