Prairie View A&M University News June 19, 2021 PVAMU alumnus, multi-business owner sets the stage to build generational wealth for his children "They are my why. The reason I can't give up. The reason I have to keep going no matter what. They are innocent, precious and deserve the world." Prairie View A&M University (PVAMU) computer engineering<https://www.pvamu.edu/engineering/> alumnus Jovante Ham '18 is the proud father of one, soon-to-be, two children. "Journey Lee is 3, and Neriah Honey is due this November," he said proudly. "They drive my decisions on what and what not to do. I am a father first and can't let anything get in the way of that." Even his businesses, Melanoid Exchange<https://melanoidexchange.com/> and Mel X Studio<https://melx.studio/>, can't get in the way, where he serves as co-founder and CEO alongside his wife, Darsha. "We started Melanoid Exchange in February of 2019," Ham said. "In response to racial injustice practices, we had a goal to amplify minority-owned business to help build generational wealth. But we had a problem desperately trying to support minority businesses. We couldn't find a solution. So that's when Melanoid Exchange was born." The company guides small minority businesses through e-commerce by providing them an online platform and giving the world a place to shop from them. The Hams were able to raise about $200,000 to get the business started. "Melanoid Exchange has shown us truly how to walk by faith and not by sight," Ham said. Ham also recently participated<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mMBSM_V4Ti8> in Mountain Dew's $1 Million Real Change Opportunity Fund<https://www.mountaindew.com/world/the-mtn-dew-real-change-opportunity-fund-is-in-full-swing/>, designed to help ten Black students or recent alumni of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) turn their ideas into businesses, or scale existing ventures. "Although I didn't win the competition, I learned a lot and was grateful to receive $35,000 for my business and the university where I started my entrepreneurial journey, PV," said the Fort Lauderdale, Florida native, who also holds a master's of engineering management from Arkansas State University. "In our pitch, we were able to clearly articulate our impactful vision and how we will disrupt our industry." Ham's efforts have been focused on their latest product, Mel X Studio, which is a gamified eCommerce platform that utilizes innovative education to help teens learn entrepreneurship by "doing." "We have been conducting extensive research on the industry over the past year, and we found an enormous gap in education for the $5 trillion eCommerce industry," he said. "We also saw a $333 billion opportunity to leverage the Generation Z influence. We understand that entrepreneurship advances the world and drives economic growth, but its future is in jeopardy because 60% of Generation Z prefer entrepreneurship over traditional career paths. Yet, the current academia is struggling to prepare them for the future of entrepreneurship." Mel X Studio's mission is to prepare the entrepreneurs of tomorrow through education, strategy and execution. Overall, Ham hopes his ventures will leave a lasting mark on not only the businesses he supports but also his children and the world, showing them that anything is possible. "The Bible says a wise man leaves an inheritance for his children's children - Proverbs 13:22. I never want resources to be a reason why my kids aren't able to accomplish whatever they want to do. Moreover, I hope they go on to do greater things than me," he said. "Also, I'm kicking the door down to show people that HBCUs can produce founders that can have unicorns. You don't have to go to Harvard; you don't have to go to MIT; you don't have to go to Stanford to build a billion-dollar business." Sandra M. Phoenix HBCU Library Alliance Executive Director Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library 111 James P. Brawley Drive SW Atlanta GA 30314 404-978-2118 (office) 404-702-5854 (cell) http://www.hbculibraries.org<http://www.hbculibraries.org/> sphoenix@hbculibraries.org<mailto:sphoenix@hbculibraries.org> Honor the ancestors, honor the children and those yet to come. Building Capacity for Humanities Special Collections at HBCUs - Become an ally and partner with us to protect, preserve and share a more authentic record of American history. Follow this link http://hbculibraries.org/humanities-2019.html for more information. Follow this link http://hbculibraries.org/ and click on the Donate Now button to invest in this project. Your support is appreciated. Follow us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/hbculibraryalliance1/ and Twitter at https://twitter.com/HBCULibAlliance Check out "PULSE!" The HBCU Library Alliance's News Source! - https://hbculibraryalliance.wordpress.com/