Russell Simmons,
Fortune 500 consultant and NYU’s Robert Wagner School of Public Service have
teamed up to create The Hip-Hop Artists and Athletes Community Development Initiative.
According to the
New York Post, the initiative is aimed at helping stars from the rap and sports
world support poor communities.
The campaign received
$150,000 in startup money from the Ford Foundation and will initially focus
on New York City and five other cities that will be announced at a later date.
"Private individuals
increasingly are an integral part of the solution to difficult public-service
challenges," Ellen Schall, dean of the Wagner school said in a statement.
The program will
launch in October.