Jay-Z and his mother have been helping send students to college for nearly two decades now.
The Shawn Carter Foundation was co-founded by Gloria Carter and her son Shawn “Jay-Z” Carter, and was recognized as a public charity in 2003. The foundation had a table at the 2022 Made in America festival in Philadelphia, and while the private Gloria Carter didn’t want to be recorded on audio or video, she did speak with rolling out and OK’d sharing what the foundation provides for young students.
“There are a lot of young people who have low GPAs,” Gloria Carter told rolling out. “A lot of those people don’t even get looks for financial assistance.”
Not receiving the necessary financial assistance to attend college can make the typical high school student who didn’t have an above-average GPA in grade school make them feel like life has peaked, Carter explained. Many of those students may believe college is only a far-fetched concept as opposed to a realistic path.
“We can help those kids who can’t get any help,” she explained.
Carter also explained how the foundation began to give students somewhere to go and help them realize the college search is not a lonely road. At the foundation’s festival booth, she sported an “I Am College Bound” Shawn Carter Foundation black T-shirt to match her black face mask. A steady crowd of supporters approached the booth throughout to get photos with her as she accommodated every request.
The booth also had an Instagram filter for high school students to see what kind of student they would become in college.
Do it for the gram 📲
Class president or class clown? Level up your Insta with Shawn Carter Foundation’s IG filter. Vote now on our story & tell us what kind of student you are! @MiaFestival #CauseVillage @teamroc pic.twitter.com/lDWSG5XZCA
— Shawn Carter Foundation (@ShawnCarterSF) September 4, 2022
According to the foundation’s website, the organization has raised over $4 million through 2018 to power the foundation’s scholarship fund, college prep and exposure, international exposure, professional development, scholar support and community and goodwill programs.
“The mission of the Shawn Carter Foundation is to help individuals facing socioeconomic hardships further their education at post-secondary institutions,” the website reads.
