HBCUs within the Atlanta University Center have already gotten to work with the $55 million gifted by MacKenzie Scott.
Scott donated the lofty sum to the schools following her divorce from Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos. She acquired a portion of their Amazon stock, which held a price tag of more than $38 billion.
On her own mission, Scott decided to give away the majority of her new wealth, donating to multiple Black institutions in the wake of the summer 2020 protests for Black Lives Matter. That July, she gave Morehouse and Spelman $20 million apiece. Clark Atlanta received its own check for $15 million, five months later.
The money came with
no restrictions, allowing the schools’ leaders to allocate the funding as they saw fit. Given systemic and historic lack of funding for HBCUs, the checks helped with scholarships, endowments, and new building developments for students on campus.According to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Morehouse specifically used the donation to support its new campus center in development. The center will boast three stories and 58,000 square feet, providing a communal yet educational hub for the all-men’s HBCU. However, the construction costs total $80 million, with Scott’s contribution making a significant dent.
Morehouse administrators remember how Scott’s philanthropy displayed trust in Black institutions to use these resources to uplift their campuses and student bodies.
“It
was refreshing to see a donor who really genuinely wants to help organizations without having any restrictions. What that really conveys is trusting those organizations to utilize the resources as they need and as they see fit, said Hodan Hassan, Morehouse’s vice president of the Office of Institutional Advancement and chief advancement officer.Clark Atlanta put $10 million of the gift towards its endowment. The HBCU’s president called the donation a “true turning point” for the university. It is still recognized as the single largest private, individual gift in the school’s history,
“It has helped us fortify our financial base, enrich our academic offerings, expand opportunities for our scholars, and significantly enhance our visibility and reputation,” explained George T. French Jr., the school’s president, to The AJC
.The rest went to its W.E.B. Du Bois Southern Center for Studies in Public Policy, as well as its Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurial Development, with $500,000 allocated for full-tuition scholarships for graduates of Atlanta Public Schools.
Following suit, Spelman also contributed over half of its donation to its endowment. Given its smaller population of around 2,100 students in 2020, each received a $3,500 award. The leftover funding supported technology upgrades and advancing student experience.
However, the AUC agreed that the gift went beyond its direct monetary impact. It signaled to other philanthropists that HBCUs were “worth the
investment,” as stated by Hassan. By amplifying its fundraising efforts, these schools acquired even more funding from other avenues, gaining millions to support their cause for Black scholars.Scott’s generosity indirectly started a movement that spotlighted the AUC and other HBCUs. She continues to pour financial support to other causes, with billions still left to give.
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