SDSU Global Campus and the Coronado Brewing Company have partnered to establish a new award designed to help encourage diversity and inclusion in the craft brewing industry.
The new award will pay the tuition for the Professional Certificate in the Business of Craft Beer program each year for one student from a group that is historically underrepresented in the brewing industry. The individual will also be offered an internship with the brewing company. Gifts of $6,562 per year will be awarded each December until 2025.
The Professional Certificate in the Business of Craft Beer program was created in 2013 to help prepare students to enter the industry as brewers, brewery owners, and other related careers. The Coronado Brewing Company has been in business for 25 years and is a respected and well known San Diego brewery. The company pledged $32,810 to fund the new diversity award.
“SDSU Global Campus empowers all individuals to learn and contribute to San Diego’s workforce and industry,” stated Radhika Seshan, the dean of SDSU Global Campus. “We are excited and grateful for our partnership with Coronado Brewing, since it reflects our shared values of diversity and inclusion. It also presents an opportunity to expand access to SDSU Global Campus programs in this important industry for San Diego, connecting our passionate faculty, and affording more opportunities for our students in these programs.”
SDSU Global Campus is excited to have an award that amplifies the abilities of their students and represents the values of SDSU. The Coronado Brewing Company has always valued diversity, but was always open to new ideas to further promote inclusion. Working to co-create this award created even more room for diversity and inclusion.
When SDSU Global Campus approached Coronado Brewing with this award idea, the company’s VP of Business Development, Eddie Buchannon, thought it was a perfect way to get different groups of people involved in such a beneficial program.
“I believe our partnership with the San Diego State University Global Campus Professional Certificate in the Business of Craft Beer program is a great opportunity to help promote diversity with future leaders in the craft brewing community,” Buchannon said.
“Coronado Brewing understands that in order to improve diversity, inclusion, equity and better connect with the communities that we serve, we must be part of the solution and not just a bystander. And what better way to take action than by investing in underrepresented groups and communities by providing the skills, valuable experiences that will help shape the craft beer industry through diversity.”
The Professional Certificate in the Business of Craft Beer offers hands-on experience and training for individuals interested in working or are already in the brewing industry on the business side of operations. Craft brewing has expanded greatly in San Diego over the past years, having close to a $1.2 billion economic output in 2018.
“The Global Campus Professional Certificate in the Business of Craft Beer Scholarship provides a platform to invest in the future innovators of tomorrow, as well as help bridge the gap between underrepresented groups in the craft brewing community,” Buchannon said. “Our goal at Coronado Brewing is to look for partnerships that provide a pathway in which inspires and fosters a diverse generation of brewing professionals to come.”
The application period for the award starts September 1st, with a recipient being announced in December. The program will begin January 2022. Those looking to apply can do so by visiting our website.
