A List Of Billionaires Giving Back To HBCUs When It Matters Most - Page 7

Source: Perry Knotts / Getty

As new student loan restrictions from President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act threaten access to higher education, a few billionaires are putting their money where their mouth is and back into the hands of Black students. Check out a list of billionaires giving back to Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) when it matters most.

HBCUs have long been underfunded yet central to the pipeline of Black doctors, engineers, and leaders. Now, these institutions are starting to feel it even more with changes being made under the Trump administration. With limits on Parent Plus and Grad Plus loans taking effect next year, many students are scrambling to fill the gap. Enter a new wave of philanthropic power.

Arthur Blank, the Atlanta Falcons owner and Home Depot cofounder, is pledging $50 million over the next decade to fund “gap scholarships” for juniors and seniors across Atlanta’s top HBCUs, including Spelman, Morehouse, and Clark Atlanta.

“These aren’t students who lack talent or ambition,” Blank told Forbes. “They just hit a financial wall.”

His donation ensures that promising students reach the finish line.

Meanwhile, MacKenzie Scott continues her record-breaking giving streak. The novelist and former wife of Jeff Bezos dropped a $70 million bag on the United Negro College Fund, boosting endowments for 37 private HBCUs. Her giving isn’t a one-off philanthropic endeavor to add to her tax write-off at the end of the year. It’s part of a consistent effort to redirect wealth into historically excluded communities.

Then there’s Robert F. Smith, whose 2019 Morehouse commencement speech made headlines after he cleared an entire class’s student debt. His Student Freedom Initiative has since expanded to more than 70 HBCUs, offering low-interest, no-cosigner loans. This initiative offers loans at a rate two percentage points below the Parent Plus rate. With new restrictions on the horizon, Smith’s program could become a vital lifeline for incoming and returning HBCU students.

Together, these billionaire benefactors are quietly rewriting what generational wealth redistribution can look like. Their efforts demonstrate that the fight for Black education is about access, survival, legacy and liberation.

Check out a list of notable HBCU millionaire donors below:

1. MacKenzie Scott

The UNCF shared that MacKenzie donated $70 million on the United Negro College Fund, boosting endowments for 37 private HBCUs.

2. Oprah Winfrey

According to AJC, the media mogul has donated over $25 million to Morehouse College, establishing the Oprah Winfrey Scholars Program.  It’s the largest endowment in the school’s history, supporting more than 600 Black men. She also gifted $2 million to her alma mater, Tennessee State University, and local Nashville communities during the pandemic, along with additional contributions to the United Negro College Fund (UNCF).

3. Michael Bloomberg

Bloomberg Philanthropies shared that former NYC mayor pledged $100 million toward student aid at HBCUs, including the four Historically Black medical schools.

4. Reed Hastings

Reports from Andscape share that Netflix co-founder and his wife, Patty Quillin, donated $120 million divided among the United Negro College Fund (UNCF), Morehouse College and Spelman College.

5. Ronda Stryker & William Johnston

According to AP News, they donated $100 million to Spelman College, noted as the largest single gift to an HBCU to date. 

6. Robert F. Smith

Time shared that through his Student Freedom Initiative, Smith is providing debt-relief and low-cost loans for HBCU students; his foundational gifts exceed $100 million. 

7. Arthur Blank

AJC reports that owner of the Atlanta Falcons, Blank committed$50 million over 10 years for “gap scholarships” at Atlanta-area HBCUs to prevent talented students from dropping out due to financial shortfalls.