MacKenzie Scott gives $70 million to a fund supporting Native American students; the unrestricted gift will expand tribal college scholarships, career training and a $20 million endowment under a seven-year plan
Cheryl Crazy Bull, President and CEO of the American Indian College Fund, said, “This gift gives us more very welcome resources to build on our history of success with supporting Native students and tribal communities. We built this plan by listening first. By pairing scholarships with culturally relevant support programs and institutions, Native students graduate and enter careers to serve their communities. We know a teacher can change lives, and a health-care worker can save them. Both professions require a college degree. Thanks to Mackenzie Scott’s gift, we can continue building the lasting change that education provides to the well-being and prosperity of our Native communities. We say wopila—thank you—to Mackenzie Scott for her trust in the College Fund and our mission to create stronger Native families and communities.”
To expand the education impact in Native communities, the American Indian College Fund (College Fund) created a seven-year plan anchored by a transformative $70 million unrestricted gift from Yield Giving on behalf of Mackenzie Scott. “As the public debates the value of a higher education nationwide, in Indian Country, there is no debate. Native people know first-hand how education provides opportunities, strengthens families, provides better physical and mental health outcomes, and helps build sustainable communities. This gift is the second and largest investment the College Fund has received in five years from the foundation.
Less than 1% of U.S. philanthropic investment serves Indian Country, while federal investments reverted to pre-pandemic levels of underfunding despite the government’s trust and treaty obligations. College Fund research shows its scholars graduate and enter careers at a rate 1.5 times higher with support beyond scholarships. Investing in students and tribal colleges is a wise public investment, with every dollar spent on TCUs netting taxpayers a $1.60 return, according to Building Local Economies of Scale: The Impact of Tribal Colleges and Universities in Rural America, a study published last year by the American Indian Higher Education Consortium.
Scott’s investment is being made as chronic federal and philanthropic underinvestment in Indian Country is occurring, according to a report released by the American Indian College Fund and Brookings in August, “The Underinvestment in Indian Country: How federal and philanthropic funding to Native Americans falls short, and how to fix it. College graduates have better economic outcomes, earn higher salaries, and communities earn greater tax revenues while spending less on assistance and health programs. Higher education is not charity but a forward-thinking investment in Native people and surrounding communities. Yet TCUs continue to be underfunded despite their strong public return.