HBCU Athletic Conference announces partnership with uReport

NEW ORLEANS [January 28, 2025] – The Historically Black Colleges and Universities Athletic Conference (HBCUACU) is pleased to announce uReport as the official AI-assisted tool for generating sports content of the HBCUAC.

“We are thrilled about our partnership between uReport and the HBCU Athletic Conference,” says uReport CEO/President Peter Fitzpatrick. “uReport will be able to take coverage of all HBCUAC athletic events to the next level, highlighting all the great achievements of its student-athletes and providing rich content for every team and program.”

uReport provides a wide range of activity and event input modules, each covering various activities and multiple topics. All inputs are expertly developed and refined by industry professionals, allowing organizations to cover all activities seamlessly.

HBCUAC Commissioner Kiki Baker Barnes, PhD said as the landscape of athletics and communications changes, the conference needs to keep up. “We choose to embrace technology and AI,” she stated. “Our team does a great job with pushing out content and stories, and I’ve always been a firm believer in using the tools that help us increase and improve productivity. uReport is one of those tools that will empower us.”

-HBCUAC-

About uReport:
uReport allows organizations to tell their own stories, cover their own events and provide content about important topics through a human powered, AI assisted web-platform. The service creates full, AP-style articles about activities and other topics that are easily shared via social media.  uReport is patent-pending and comes with proprietary security permissions to allow easy use throughout any organization.

About HBCU Athletic Conference
The HBCU Athletic Conference (HBCUAC) is the only HBCU conference in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). The HBCUAC membership includes Dillard University (LA), Fisk University (TN), Oakwood University (AL), Philander Smith University (AR), Rust College (MS), Southern University at New Orleans (LA), Stillman College (AL), Talladega College (AL), Tougaloo College (MS), University of the Virgin Islands (St. Thomas), Voorhees University (SC), Wilberforce University (OH), and Wiley University (TX). HBCUAC sponsors championships in men’s and women’s basketball, men’s and women’s cross country, men’s and women’s track and field, women’s volleyball, softball, and baseball. In 2022, the HBCUAC secured the largest media rights deal in conference and NAIA history, signing a multimillion-dollar deal with Urban Edge Network. On July 1, 2024, the conference rebranded from the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference (GCAC) to the HBCU Athletic Conference, marking a new era for the conference that embodies the makeup of its membership. For more information, visit hbcuac.org.

The Lights Are On: Zumbrota-Mazeppa High School Wins Big in T-Mobile’s Friday Night 5G Lights Contest

When stadium lights illuminated the field at Zumbrota-Mazeppa High School last Friday night, something magical was in the air. The band struck up the fight song, the cheerleaders rallied the crowd, and families filled every seat in the stands. Little did they know they were witnessing a $5,000 winning moment in T-Mobile’s Friday Night 5G Lights contest.

Friday nights have always been special in Zumbrota, Minnesota, but this season they’ve taken on new meaning. Each week, T-Mobile awards $5,000 to one high school in a community of 150,000 or fewer residents, and this week, that spotlight shines directly on Zumbrota-Mazeppa High School. Their victory represents the very essence of what makes Friday night lights so captivating – the energy, the tradition, and the unbreakable bond between a school and its community.

The winning formula wasn’t complicated: authentic moments shared from the heart of the action. Whether capturing the intensity of the locker room before kickoff, the precision of the marching band at halftime, or the pure joy of students in the student section, Zumbrota-Mazeppa High School showed the nation what real Friday night magic looks like.

This recognition comes as part of T-Mobile’s broader commitment to powering small-town America. Since 2021, the company has been expanding its America’s largest 5G network into rural communities, supporting students through educational initiatives, and investing millions in hometown development. Friday Night 5G Lights celebrates the institutions that anchor these communities – the high schools where traditions are born and memories are made.

The $5,000 prize will help Zumbrota-Mazeppa High School athletics, ensuring that future Friday nights will be even brighter. But perhaps more importantly, this victory demonstrates that when a school community comes together with a common purpose, remarkable things can happen.

The contest continues throughout the fall season, with 450 schools set to win $5,000 each. The secret to success? Consistent, engaging content that tells your school’s unique story. Every pregame ritual, every touchdown celebration, every moment that makes your Friday nights special deserves to be shared.

Picture this: Zumbrota-Mazeppa High School’s name announced as a winner, your community celebrating, and your Friday night tradition getting the national recognition it deserves. That vision can become reality, but it starts with your action.

Ready to help Zumbrota-Mazeppa High School reach the championship level?

This $5K victory puts them in contention for so much more – 25 finalists will earn $25,000 each plus a T-Mobile-hosted home game, and one school will claim the ultimate $1,000,000 grand prize package. Keep amplifying their Friday night magic by engaging with every post, sharing their content, and proving that Zumbrota has championship-level spirit.

Download the FN5GL Playbook to learn the winning strategies, and rally behind your school. Tag your posts with #FN5GL and #Sweepstakes, mention @TMobile, and make sure to use your full school name – no abbreviations.

The lights are on, the stage is set – now let’s show them what champions look like.

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This contest is part of the T-Mobile Friday Night 5G Lights program. Only schools that met the contest’s eligibility requirements were included in the campaign and prize selection, and community engagement helps determine future prize opportunities. This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed, or administered by, or associated with, Meta, and participants release Meta from any responsibility related to the campaign.See Official Rules.

