Dr. Michael J. Sorrell
PQC is the solely minority-serving, federally acknowledged Work School within the nation.
“That is a lot greater than a conventional actual property mission or campus housing improvement—it’s a press release about what increased schooling will be for all of us – those that attend our colleges and those that don’t,” mentioned Dr. Michael J. Sorrell, President of Paul Quinn School. “We’re constructing a metropolis inside our campus partitions. It will likely be a neighborhood that evokes, innovates, and invests in its individuals.”
Sorrell mentioned that the grant will launch a campus housing initiative that may finally be accompanied by a bigger mixed-use improvement that features scholar and household housing, retail and restaurant areas, parks, out of doors assembly areas, and classroom services—all designed to serve each the campus and the encircling neighborhood. School officers added that the event mission will increase scholar housing capability by 300 %.
“We’re proud to assist Paul Quinn School of their mission to create a transformative and sustainable campus setting that addresses important wants like housing, transportation, and meals safety for college students,” mentioned Kelley Cornish, CEO and President, T.D. Jakes Basis. “This $1.5 million grant will lay the groundwork for an revolutionary mixed-use improvement that not solely gives important providers and sources but additionally strengthens the school’s long-term imaginative and prescient for neighborhood influence. We consider this mission may have a profound influence on scholar success and well-being, empowering them to give attention to their schooling and future.”
The mission comes amid PQC’s longstanding efforts to deal with a spread of points surrounding the campus, most notably the absence of supermarkets. In 2010, In 2010, the school transformed its soccer subject right into a farm. The farm serves as a studying software for college students and donates 15% of the produce.
“Having entry to dependable, high quality housing is a vital factor for college students so they will earn a level, certification or enhance their revenue and choices long-term,” mentioned Kristy Fercho, head of Various Segments, Illustration and Inclusion at Wells Fargo. “Our work with the T.D. Jakes Basis and Paul Quinn School on the imaginative and prescient for a brand new mixed-use improvement helps our broader dedication to offering elevated entry to high quality, inexpensive housing for people traditionally underserved out there.”
The Wells Fargo Basis donated $100,000 to assist create scholarships for the varsity’s Company Work Program, which gives workforce alternatives that enable college students to develop the wanted abilities, habits, and expertise to be aggressive within the job market postgraduation whereas contributing towards the price of their schooling.
By means of a collaboration between Wells Fargo and T.D. Jakes Basis, Paul Quinn School obtained one other $236,000 earlier this yr to construct the Company Work Program and housing safety funds.
The faculty has additionally partnered with the Jakes Divinity Faculty since 2023 to supply a T.D. Jakes Grasp of Enterprise Administration (MBA) diploma, the primary graduate program the varsity’s historical past.
