Billionaire MacKenzie Scott doubles his donations to DEI with a $42 million donation

The latest round of Mackenzie Scott gifts sends a clear message: Its commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion remains strong—and it is doubling that with significant, unrestricted support of scholarship providers who serve students of color and underrepresented communities. Recent donations include A A gift worth $42 million To 10,000 Degrees, a nonprofit that works to expand college access in the Bay Area for low-income and largely nonwhite students, along with eight-figure commitments to Native student scholars and HBCU endowments through UNCF.

Stand by DEI

Scott $42 million in donations 10,000 Degrees represents the largest single gift in the organization’s 45-year history, furthering its strategy to fund funding opportunities for first-generation and low-income students, many of whom are students of color.

Its latest donation also includes tens of millions to Native Forward, the nation’s largest provider of scholarships to Native students, signaling continued support for racial equity-focused education funds amid broader DEI sector cuts.

This pattern is consistent with Scott’s hallmark of large trust-based grants to equity-focused institutions, providing flexible capital to expand access and persistence for underrepresented learners.

UNCF Anchor Gift

In September, Scott donated $70 million to the United Nations Children’s Fund as part of a campaign to boost pooled endowments across 37 historically black colleges, a move aimed at creating permanent revenue streams and narrowing historic wealth and funding gaps versus majority-white institutions.

This gift — one of Scott’s largest — builds on her past support of black higher education and reflects a multi-year focus on educational equity as a cornerstone of her philanthropy.

How Scott gives

Scott’s model emphasizes speed, scope, and minimal constraints: large grants are delivered quickly and without constraints, allowing grantees to distribute funds where needs are greatest and opportunities are most urgent.

In 2024, it formalized part of its approach through an open cross-invitation process Give returnwhile retaining the element of surprise that made her philanthropy unusually stimulating for recipients unaccustomed to such large, flexible gifts.

Track history and totals

Over the past five years, Scott has provided more than $19 billion to thousands of organizations, with 2024 alone representing nearly $2 billion across nearly 200 grantees focused on economic security, housing, jobs, child development, post-secondary education, and health care.

Its portfolio of top grantees includes affordable housing, health equity, education, and financial inclusion, with recurring funding from proven performers and a growing list of equity-focused foundations.

Without conditions

luckPrevious reports on Scott’s UNCF gift Waqf building design details and the unrestricted nature of its grants, which are intended to accelerate institutional capacity at black colleges over the long term.

Scott $19 billion, over five years It includes an operational shift toward “mission-aligned” investment coupled with grantmaking to multiply social impact, especially in economic mobility and education.