LeMoyne-Owen gets $1M to improve job outcomes

• The college will receive the $1 million over five years.

LeMoyne-Owen College was awarded a $1 million grant from the United Negro College Fund to improve student job outcomes.

The Memphis-based college is one of 24 colleges and universities that will receive five-year grants totaling $35.3 million through UNCF's College Pathways Initiative. Backed by money from Lilly Endowment Inc., the initiative is a pilot program for historically black colleges to increase career readiness.

"LeMoyne-Owen College submitted a proposal that reflects a commitment to strengthening career advising and mentoring, enhancing curricula, and supporting integrated co-curricular engagement," the college said in a release. "As part of CPI, the selected institutions will develop a range of academic programs, student internships, industry partnerships, specialty certifications, and faculty development as they forge a new model for career readiness."

Just 13 percent of LeMoyne-Owen students graduate in six years. Ninety percent of the college's students are graduates of Shelby County Schools.