Diageo Expands HBCU Endowment

Diageo North America provided an additional $ 1.75 million in endowments to support historically Black colleges and universities and minority-serving institutions . The additional funding was an expansion of the company ’ s $ 10 million granted in 2021 , as part of the company ’ s overall commitment to inclusion and diversity .

“ Diageo recognizes the critical role HBCUs play as ladders of opportunity for underrepresented communities ,” said Stephanie Childs , EVP of corporate relations . “ Expanding our program to additional higher education institutions further affirms our recognition and commitment to address structural barriers to educational and economic opportunities .”

Three new schools — Tougaloo College , Cheyney University and Southern University — will each receive $ 250,000 in grants for need-based scholarships . The Miami-Dade College Foundation was also awarded $ 1 million to create a permanent endowment across various majors , including supply chain management and hospitality training .

Diageo ’ s “ Learning Skills for Life ” program provided employability skills and hospitality training to more than 900 people in underrepresented communities in 2022 through a variety of community partnerships , including work with HBCUs .

2023 Women Raising the Bar Study Results

Women of the Vine & Spirits released its second Women Raising the Bar study , conducted in collaboration with Deloitte . The results are designed to offer beverage companies opportunities to engage in conversation around DEI , identifying leading practices and areas for improvement .

“ In previous DEI studies , the beverage alcohol industry historically was lumped into the larger Food & Beverage category , making it very difficult for our unique industry to successfully measure where we stand and determine how we move forward ,” said Deborah Brenner , founder / CEO . “ Through our collaboration with Deloitte , we now have two years of concrete data highlighting the state of DEI in our industry . This measurement tool not only provides insights on the state of our industry , but it can better inform our actions to propel long-lasting change .” Key findings from the study include :

• Only one in 10 women working in the industry believe there ’ s been significant positive change toward women overall in the last five years .

• Fewer than one in five women gave their company top marks for creating a better workplace through DEI efforts .

• A majority of respondents believe women and people of diverse backgrounds are underrepresented among their company ’ s leadership team .

Full results of the study can be viewed at : https :// www2 . deloitte . com / us / en / pages / consumer-business / articles / women-in-the-alcohol-industry . html

MFHA Founder Retires after 27 Years

The Multicultural Foodservice & Hospitality Alliance president and founder Gerry Fernandez announced his retirement effective Dec . 31 . Starting next year , he will support the organization in an advisory role .

Under his leadership , MFHA has helped on-premise establishments improve their cultural competency , create diverse and inclusive work environments and attract more diverse talent , especially in leadership positions . He also developed a supplier diversity directory and conducted the industry ’ s first diverse practices surveys .

In 2022 MFHA , the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation and Cornell University issued a DEI report outlining the effectiveness of DEI practices among restaurant employees . One outcome of that report was the creation of ELE- VATE , a comprehensive framework and toolkit restaurants can use to build successful DEI programs .

“ Gerry has a gift for convening thought leaders and for putting plans into action in service to our industry ,” said Michelle Korsmo , presidentCEO of the National Restaurant Association . “ His innate leadership , commitment to others ’ success and passion for hospitality have helped thousands of restaurant and foodservice workers build a future of opportunity .”

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