An Atlanta-based nonprofit that helps students graduate from high school received a $4 million donation, the largest private gift in its 50-year history.

Communities in Schools of Atlanta on Thursday announced it received the donation from MacKenzie Scott, a writer and philanthropist.

The money will support the organization’s work in 62 schools in the city of Atlanta and in Clayton, DeKalb and Fulton counties.

The local gift is part of a larger $133.5 million donation made by Scott to the organization’s national office and other affiliates.

Frank Brown, CEO of Communities in Schools of Atlanta, said the money will pay for expanded college and career programming. It also will fund raises and training for staff members.

“On behalf of CIS of Atlanta, we are extremely grateful for this generous unrestricted gift from MacKenzie Scott,” he said, in a written statement.

The organization served 34,000 students last school year. Staff work inside metro Atlanta schools, helping students with a variety of needs from food and housing to healthcare and counseling.

About the Author

Keep Reading

Corbitt VanDuzer, 6, strikes a pose for her mother, teacher Kathryn VanDuzer, before her first day of first grade at Glennwood Elementary School in Decatur, Ga., on Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (Seeger Gray/AJC)

Credit: Seeger Gray / AJC

Featured

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D. (center) is flanked by GOP whip Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo. (left) and Finance Committee Chairman Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, as Thune speak to reporters at the Capitol in Washington on Tuesday, July 1, 2025. Earlier Tuesday, the Senate passed the budget reconciliation package of President Donald Trump's signature bill of big tax breaks and spending cuts. (J. Scott Applewhite/AP)

Credit: AP