MacKenzie Scott gives $18 million to Durham Public Schools, no strings attached

Another Triangle organization has caught the eye of MacKenzie Scott, the billionaire philanthropist who has been steadily giving away her fortune since pledging to do so in 2019.

Durham Public Schools is set to receive an $18 million donation — entirely unrestricted — from Scott through the National Philanthropic Trust, the district announced Tuesday.

“Ms. Scott’s recent gifts to public and charitable organizations have been focused on fostering equity, opportunity, and achievement for American communities,” Superintendent Pascal Mubenga said in a news release. “We are pleased and humbled that Ms. Scott has taken note of DPS’s commitment to embrace, educate, and empower each student.”

The Board of Education will help administration decide how to spend the grant. Chair Bettina Umstead thanked Scott in the release.

“We will focus on using this to enhance our work with schools that will ignite the limitless potential of our students,” Umstead said.

The gift is part of $2 billion Scott has spread across 343 organizations this year to support “the voices and opportunities of people from underserved communities,” she wrote in a blog post Monday.

Forbes estimates the billionaire has given $14.4 billion to more than 1,500 organizations since divorcing Amazon founder Jeff Bezos in 2019.

The news comes a week after the Nov. 8 election, when Durham County voters passed a $423.5 million education bond. That money will help the district rebuild and renovate its schools.

MacKenzie Scott’s many donations in the Triangle

Scott gifted an NC Girl Scouts organization $2.4 million last month.

“Together we are investing in girls and their future,” Girl Scouts - North Carolina Coastal Pines board chair Valerie Quiett said in a news release.

Lisa Jones, the local council’s CEO, said they’d use the money to scale and deepen their efforts, especially with regard to inclusion.

“It is an investment worth making as we prepare Girl Scouts to be leaders in a future that will be full of change, challenges, and opportunities,” Jones said.

In the past, Scott has given to North Carolina historically Black colleges, the YMCA and Planned Parenthood of the Triangle, Meals of Wheels organizations in Durham and Wake counties, plus Habitat for Humanity, United Way and Goodwill locations around the state.