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8B Education Investments launches $111,600,000 initiative to Finance African Student Education

As the first fintech solution focused on African students, 8B said it’s committed to enabling African brilliance to have a global impact. 8B provides tools to allow African students to identify best-fit global universities, level up their applications, access affordable financing, and connect with career support for job placement.
The post 8B Education Investments launches $111,600,000 initiative to Finance African Student Education first appeared on BlackPressUSA.

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By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent
@StacyBrownMedia

8B Education Investments, which built the first platform that connects high-potential African students with world-class colleges and universities and the tools needed to level up their applications and financial options, announced a partnership with Nelnet Bank to originate $30 million of loans over three years.

The partnership, enabled by 8B’s use of what officials called innovative credit enhancement to guarantee losses incurred by Nelnet for the loan program’s duration, marks the first lending program by a United States-based bank to African students enrolled in American schools.

Officials said the $30 million commitment is part of a broader $111.6 million pledge made last month at the Clinton Global Initiative to accelerate African students’ access to global universities.

“Until now, African students have had limited access to global universities with enrollment largely depending on the luck of obtaining a scholarship,” Dr. Lydiah Kemunto Bosire, 8B’s founder and CEO, said in a statement.

“The world has underinvested in African brilliance. As a result, hundreds of thousands of African students every year obtain offers from world-class universities and fail to enroll, primarily due to a lack of financing.

“We are thrilled that our partnership with Nelnet Bank will help us to provide financing for this underserved group of brilliant students and create an example on how to accelerate African access to global innovation ecosystems.”

According to a news release, 8B estimates that the 500,000 African students enrolled in global universities represent 30 percent of students who received offers from such universities.

Consequently, Africans are underrepresented in global universities and, by extension, in global innovation ecosystems.

“Our partnership with 8B is a historic step in the history of student lending and a giant leap forward toward increasing access for African students,” said Andrea Moss, CEO of Nelnet Bank.

“Together, we will be able to provide an opportunity to one of the fastest growing student demographics in the world and one that has been overlooked for too long. Nelnet Bank is thrilled to work on this with our colleagues from 8B Education Investments.”

As the first fintech solution focused on African students, 8B said it’s committed to enabling African brilliance to have a global impact. 8B provides tools to allow African students to identify best-fit global universities, level up their applications, access affordable financing, and connect with career support for job placement.

“There are few affordable student lending options for African learners though there is a broad swath for international students. Nelnet’s bold loan funding commitment to 8b Education Investments will catalyze growth and unlock African excellence,” said Debra Fine, Founding Board Chair of 8B Education Investments and Chair of Fine Capital Partners.

“I have spent 35 years evaluating business opportunities. This partnership is one of the most extraordinary I have seen. 8B uses a proven business model to create value and extraordinary impact across Africa and the world. This partnership is an excellent example of how private capital can invest in the future of Africa.”

8B and Nelnet Bank announced their partnership as part of the CGI meeting, which convenes global and emerging leaders to take action on the world’s most pressing challenges.

Within the CGI community, 8B said it had brought together several partners to support African access to global innovation ecosystems.

The release notes that 8B’s CGI commitment, including students attending Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), will accelerate African access to global innovation ecosystems and promote diversity and inclusion in global universities and workplaces.

It will also build a scalable market-based model for financing world-class human capital development in low-income countries.

The partnerships have a combined value of $111.6 million that will deploy over the next three years.

“These partnerships will transform the lives of over 1,400 future innovators from the African continent through affordable student financing and reach over 2 million African students in higher education,” officials wrote in the news release.

The post 8B Education Investments launches $111,600,000 initiative to Finance African Student Education first appeared on BlackPressUSA.

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Tiguan’s AI Touchscreen & Gear Shift: VW Just Changed the Game! #2

Explore the Tiguan’s cutting-edge 12.9-inch infotainment touchscreen featuring wireless Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, voice control, and a new AI assistant. See how VW innovatively moved the gear shifter to the steering column, enhancing the center console and navigation system! #AutoNetwork #Tiguan #Infotainment #AppleCarPlay #AndroidAuto #AISystem #NavigationSystem #CarTech #TechReview #CarInnovation #Automotive

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https://youtube.com/watch?v=0xUKM6U2Lpc&autoplay=0&cc_lang_pref=en&cc_load_policy=0&color=0&controls=1&fs=1&h1=en&loop=0&rel=0

