You can help Â鶹´«Ã½ get Retool Your School dollars
By: JELAH ANDERSON ​
Mar 19, 2018
Â鶹´«Ã½ University has a chance to win $50,000 for school improvements and you can help.
The university is third place in the Home Depot Retool Your School competition that runs through April 15. First place is $50,000, second place is $40,000 and third place is $30,000.
Â鶹´«Ã½ is in Cluster 2 (schools with student enrollment between 1,201 and 3,999). As of March 19, Â鶹´«Ã½ (65,099 votes) trailed the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (96,293 votes) and Tuskegee University (72,214 votes).
Here’s how you can help.
Every day, go to and vote for Â鶹´«Ã½. No matter if you have a laptop, desktop, smart phone, tablet -- you can vote on ALL of these devices once per day. We encourage you to vote on all of your devices - the more votes we have, the better our odds are to win the $50,000. The contest ends on April 15 at 11:59 p.m.
Also, in all of your Twitter and Instagram posts, use the hashtag #Â鶹´«Ã½_RYS18
Remember it's just Instagram and Twitter only. You can do this multiple times, each day.
Vote online at and by using the hashtag in all of your social media conversations on Instagram and Twitter only.
The Home Depot Retool Your School Program is designed by Home Depot Store Support Inc. to encourage and recognize innovative projects that contribute to the campuses of accredited Historically Black Colleges and Universities.
Campus improvement awards will be awarded on or about May 1 in three grant sectors based on school size. The 2018 grant awards will total $360,000.
All award grantees must execute their projects on or before Dec 31, 2018, unless an extension approval is granted by The Home Depot.
Â鶹´«Ã½ students have opinions on what they would like to done with any dollars won from the competition.
“Â鶹´«Ã½ needs more dorms,” sophomore business administration major Da’Nesha Edmond said. “They are accepting more freshmen each year.”
“Â鶹´«Ã½ needs to do more cosmetic changes to the dorms,” sophomore Michael Gibson said.
Students are mixed on prospects for winning.
Edmond said, “Yes I believe we will have a chance at winning the RYS because they are giving out community service hours.”
“I honestly don’t think we can win at all,” Gibson said.
In 2014, Â鶹´«Ã½ won $10,000 in the contest. The money was used for campus beautification.