AfroTech’s author Ngozi Nwanji reported that Shaquille O’Neal has invested in the Campus.edu platform after reading a Forbes article. He decided to reach out and invest in the venture after learning that its 29-year-old Chancellor, Tade Oyerinde had raised $29 million for the online college. Shaq sat down in a conversation with Oyerinde to understand what the idea is behind Campus.edu.
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Oyerinde laid out that this online college platform aims to reduce the economic burden on students while providing quality education from top-notch professors. It also aids those in need of technological equipment to undertake their education. In a video posted by Blackvegas.com’s Instagram account, Shaq asked Campus.edu’s chancellor about his goals behind Campus.edu.
“What we have basically done is create a new kind of community college, where everybody who enrolls in Campus can learn from professors who teach at top universities like Princeton, NYU, top universities at HBCUs at Howard and Morehouse. We have done everything in our power to make sure that our tuition is low enough,” explained Tade Oyerinde.
The young Chancellor then went on to explain how he wanted to eliminate the students’ debt. As he continued to explain his thinking behind the initiative, O’Neal became emotional.
“We have done everything in our power to make sure our tuition is low enough that most of our students who are doing online programs don’t have to pay anything out of pocket. For 80% of our students, they don’t have a good enough working laptop for online learning, we send them laptops,” Oyerinde told Shaq
“I love you man,” replied O’Neal
“No, but for real, like free laptop. Fore more than half of our students, we pay their Wi-fi bill,” continued Campus.edu’s Chancellor.
“You gonna make me cry, stop,” expressed an emotional Shaq
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It is clear that this initiative by the 29-year-old has hit the big fella’s heart. It is not surprising that the keen investor is touched by the ideology behind Campus.edu. As a promoter of education himself, such steps were bound to resonate with him.
Shaquille O’Neal believes in the power of education
In 2023, during a conversation with ESPN, Shaq acknowledged the benefits of formal education. The expectation of doing well on his report card was an added incentive that paved the way for more playing time. If the grades fell, then he’d have to work on the areas where he didn’t perform well. While talking about accountability in terms of grades, Shaq recalled, “Oh, you got all A’s, go play. Oh you got a C in Government, go upstairs and study, so it definitely helped me focus on education.”
Considering O’Neal’s heavy interest in technology and education, it wasn’t surprising when he announced an investment in Edsoma. TechCrunch’s Aisha Malik covered Shaquille O’Nea’s investment in Edsoma and his comments about the importance of education in synthesis with technology. The AI-fueled platform aims to assist children with pronunciation and make primary education accessible across the globe.
