CHARLOTTE, N.C. — It's a first for the Queen City as many celebrated the traditions and community of historically Black colleges and universities: Charlotte had its first HBCU Festival on Saturday.
It was about more than celebrating historically Black colleges and universities; the event also educated the community and families about HBCUs.
Nasir Jones, who attended North Carolina A&T, was one of the organizers for the event. He said they wanted to help further connect the community with HBCUs.
“Where people can know what's going on, and gain that awareness about how important it is in today's society to know these things, and what can we give back to the community to help aid these causes," Jones said of the festival's goals.
Tons of HBCU gear was out and on full display Saturday during the festival. Every piece of the event, from food to vendors to the music, is ingrained into the Queen City.
"We brought together all HBCU cultures in one place for the first ever inaugural HBCU Festival,” Jones said.
Deydra Bringas and Shakira Hodges aim to educate the community with board games and trivia through their brand, Trivia for Us.
“It's a great opportunity to educate people about what HBCUs are, the value of them, the community that they bring,” Bringas said.
“This is a community, this is family," Hodges added. "Learn some things -- we also have a Trivia for Us game, so that's all about Black history, Black culture.”
The festival aimed to bring families together, with hopes of helping people learn more about HBCUs and providing more opportunities.
The festival also helped with scholarships for the next generation.
“We gave four for the HBCU college fair," Jones said. "So we started right there, four students randomly -- you sign up for the college fair, they will receive $1,000, just working towards books, tuition, anything of that nature.”
It's all in an effort to build connections for the entire community.
Contact Myles Harris at mharris5@wcnc.com and follow him on Facebook, X and Instagram.