HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — Alabama A&M University officially re-opened one of its outdoor campus basketball courts during a ribbon-cutting ceremony Friday morning.
The renovation was made possible by a campus improvement grant from The Home Depot’s Retool Your School program, which awarded AAMU the funding after receiving more than 500,000 votes from supporters earlier this year.
Dr. Braque Talley, Vice President for Student Affairs at AAMU, spoke about the significance of the project: “This was an opportunity for our students to vote on different projects they’d like to see. And we chose the outdoor basketball court. And today was the official opening of it.”
Talley also highlighted how the new location will contribute to student engagement. “Typically, most of our activities are below the hill, which is where our upperclassmen students typically reside. This one is on top of the hill, so this will support retention of student engagement."
The Retool Your School program has helped HBCUs make significant upgrades, with this year’s total grant pool reaching $2 million.
This marks AAMU's sixth win in the 15-year history of the program, which has provided over $9.2 million in grants to HBCUs nationwide.