It’s been a boom moment for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) — with this fall seeing an increase in applications across the board. It’s a good result borne in part from the U.S. Supreme Court gutting affirmative action in June 2023, sending Black students away from PWIs (primarily white institutions) and to the institutions that were founded generations ago to shield them from systemic racism.
Fortunately, a lot of celebrities have been showing HBCUs a little TLC of late — and the timing couldn’t be better. Here are a few high-profile figures who you may not know made a significant donations to HBCUs.
Chris Paul
As a graduate from an HBCU himself from Winston-Salem State University, Paul donated $25,000 to his alma mater in 2011. He also committed $1.5 million over five years to bring business of entertainment, media and sports curriculum to various HBCUs including North Carolina A&T State University and Southern University.
Oprah Winfrey
Winfrey, who is also an HBCU graduate from Tennessee State University in Nashville, donated $13 million to Morehouse College in celebration of the 30th anniversary of the Oprah Winfrey Scholars Program. She donated $2 million to her alma mater due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Denzel Washington
The academy-award winning actor donated $1 million to Wiley College to re-establish the school’s debate team after filming “The Great Debaters.”
Robert F. Smith
The founder and CEO of Vista Equity Partners made a $34 million donation to pay off the student loans of the Morehouse College graduating class of 2019. This assisted almost 400 graduating students. Additionally, He donated $1 million to fund the Robert Frederick Smith Scholars Program at Morehouse.
Spike Lee
Lee, who graduated from Morehouse College in 1979, launched the Spike Lee Fellows Program in 2023 for students studying film and entertainment for all Atlanta University Center Consortium (AUCC) students. His program offers student loan debt relief, industry mentorship, internships and more.
Michael Jordan
The former basketball legend donated $1 million to Morehouse College to support their journalism and sports related courses. The Jordan Brand also formed a 20-year partnership with Howard University to increase visibility to HBCU sports and create recruiting opportunities.
Terrence “J” Jenkins
The actor and media personality donated $100,000 to North Carolina A&T State University, his alma mater. Jenkins also serves as a national ambassador for the Thurgood Marshall College Fund which is the largest advocacy organization for public HBCUs.