Explore the Tiguan’s cutting-edge 12.9-inch infotainment touchscreen featuring wireless Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, voice control, and a new AI assistant. See how VW innovatively moved the gear shifter to the steering column, enhancing the center console and navigation system! #AutoNetwork #Tiguan #Infotainment #AppleCarPlay #AndroidAuto #AISystem #NavigationSystem #CarTech #TechReview #CarInnovation #Automotive

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IN MEMORIAM: Legendary Funk Pioneer Sly Stone Dies at 82

Sly Stone’s musical approach radically reshaped popular music. He transcended genre boundaries and empowered a new generation of artists. The band’s socially conscious message and infectious rhythms sparked a wave of influence, reaching artists as diverse as Miles Davis, George Clinton, Prince, Dr. Dre, and the Roots.

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Sly and the Family Stone play the Opera House in Bournemouth. Mojo review. Photo by Simon Fernandez.
Sly and the Family Stone play the Opera House in Bournemouth. Mojo review. Photo by Simon Fernandez.

By Stacy M. Brown
BlackPressUSA.com Newswire

Sylvester “Sly” Stewart—known to the world as Sly Stone, frontman of the groundbreaking band Sly and the Family Stone—has died at the age of 82.

His family confirmed that he passed away peacefully at his Los Angeles home surrounded by loved ones, after battling chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and other health complications.

Born March 15, 1943, in Denton, Texas, Stone moved with his family to Vallejo, California, as a child. He began recording gospel music at age 8 with his siblings in a group called the Stewart Four. By his teenage years, he had mastered multiple instruments and was already pioneering racial integration in music—an ethos that would define his career.

In 1966, Sly and his brother Freddie merged their bands to form Sly and the Family Stone, complete with a revolutionary interracial, mixed-gender lineup.

The band quickly became a commercial and cultural force with hits such as “Dance to the Music,” “Everyday People,” and “Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)”—all penned by Stone himself.

Their album “Stand!” (1969) and live performances—most notably at Woodstock—cemented their reputation, blending soul, funk, rock, gospel, and psychedelia to reflect the optimism and turmoil of their era.

Sly Stone’s musical approach radically reshaped popular music. He transcended genre boundaries and empowered a new generation of artists. The band’s socially conscious message and infectious rhythms sparked a wave of influence, reaching artists as diverse as Miles Davis, George Clinton, Prince, Dr. Dre, and the Roots.

As the 1970s progressed, Stone confronted personal demons. His desire to use music as a response to war, racism, and societal change culminated in the intense album “There’s a Riot Goin’ On” (1971). But drug dependency began to undermine both his health and professional life, leading to erratic behavior and band decline through the early 1980s.

Withdrawn from the public eye for much of the 1990s and early 2000s, Stone staged occasional comebacks. He was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1993, received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Grammys in 2017, and captured public attention following the 2023 release of his memoir “Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)”—published under Questlove’s imprint. He also completed a biographical screenplay and was featured in Questlove’s documentary “Sly Lives!” earlier this year.

His influence endured across generations. Critics and historians repeatedly credit him with perfecting funk and creating a “progressive soul,” shaping a path for racial integration both onstage and in the broader culture.

“Rest in beats Sly Stone,” legendary Public Enemy frontman Chuck D posted on social media with an illustrative drawing of the artist. “We should thank Questlove of the Roots for keeping his fire blazing in this century.”

Emmy-winning entertainment publicist Danny Deraney also paid homage. “Rest easy Sly Stone,” Deraney posted. “You changed music (and me) forever. The time he won over Ed Sullivan’s audience in 1968. Simply magical. Freelance music publicist and Sirius XM host Eric Alper also offered a tribute.

“The funk pioneer who made the world dance, think, and get higher,” Alper wrote of Sly Stone. “His music changed everything—and it still does.”

Sly Stone is survived by three children.

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PRESS ROOM: Clyburn on 10th Anniversary of Mother Emanuel AME Church Shooting in Charleston

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — Congressman James E. Clyburn (SC-06) released the following video on X, paying tribute to the 10th anniversary of the shooting that took place at Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina on June 17, 2015.

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By Congressman James E. Clyburn

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CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA – Congressman James E. Clyburn (SC-06) released the following video on X, paying tribute to the 10th anniversary of the shooting that took place at Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina on June 17, 2015.

“Over 6 years ago, the House first passed my Enhanced Background Checks Act to close the Charleston Loophole that allowed a white supremacist to obtain the gun he used to murder nine worshipers at Emanuel AME Church on June 17, 2015.

“I’ll never stop fighting to pass this law.”

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