Karl Mondon/Digital First Media/The Mercury News via Getty Images
- Apple announced Tuesday a $30 million commitment to advance racial equity in the US.
- There will be special focus on advancing educational and career opportunities for Hispanic people.
- This investment builds on Apple's $100 million commitment from January.
- See more stories on Insider's business page.
A day before Hispanic Heritage Month begins, Apple announced a $30 million commitment toward programs advancing racial equity in the US.
The investment will support new initiatives through the tech giant's Racial Equality and Justice Initiative, which was established in January with an initial $100 million investment. In this latest commitment, there is a special focus on advancing education and career development opportunities for Hispanic people.
Apple's commitment is the latest in a string of large investments from America's top corporations. The country's 50 biggest public companies and their foundations have invested around $50 billion since the murder of George Floyd. JPMorgan invested $30 billion, and Bank of America and Citi each committed $1 billion.
"The call to build a more just and equitable world is an urgent one, and at Apple, we feel a collective responsibility to help drive progress forward," Apple CEO Tim Cook said in a statement.
According to a press release, Apple's new investment is broken down into three sections: education, entrepreneurship, and criminal justice reform.
In education, Apple is partnering with California State University to create a career and education center focusing on Hispanic, Black, and Asian students called the Global HSI (Hispanic serving institutions) Equity Innovation Hub.
The initiative's main location will be at California State University, Northridge campus near Los Angeles. Apple will furnish the center with technology and fund educational programs.
Apple is also linking up with Tennessee State University to expand a national computer coding program called HBCU C2, which connects historically Black colleges and universities with technology and programming to teach people about software engineering.
As part of this expansion, Clark Atlanta University, Florida A&M University, and Texas Southern University will now have HBCU C2 hubs, bringing the total number of hubs in the country to 45.
"The commitments we're sharing will help the young leaders of today and tomorrow start new businesses, develop groundbreaking innovations, and inspire countless others to join the fight for justice," Cook continued.
To support Hispanic entrepreneurs, the tech giant will be expanding its Entrepreneur Camp program to welcome its first cohort of Hispanic founders and developers in 2022. Apple engineers and executives will help these entrepreneurs develop their business ideas.
"We are focused on advancing enduring change, and our newest grant commitments will further that effort by supporting problem solvers and solution seekers in communities of color nationwide," Lisa Jackson, Apple's vice president of environment, policy, and social initiatives, told Insider.
Apple is also investing in organizations that support racial and criminal justice. Funds are planned to be allocated to a list of nonprofits including the Anti-Recidivism Coalition, The Council on Criminal Justice, Innocence Project, The Last Mile, Recidiviz, The Sentencing Project, and the Vera Institute of Justice.