Tuskegee University News July 28, 2020 Tuskegee University receives $20 million donation from MacKenzie Scott MacKenzie Scott, the philanthropist ex-wife of Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos, gifted Tuskegee University $20 million on Tuesday, the largest donation in the historically black university's history. "This gift comes at an opportune time for us," said Tuskegee University President Lily D. McNair in a statement. "We are about to launch a five-year strategic planning effort and, with this investment from Ms. Scott, we will be able to unfold the next phase of our mission in ways we simply could not have considered before." McNair, who has led Tuskegee since July 2018, said the $20 million gift will be used for "increasing student access, strengthening signature programs, advancing research and innovation, and preserving the university's legacy." "We will focus on student scholarships, faculty and curriculum development, interdisciplinary programs, and campus infrastructure improvements," McNair added. "The gift will allow us to become the Tuskegee of the 21st Century - a university that integrates knowledge, leadership and service to solve the problems of a global, modern society." Scott, the second-richest woman in the world who ranks 22nd on Forbes' billionaire list with a net worth of $36 billion<https://www.forbes.com/profile/mackenzie-bezos/?list=rtb/#381cd92a1294>, pledged to give at least half of her assets to charity over her lifetime<https://givingpledge.org/Pledger.aspx?id=393>. In a Medium post Tuesday<https://medium.com/@mackenzie_scott/116-organizations-driving-change-67354c6d733d>, Scott announced her donations to Tuskegee and 115 other organizations and institutions that she said advanced the ideals of racial and gender equality. "I recommend these organizations to anyone similarly excited by the idea of empowering leaders well-positioned to accelerate progress. Every one of them is tackling complex challenges that will require sustained effort over many years, while simultaneously addressing consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic," Scott wrote. "And every one of them would benefit from more allies looking to share wealth of all types and sizes, including money, volunteer time, supplies, advocacy, publicity, networks and relationships, collaboration, encouragement, and trust." SANDRA M. PHOENIX HBCU Library Alliance Executive Director Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library 111 James P. Brawley Drive SW Atlanta GA 30314 404-978-2118 (office) 404-702-5854 (cell) http://www.hbculibraries.org<http://www.hbculibraries.org/> sphoenix@hbculibraries.org<mailto:sphoenix@hbculibraries.org> Honor the ancestors, honor the children and those yet to come. Building Capacity for Humanities Special Collections at HBCUs - Become an ally and partner with us to protect, preserve and share a more authentic record of American history. Follow this link http://hbculibraries.org/humanities-2019.html for more information. Follow this link http://hbculibraries.org/ and click on the Donate Now button to invest in this project. Your support is appreciated. Follow us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/hbculibraryalliance1/ and Twitter at https://twitter.com/HBCULibAlliance Check out "PULSE!" The HBCU Library Alliance's News Source! - https://hbculibraryalliance.wordpress.com/