Comcast and NBCU News Group have made a commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion and the multi-year partnership involves 17 academic partners with Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Hispanic-Serving Institutions and colleges with significant Latino, Asian, Black, Indigenous and tribal populations Their goal is to reach students from underrepresented groups including those from diverse racial, ethnic, sexual orientation, gender identity, ability, economic, and geographic backgrounds.

Xavier University’s College of Arts and Sciences provides instruction to more than 2,500 students annually. Communication majors follow a curriculum designed to allow students to concentrate in one of two areas of mass communication: multimedia and public relations, or strategic communication. Multimedia and broadcast students have the opportunity to gain experience in the university TV studio and the university radio station. Students who wish to pursue careers in print media can earn valuable experience on the Xavier Herald, the only HBCU student newspaper that is a member of the Associated Collegiate Press Hall of Fame. In addition to on-campus resources, students will now have the opportunity to work alongside multimedia experts in their respective fields through NBCU Academy.

"This partnership further positions Xavier to mold and shape scholars who graduate and go on to become some of the top communicators and multimedia professionals in the country," said Reynold Verret, President of Xavier University of Louisiana.  "NBCUniversal News Group is one of the leading news organizations informing millions of Americans worldwide every day. This initiative is vital to Xavier's mission in fighting for a just and humane society because it would provide ample opportunities to Black students to compete on a national level, which promotes a more diversified workforce."

NBCU Academy has invested $500,000 to the initiative at Xavier University this 2021 school year. In addition to providing equipment and collaborating with professors to develop seminar courses, NBCU News Group journalists, executives and management from editorial and production teams across NBC News, MSNBC, CNBC and Telemundo will participate as guest lecturers to provide real-world insight and mentorship.

“Creating an inclusive culture for journalism that represents the communities we serve is at the very core of what we do,” said NBCU News Group Chairman Cesar Conde. “Through NBCU Academy, we have the opportunity to widen our extraordinary legacy by building on-ramps for a talented generation of journalists and storytellers who—for so long—may have been overlooked.”

Academic partners include:

• Borough of Manhattan Community College in New York, NY
• California State University, Fullerton in Fullerton, CA 
• Claflin University in Orangeburg, SC
• Clark Atlanta University in Atlanta, GA
• Dallas College in Dallas, TX
• El Camino College in Torrance, CA
• Florida International University in Miami, FL
• Hampton University in Hampton, VA
• Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, NM
• Miami Dade College in Miami, FL
• Morgan State University in Baltimore, MD
• North Carolina A&T State University in Greensboro, NC
• Orangeburg-Calhoun Technical College in Orangeburg, SC
• The City College of New York in New York, NY
• University of North Texas in Denton, TX
• University of Texas at El Paso in El Paso, TX
• Xavier University of Louisiana in New Orleans, LA

In June 2020, Comcast NBCUniversal announced a multi-year $100 million commitment to help address systemic racism and inequality. NBCU Academy is part of that pledge and focuses on providing tools, resources, and platforms for young, underrepresented voices. In July 2020, NBCU News Group announced the Fifty Percent Challenge Initiative, an aggressive action plan to turn the NBCU News Group employee base to be 50% women and 50% people of color.