Billionaire philanthropist MacKenzie Scott announced a $42 million gift to 10,000 Degrees and continued major support for Native and HBCU scholarship funds, signaling continued private investment in access and racial-equity initiatives despite sector retrenchment on DEI. Scott’s flexible, large-scale grants remain a model for rapid scaling of student-support and endowment strength at under-resourced institutions. A separate study from the American Indian College Fund and National Native Scholarship Providers found that Indigenous students report greater campus belonging when colleges provide tangible, institutional supports—recruiting Indigenous faculty, funding language revitalization and establishing formal partnerships with tribal nations. The research shows institutional policy and resourcing, rather than peer networks alone, are primary drivers of belonging. The combination of targeted philanthropy and evidence on effective institutional practices points colleges toward scalable investments in culturally specific supports and durable endowment strategies to improve recruitment, retention and outcomes for historically underserved student populations.