As part of its continuing commitment to Black colleges, Denny’s Inc. today announced a major partnership with Getty Images, a preeminent global visual content creator and marketplace, to help preserve the history of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).

Through this partnership, Denny’s will provide stipends to students at the HBCUs who have been chosen as the recipients of the Getty Images Photo Archive Grants for HBCUs, a program that aims to support the digitization of the invaluable visual history of HBCUs. The students will be working alongside the Getty Images team and the historians and archivists at each HBCU to research, digitize and restore these valuable archives. The inaugural grant recipients are Claflin University, Orangeburg, S.C., North Carolina Central University, Durham, N.C., Jackson State University, Jackson, Miss., and Prairie View A&M University, Prairie View, Texas. Over 100,000 photos will be available for licensing in the “Historically Black Colleges & Universities Collection,” on gettyimages.com. Getty Images plans to work with other HBCUs in the future.

During this year’s Martha’s Vineyard African American Film Festival, taking place Aug. 5 to 13, Denny’s and Getty Images will formally launch their partnership during a sponsored panel, moderated by Keija Minor, chief operating officer, Ebony Media, taking place 4 p.m. to 6 p.m., Aug. 8. The panel’s participants will include Brenda Lauderback, Denny’s board chair, Cassandra Illidge, vice president of global partnerships and executive director of the HBCU Grants Program at Getty Images, and Thomas K. Hudson, J.D., president of Jackson State University.

“This project is very much aligned with Denny’s long-standing commitment to HBCUs,” Lauderback said. “We know preserving these images and supporting students is one of the ways we are investing in our nation’s future leaders.”

April Kelly Drummond, Denny’s vice president of diversity, equity, and inclusion, added, “HBCUs have been – and always will be a vital part of this nation’s history. This is a very exciting opportunity to preserve the rich legacy of these colleges.”

Cassandra Illidge, Getty Images said, “We are looking forward to working with Denny’s on this groundbreaking project. This grant was created to support the work that all HBCUs have been doing to preserve their photo archives. Denny’s has supported HBCUs for several years, it is a pleasure to have Denny’s join the HBCU Grants Program as a partner in support of students and their opportunity to see a new potential career path.”

The Getty Images Photo Archive Grants for HBCUs was created to honor the legacy and history of HBCUs and their contribution to American History. In partnership with the Getty Family and Stand Together, a philanthropic community tackling some of the biggest challenges of our times, the grants commit $500,000 towards the digitization of HBCU photographic archives.

HBCUs retain full copyright, and original photos will remain with the HBCUs after scanning, along with the newly digitized photos. Getty Images will represent the digitized photos, providing a new revenue source for the HBCU grant recipients, plus funding scholarships and stipends for students attending HBCUs.