Howard University has announced that Mackenzie Scott has gifted the school with an $80 Million donation.
According to the Washington Post, the gift is unrestricted, meaning that the school can use the funds at its discretion.
Wayne A.I. Frederick, Howard’s interim president, expressed his gratitude for the generous donation.
“Some 80 to 90 percent of the funds that come into the university have a federal source, whether you’re looking at Pell grants, the hospital, patients with Medicare and Medicaid,” Frederick said.
“Due to the funding delay, Howard plans to launch a temporary relief program that will allow students with overdue balances to defer payments until spring without incurring penalties.”
The donation comes at a critical time for Howard, which was chartered by Congress and receives roughly $55 million in annual federal appropriations—money that’s currently held up due to the shutdown.
$63 million of Scott’s contribution will be “distributed across Howard’s entire student body of 13,000.” The other $17 million will directly benefit the university’s College of Medicine. Applications to the medical program have reportedly hit a record 10,000 for just 125 available seats.
“Ms. Scott’s generosity will have a lasting impact on medical education, research, and health equity,” said Andrea A. Hayes Dixon, dean and senior vice president of the medical school.
“There was a lot of conversation after George Floyd’s murder about philanthropy, especially giving to social justice issues,” Frederick said.
But that support quickly began to wane.
But Scott’s gift has provided “a boost of confidence.”
“It also says that what you’re doing, based on our own evaluation, we think is important,” Frederick said. “And we think you’re doing it well enough that we can trust you with that type of gift.”
Scott has given generous donations to several HBCUs in the D.C. region. She gave $63 million to Morgan State University, $50 million to Virginia State University, and $38 million to the University of Maryland at Eastern Shore.