The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints recently announced educational and humanitarian initiatives with the NAACP.
“Leaders of the Church have found common ground with the NAACP as we have discussed challenges that beset some of God’s children,” Russell M. Nelson, president of the Church of Jesus Christ, said in a release about the announcement, which was made in Salt Lake City. “The challenges are huge, and our capacities are limited. But together, we want to make a difference, even though our efforts may seem relatively small,” he said.
The initiatives includes: a $1 million educational scholarship donation per year for three years, overseen by the United Negro College Fund to help Black students; a $250,000 grant named after the Rev. Dr. Amos C. Brown to provide students from the United States an opportunity to learn about their heritage in Ghana; and $2 million in humanitarian contributions per year for the next three years to teach important principles of self-reliance and help those in need in the underprivileged areas of the United States.
Overall, it totals more than $9 million.
Details of how Georgia students and local NAACP chapters will benefit from the initiatives are still being determined, said Tiffany Bird, a spokeswoman for the church.
The UNCF and NAACP, nationally, are working on a website where students can apply for the educational scholarships, she said. Atlanta’s private historically black colleges and universities — Clark Atlanta University and Spelman and Morehouse colleges ― are members of the UNCF.
In Georgia, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints has more than 87,000 members and 168 congregations.
The Church and the NAACP have built a relationship over the years.
In May 2018, the Church and the NAACP made a “unified plea for greater civility and racial harmony,” according to the press release.
In July 2019, Nelson spoke during the civil rights organization’s 110th National Convention in Detroit.
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