This article is written by and featured on NJBIZ Website.
Help from the private sector
By: David Hutter February 11, 2019 7:00 am
Michael Anderson, founder of MPAC Solutions, supports the Powered by Publics program.
Michael Anderson, a Harvard University graduate from Newark is the author of “Misadventures of The American Dreamer: Nick Ca$h vs. Everyone,” a hip-hop guidebook to applying to college, including SAT Prep and Finding Scholarships. The book is “a young adult novel to support helping students of color prioritize education,” Anderson told NJBIZ. A Latino writer at Rutgers labeled it 2017’s Book of The Year, a Pioneering Hip-Hop Griterature [Gritty Literature] piece.”
Anderson also co-founded financial technology platform MPAC Solutions, which has developed a three-tier approach to support the Powered by Publics initiative.
The first tier centers on applying to college. MPAC holds interviews and seminars at Rutgers University in Newark for high school students of color to teach them how to become more visible college applicants.
The second tier centers on navigating college, providing mentorship through experiences and entertainment, Anderson said. For example, MPAC is hosting a free mentoring trip to Australia, inviting Rutgers students and graduates to fly to Sydney for a program with Australian partner organization AIME, founded as the Australian Indigenous Mentoring Experience and dedicated to global youth empowerment.
“We are giving college students the opportunity to travel the world for free,” Anderson said. “If they agree to become mentors in their local communities, we will mentor them and provide an all-expenses paid journey across the world.”
The third tier centers on financing college. MPAC is hosting events to help students become entrepreneurs in order to pay for their college education.
“For instance, MPAC education technology company PeduL held a Millions In My 20s event at Rutgers Business School that exposed underserved students to venture capital and business development,” Anderson said. “Our goal is to help students of color become entrepreneurs and obtain millions at a young age while maintaining integrity and a commitment to community, in order to create a diverse wealth base.”
Co-founded by Rutgers University graduates Kayla Michele and Chisa Egbelu, PeduL, an MPAC portfolio company, is a crowdfunding platform that helps students raise money for college. They focus on helping students pay for higher education and find employment opportunities.
“We are leading students of color into increased access and opportunity, and look forward to formally supporting Powered by Publics,” Anderson said.
Anderson said his upcoming feature film The Gap Year highlights the experiences of students of color navigating through predominantly white institutions.
“It’s intended to help such college students find their moral compass through college and achieve their goals,” Anderson said.