Saturday, March 7, 2015

Calculated costs: when and where to give scholarships


Earlier this month, Disney announced plans to launch a Corporate Scholars Program, which means $1 million will be donated through the United Negro College Fund, in order to “offer financial assistance to high-achieving African American students in underserved communities across the country.”  This is a great program, both for black students, and for Disney.  The very last line of the article (written by ABC) reads, “Students must have an interest in pursuing a career in the entertainment industry, among other requirements.”  In class, we have discussed that a large percentage of the people working for Disney, as animators or in powerful positions, are white men.  This, to me, seems like another move by Disney to increase diversity among the corporation’s employees.  Offering scholarships and internship opportunities to gifted African American students, and having them study something related to the entertainment industry, puts them in the perfect position to be hired by Disney in the future, which is likely the goal.  This is an interesting approach, as it is a win-win situation for both Disney and the gifted students.

The link to the article is below:
http://abcnews.go.com/US/walt-disney-company-announces-corporate-scholars-program/story?id=29418740

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