Albuquerque High School welcomes Staff Sgt. to discuss Air Force experiences, opportunities 

Student athletes from Albuquerque High School’s football, boys basketball, girls basketball, and volleyball teams recently met with Air Force Staff Sgt. Michelle Dayanghirang to hear about her experiences in the U.S. Air Force and the opportunities that come with a career in the military.

“I think it is important for high school students of all genders to see as many post-high school options as possible,” said Chad Jones, athletic director at Albuquerque High School in Albuquerque, N.M. “Knowing that the Air Force presenters would be female, I made sure that I invited boys’ teams as well. I think it’s important for the male students to see women in leadership roles too.”

Dayanghirang’s presentation was part of a leadership initiative facilitated by DistrictWON, a U.S. Air Force partner for marketing and local engagement. She spoke to students openly about her experience as a child immigrating to the United States from the Philippines as well as her connection between her military involvement and her high school athletic experiences.

“Having partnerships with schools will help the current challenge of underrepresentation of women in the Air Force by having that direct engagement of women in service with the students,” Dayanghirang said, noting that integration and diversity in the military promotes innovation and productivity through different talents, backgrounds, and experiences.

Dayanghirang shared with the students that the Air Force is not one-size-fits-all and that there are avenues of interest for every personal and professional goal.

“We offer careers in aviation, medical, cops, firefighters, aircraft mechanics, cyber, intel, linguist, etc. You can even be a plumber in the Air Force. We will provide you the education and training you need for the career you are pursuing for free. While doing so, you could also be traveling around the world,” she said.

For those interested in the Air Force, Dayanghirang always recommends doing the research.

“Doubts are normal,” she said. “Be comfortable to use resources around you, such as recruiters, current or prior military members, teachers, counselors, friends and family members to ask them questions before making the decision of joining.”

Jones, whose father and uncle served in the Marine Corp and father-in-law served in the Army, agreed, adding that he is thankful for their military service and the opportunities that their service provided for him and his wife growing up.

“Consider as many options as possible and find the one that you think it right for you,” he tells his students. “No decision is permanent and all experiences are beneficial as learning experiences.”

Charting New Heights: 2nd Lt. Gardner shares Air Force opportunities for young women at Mansfield High School 

The Air Force is not just a man’s world and 2nd Lt. Alexandra Gardner recently visited Mansfield High School in Mansfield, Ohio, to discuss the many opportunities the military has to offer for young women.

“The current challenges of underrepresentation of women in the Air Force are lack of diversity of thought, and a deficiency of being in touch with empathy,” Gardner said. “I believe that having partnerships with high schools will show youth that there is no ideal military woman. Women in the military are not defined by the military, we are all unique and possess valuable traits that are vital to the armed forces.”

Gardner, who graduated from the Air Force Academy in June 2023 and is currently awaiting pilot training, made the decision to join the Air Force due to her admiration of her father’s career in the U.S. Marine Corps as a Force Recon sniper and her high school job as a beach lifeguard.

“Both my father and my job made me realize that I wanted to continue doing work where I could see the difference I was making day to day and I found my path to be one in the military,” she said.

Gardner met with female students from the school’s 11th and 12th grade classes and led leadership sessions facilitated by Rocky River, Ohio-based marketing firm DistrictWON. a U.S. Air Force Partner for marketing and local engagement.  The teamwork-focused program engages students in a new way and allows Air Force personnel to break through barriers and talk with students about their leadership potential within the military and what it could offer beyond graduation.

“This program can help high school students be exposed to different careers and the possibilities for women in the military and beyond,” said Laurie Romano, assistant athletic director at Mansfield High School. Romano added that both of her sons are in the Navy and spoke to the experiences they have had in advancing in leadership roles, cultivating self-discipline, and driving motivation towards a great career.

Discussing the need to encourage and empower young women to consider a path to a military career, Gardner added that integration and diversity are important to the success of Air Force operations because it encourages innovative ways of thought and challenges conventional thinking.

“It shows that multiple cultures can unite and work together to achieve a common goal despite having differing belief systems,” she said. “[And] integration and diversity make the individual feel safer to express their opinions which I believe leads to a more efficient Air Force.”

Additionally, Gardner highlighted the fact that there is no limit to what women can do in the military.

“Every role that a man can do is open to females, including special warfare and combat roles, as long as the female can meet the male standard for these intense jobs,” she said. “In terms of the wide range of roles women can train for, nearly every job on the civilian side is also a job on the military side. The professional and personal growth is limitless but dependent on one’s attitude both in and out of the military.”

According to the 2022 Demographics Profile of the Military Community released by the U.S. Department of Defense, the number of service members in all military branches dropped by 2.7 percent over the previous year. However, the percentage of women increased, with those actively serving in the military rising to 17.5 percent from 17.3 percent the year prior and those in the selected reserve rising from 21.4 percent to 21.6 percent over the same period. Since 2005, the percentage of active-duty military women has increased 2.9 percent while the number of women in the selected reserve has risen by 4.4 percent.

“There are so many amazing opportunities for you and people to meet that will change your life for the better forever, but you have to be willing to dip your toes into the water,” Gardner told the students. “You will never know what you’re capable of if you never try.”