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Miles College has been selected as the pilot site for the national rollout of the MentorPRO platform across its student body. This partnership with Miles’ 2150 Center for Innovation, Commercialization, and Growth will serve as the hub for integrating MentorPRO’s AI-driven tools with peer and alumni mentorship.
“By embedding rigorous research and AI innovation, we’re creating scalable solutions that uplift students historically underrepresented in tech and entrepreneurship,” said Dr. Jean Rhodes, Frank L. Boyden Professor and Director of the Center for Evidence-Based Mentoring at UMass Boston and MentorPRO’s co-founder:
Miles College, in Fairfield AL, just outside of Birmingham, will serve as the pilot institution for this collaboration, leveraging the platform’s NSF SBIR grant-funded AI tools to strengthen student success outcomes and enhance institutional support. The initiative will also engage a broader network of HBCUs, with students and alumni contributing to the design and testing of tools specifically tailored for historically Black institutions.
The partnership’s overarching goal is to curate a national network of at least 250 mentor-mentee relationships built to support innovation and commercialization through meaningful mentorship.
The 2150 Center will lead this effort by developing a scalable HBCU matchmaker framework of students, professors, and subject matter experts.
The 2150 Center was launched by Miles College last year as a business and innovation collaborative designed to expand to institutions around the country.
“This partnership exemplifies our commitment to blending tradition with transformation. By leveraging MentorPRO’s expertise in mentoring and AI, we’re equipping Miles students—and soon, students across the HBCU ecosystem—to thrive in a rapidly evolving economy while ensuring their entrepreneurial voices shape our future,” said Erskine “Chuck” Faush, CEO of the 2150 Center for Innovation, Commercialization & Growth,
The MentorPRO partnership not only enhances Miles College’s focus on experiential learning, but it also builds enduring, cross-generational relationships that provide tangible support beyond graduation. The program will identify and support student entrepreneurs in developing businesses that meet the unique needs of HBCUs, using MentorPRO’s platform to guide and accelerate growth.
Rooted in the proven Latimer.ai framework, now active at 11 colleges and universities, this initiative marks yet another milestone under the leadership of President Bobbie Knight. Her tenure has ushered in a wave of transformative partnerships that continue to elevate Miles College’s national standing among HBCUs.
Drawing on more than a decade of research-backed programming, MentorPRO has shown measurable success in increasing retention, academic achievement, and workforce readiness. By uniting innovation, mentorship, and enterprise, this collaboration aims to redefine how HBCUs equip and empower the next generation of leaders.
Leaders with the 2150 Center gathered recently at the National Press Club in Washington D.C. to announce another initiative — its Public Policy iLab.
“This iLab model convenes and curates the best and brightest minds to problem solve and build businesses,” said Faush.
The new iLab initiative includes students from Miles College, Florida A&M University, Johnson C. Smith University and Jackson State University. The goal is to engage institutions, students and professionals in the latest innovation to encourage entrepreneurship.
