Mackenzie Scott, novelist and ex-wife of Jeff Bezos, recently gave $133.5 million to the non-profit network Communities In Schools (CIS), a national dropout prevention program focused on helping students with the challenges they face outside of school so that they can focus on their education.
As part of the mammoth donation — the largest private gift in the non-profit’s history — CIS Dallas and CIS North Texas will each receive $3.3 million, and CIS of Greater Tarrant County is set to receive $4 million.
President and CEO of CIS Dallas, Adam Powell, commented, “Ms. Scott’s investment is indeed transformational. It will enable us to serve more students on more campuses in our region. Most importantly, this will give us the critical resources we need to expand our clinical team and strengthen our ability to help students in mental health crisis. It is not a stretch to say that this gift will save lives.”
CIS Dallas works with 148 school campuses from the elementary to the high school level, while CIS North Texas works with students in fifty-three campuses across Denton, Wise, and Cooke counties, and CIS Greater Tarrant County serves sixty-three schools within the county’s eleven districts.
Communities In Schools president and CEO Rey Saldaña appeared on CBS Mornings to discuss Scott’s record-breaking, unrestricted donation to the CIS office and its affiliates.
Saldaña, an alumnus of the program, shared from experience that the staff “not only build a relationship with [students], they work on addressing social and emotional needs and removing barriers.”
“As a first generation American, first of my family to graduate and go to college,” Saldaña explained, “the upper limits of my ambition were sometimes [restricted by] my environment, so [Communities in Schools] really expanded the universe for me.”
The program provides emotional support to struggling students, as well as works to ensure access to critical resources such as food, housing, remote technology, and physical and mental healthcare.
Saldaña said the donation inspired hope within the CIS staff by allowing them to think about “expanding to touch more lives and impact more students.”
MacKenzie Scott is donating $133.5 million to @CISNational, which helps millions of kids navigate issues in and outside of the classroom.
CEO and program alum @rey4sa says the organization is now able to think about “expanding to touch more lives and impact more students.” pic.twitter.com/U3Qxlj7dzO
— CBS Mornings (@CBSMornings) February 3, 2022
CIS aims to support vulnerable students in any way necessary and advocate for diversity, equity, and inclusion in the sphere of education.
Their website explains: “By surrounding [students] with a network of trust they can turn to no matter where they are in their journey, we empower students to confront and overcome personal challenges and structural barriers – so they can take charge of the future they want for themselves, their communities, and each other.”
For the 2020-2021 academic year, CIS reports 99% of students enrolled in its programs stayed in school through the end of the school year, 96% advanced to the next grade level, and 93% of seniors graduated or got their GED.
In 2021, CIS worked with 1.61 million kids from 2,900 schools in twenty-six states.
According to Communities in Schools’ press release, Scott’s donation will be used in part to expand the program’s work across the country. The funds will also be used to send more staff to schools in need.
“At a time when the global pandemic has particularly hurt students with fewer community resources or adequate supports, this investment will help CIS to carry out its mission to break down the systemic barriers that stand in the way of opportunity and student success,” CIS wrote in its press release.
Scott has donated more than $8.5 billion to various organizations since 2019, which was also the year she signed the “Giving Pledge,” a non-binding promise made by billionaires to give away the majority of their wealth to charity.
