FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

LAWRENCE, MA, JUNE 5, 2024 – With the 2024 sports camp season on the horizon, Mill Cities Community Investments (MCCI) has made an important equity investment in NXGN Camps, a family-run, Black-owned business dedicated to preparing middle school and high school underclassmen football players for college programs. This move is pivotal, considering that about 53 percent of NFL players are Black. NXGN is one of the only Black-owned and led sports camps in the country, serving a critical role to discover, prepare and propel the next generation of great football players.

NXGN, led by retired New England Patriot Brent Williams, is dedicated to providing scholarships to students to attend these elite camps, an opportunity that sets them up for success in college and beyond. Thanks to the equity investment, NXGN will continue its growth and positive community impact by offering more scholarships, hiring more coaches, holding more camps and expanding the resources provided to athletes, including recruiting advice, connections to elite trainers and coaches, mental health professionals and financial literacy education for student-athletes and their families.

“Access to capital is not a level playing field, which is why we’re focused on funding businesses like NXGN that are growing and making a positive impact in the community,” said MCCI Executive Director Glynn Lloyd. “An equity investment is one of multiple capital tools we can leverage to help drive this growth, and we’re thrilled to support Brent and his talented team as they move the chains for the future of NXGN.”

MCCI’s equity investment program is key to the organization’s mission of deploying capital to historically disinvested communities. According to Forbes, less than 1 percent of equity funding goes to minority-owned businesses. As equity investments are one of the most patient forms of capital, businesses have more opportunities for growth without the cash flow constraints of fulfilling loan payments.

NXGN Camps evaluate more than 5,000 athletes each year. Over its 10-year history, NXGN athletes have received nearly 11,000 Division 1 scholarship offers. NXGN will hold 10 regional showcase events in the 2024 camp season, with its feature THESHOW! for the top prospects in the country. THESHOW! has sold out each of the past four years.

“Our partnership with MCCI has changed the trajectory of our company,” NXGN Camps President/Founder Brent Williams said. “The access to capital, support and advice the organization has provided has opened doors for us to work with some major companies, which will allow us to reach more athletes and be more impactful on the lives we touch.”

Mill Cities Community Investments is a community development financial institution (CDFI) that provides flexible growth capital, technical assistance and strategic advisory services to small business owners and homeowners in historically disinvested communities. Our purpose is to build generational wealth to close the racial wealth gap. With our robust advice, resourced networks and capital investment, we aim to grow sustainable, thriving and diverse communities driven by equal access and opportunity. In 2022, Mill Cities Community Investments merged with the Foundation for Business Equity to unite our strengths and expand our impact. Since launching, the organization has provided $27.2 million in small business and residential loans and supported annually more than 250 business owners with 1:1 counseling and training. 

Media contact: Diana Ubiñas Mill Cities Community Investments [email protected] 978-252-2615