Oprah Winfrey makes second $5 million donation to Morehouse

Black Issues in Higher Education, April 8, 2004

Oprah Winfrey surprised Morehouse students and officials in February with a $5 million donation during the college's 137th Founder's Week celebration. Winfrey was awarded the first ever Candle for Lifetime Achievement in Humanitarian Service Award at a gala during the celebration and announced her donation during her acceptance speech.

The money will go toward the Oprah Winfrey Endowed Scholarship Fund, which to date has helped approximately 250 students from 20 states and seven countries to continue or complete their education at Morehouse College, an all-male historically Black institution.

In 1989 Winfrey gave her first gift of $1 million and in 1997 made another $1 million gift to support scholarships. Last year she donated $5 million for the public launch of the college's capital campaign. Her total contribution to Morehouse is now $12 million.

"I think Oprah Winfrey expressed it best when she said: 'When you empower a Morehouse man, you empower the world,'" said Morehouse College President Walter E. Massey. "Morehouse's primary mission is to empower young men--intellectually, socially and morally--to be leaders in their careers and in their communities. We are grateful that Oprah Winfrey not only shares our passion for educating these young men, but also generously shares her resources to help us make their education possible."