Spelman College in Atlanta announced on Jan. 18 that the institution received the largest donation ever given to a historically Black college or university.
According to an exclusive report by Gayle King of “CBS Mornings,” businesswoman and philanthropist Ronda Stryker and her husband William Johnston have donated $100 million to the all-Black women’s college.
Stryker has been a trustee at Spelman since 1997 and has advocated “for decades to empower women through higher education and advance opportunities for additional marginalized groups,” the news outlet reported.
Stryker and Johnston’s monumental and historic gift comes during Spelman’s #100for100Spelman campaign. The college received its official name in 1924, even though it was founded during the Reconstruction era in 1881.
The school informed the media that $75 million of the donation will be appropriated towards endowed scholarships for future students. The remaining $25 million will “develop an academic focus on public policy and democracy, improve student housing, and provide flexible funding to meet critical strategic needs.”
“We are invigorated and inspired by this incredible act of generosity,” said Dr. Helene Gayle, president of Spelman College, according to the college’s website. “This gift is a critical step in our school’s mission to eliminate financial barriers to starting and finishing a Spelman education. We can’t thank Ronda Stryker enough for her selflessness and support as both a trustee and friend. There’s no doubt that Spelman College is better because of her.”
According to the annual report on colleges and universities by U.S. News and World Report, Spelman has been ranked the No. 1 HBCU in America for 17 consecutive years. It is also the top-ranked school in the nation in producing Black women who complete their Ph.D. degrees in one of the STEM categories — science, technology, engineering, and mathematics — according to the findings by the National Science Foundation.
