Page 7 - Florida Sentinel 5-21-19

Page Seven
Black Billionaire To Pay Off Student Loan Debt Of Entire 2019 Morehouse Graduating Class
A billionaire technology investor stunned the entire graduating class at More- house College when he an- nounced at their commencement Sunday that he would pay off their student loans __ estimated at up to $40 million.
Robert F. Smith, this year’s commencement speaker, made the an- nouncement while address- ing nearly 400 graduating seniors of the all-male his- torically black college in At- lanta. Smith, who is black, is the Founder and CEO of Vista Equity Partners, a pri- vate equity firm that invests in software, data, and tech- nology-driven companies.
ROBERT F. SMITH
fuel in your bus,” the in- vestor and philanthropist told graduates in his morn- ing address. “This is my class, 2019. And my family is making a grant to elimi- nate their student loans.”
The announcement im- mediately drew stunned looks from faculty and stu- dents alike. Then the grad- uates broke into the biggest cheers of the morning and stood up, applauding. Morehouse said it is the sin- gle largest gift to the college.
Smith, who received an honorary doctorate from Morehouse during the cere- mony, had already an- nounced a $1.5 million gift to the school. The student
debt for the class of 2019 is estimated to be as much as $40 million though no im- mediate total had been cal- culated yet.
Smith said he expected the recipients to “pay it for- ward” and said he hoped that “every class has the same opportunity going for- ward.”
“Because we are enough to take care of our own community,” Smith said. “We are enough to ensure that we have all the oppor- tunities of the American dream. And we will show it to each other through our actions and through our words and through our deeds.”
“On behalf of the eight generations of my family
that have been in this coun- try, we’re gonna put a little
Single Mom Lands NASA Internship, And Strangers Raise $8K To Cover The Costs
A single mother will begin a coveted summer in- ternship at NASA later this month, thanks to strangers who helped cover the ex- penses.
India Jackson, a Ph.D candidate in physics and mom to Jewel, 11, said she wan't sure how she was going to pay for housing, travel and other costs in order to complete the 10- week internship in Hous- ton, Texas. But then, her cousin launched a crowd- funding page -- and dona- tions came pouring in.
In less than two days, $8,510 was raised for Jack- son.
"Some people gave $3, $1, $5 -- whatever they could give," Jackson, of
INDIA JACKSON
Atlanta, Georgia, told "Good Morning America." "I was extremely overwhelmed with hope and promise and
joy. I am forever grateful to everyone on that donor list and I sent personal thank you's. Some people I knew,
most people I don't and it's amazing of what humanity can bring regardless of race, gender.
"It was everyone all over the world giving, to help me achieve my dream," she said.
India Jackson of Atlanta is pictured with her cousin, Dasha Fuller, also from Georgia. Fuller launched a crowdfunding page for Jackson which raised $8,510 in less than two days.
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