Philanthropist MacKenzie Scott announced a new wave of unrestricted gifts totaling more than $155 million to public, access‑oriented and minority‑serving colleges, including $50 million each to California State University‑East Bay and Lehman College, $38 million to Texas A&M‑Kingsville and $17 million to Seminole State College. The donations come amid federal cuts to programs that previously supported equity and disaster relief. Scott’s pattern of directing large, flexible funds to institutions that serve low‑income and first‑generation students provides immediate operating relief—support for scholarships, student services and program investment—that colleges say helps buffer against state and federal funding uncertainty. Campus leaders hailed the gifts as major boosts to social‑mobility missions and as counterweights to policy‑driven budget contractions.