Spelman College, CAU get $38 million donations from philanthropist MacKenzie Scott
Clark Atlanta University and Spelman College are getting another substantial funding boost from billionaire philanthropist MacKenzie Scott.
Spelman, the private, all-women’s historically Black college in Atlanta, announced Monday that Scott was gifting the school $38 million. Hours later, CAU said it was receiving the same. It’s the second time in five years the schools have gotten donations from Scott. In 2020, she gave Spelman $20 million while gifting another $20 million to nearby Morehouse College and then $15 million to CAU months later.
Spelman plans to use the money to expand its financial aid program and to invest in technology infrastructure that will “enhance the academic experience, improve administrative efficiency, and prepare students for a digitally driven world,” according to a Monday news release.
Interim president Rosalind “Roz” Brewer said the unrestricted funds grant Spelman flexibility so that it can “strengthen the entire student experience, modernize our technology infrastructure, and expand financial opportunity for scholars who call Spelman home.”
For CAU, the two Scott gifts total $53 million, the largest private donation in the university’s history. “The magnitude of Ms. Scott’s generosity significantly enhances our capacity to expand the student success initiatives and support infrastructure already underway, preparing students to thrive on the global stage for generations to come,” president George T. French Jr. said in a news release.
Since the 2019 announcement of her divorce from Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Scott has made significant investments in HBCUs across the country. Over the past week, she donated $80 million to Howard University in Washington, D.C., $50 million to Virginia State University and $42 million to Alcorn State University in Mississippi. And in September, Scott donated $70 million to the UNCF, formerly known as the United Negro College Fund, for a pooled endowment fund to its 37 schools. Spelman is a UNCF member school.
CAU said it will use the new funds to “strengthen academic offerings and support systems, fostering a vibrant educational environment that empowers students to achieve their fullest potential.”
Spelman, which last week officially began its search for a new president, said Scott’s most recent investments signal her “sustained commitment to advancing educational equity” at HBCUs and “demonstrate her profound confidence in Spelman’s leadership, exceptional student outcomes, and strategic vision for the future.”
By investing the money in financial aid and scholarships, the school said it can “ensure that talented scholars, regardless of their financial background, can complete their education and thrive.” More than 90% of Spelman’s 2,700 students received some form of financial assistance last year, according to the school.
The release did not include a statement from Scott. But last month, Scott made a post on her Yield Giving website, briefly alluding to financial difficulties she faced in college. It was a $1,000 loan from her roommate that kept her from dropping out her sophomore year, wrote Scott.
Today, Forbes estimates her net worth to be nearly $37 billion. She has given more than $19 billion to more than 2,450 nonprofit organizations, according to Yield.
