Mystery Donor Includes One Historically Black University

Over the past several weeks an anonymous donor has given more than $70 million to at least a dozen universities with the stipulation that they use most of the money for student scholarships and that they make no attempt to determine who gave the money. The donations have ranged from $1 million to $10 million.

The one common thread is that all the universities that have received funds from the mystery donor are led by women.

Norfolk State University is the only historically black college or university that has received a gift from the mystery donor. The university received $3.5 million. Carolyn W. Meyers is the fourth president of the university. A graduate of Howard University, Dr. Meyers holds a master’s degree and a Ph.D. in engineering from Georgia Tech.

Copyright © 2009. The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education. All rights reserved.