MacKenzie Scott, billionaire philanthropist and ex-wife of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, has made headlines again with a monumental $700 million donation to historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) across the United States. The gifts, which range from $19 million for Arkansas' Philander Smith University to an $80 million windfall for Howard University, mark the largest single donations some of these institutions have ever received, per the New York Times. ABC News notes that the average gift totals around $47 million.
Scott's contributions stand out not just for their size but also for their no-strings-attached nature, allowing recipients to address their most urgent needs without donor restrictions, per the Times. Michael Lomax, head of the United Negro College Fund, called the move a "sea change in American philanthropy," noting that HBCUs have long operated with limited resources while serving predominantly low-income students.
"She is rewriting the book on philanthropy, not just in this country, but in the world," he tells ABC. Howard University's president described the donations as "transformative," emphasizing that Scott's ongoing support—now totaling more than $130 million to Howard alone—comes at a critical time for higher education, per the Times.
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Scott, who has pledged to donate the majority of her wealth, says her team targets organizations in communities facing high rates of poverty, food insecurity, and racial inequity. Recipients of her latest round of donations include Alabama State, Alcorn State, Bowie State, Morgan State, Norfolk State, and Spelman College, among others. USA Today, which puts the amount that Scott has donated to HBCUs at closer to $740 million, features a chart of all the HBCUs she's given to since 2020. (She donated $63 million last month to another HBCU.)
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