New data: MacKenzie Scott gifts prioritise The South

MacKenzie Scott is dedicating an unusually large share of her giving to nonprofits in the South a region that megaphilanthropy and particularly tech donors have long been criticised for ignoring.The maverick philanthropist has earmarked at least USD 3.1 billion for organizations in southern states since 2020 nearly a third of the USD 10.6 billion in gifts disclosed on her new Yield Giving website.

MacKenzie Scott is dedicating an unusually large share of her giving to nonprofits in the South — a region that megaphilanthropy and particularly tech donors have long been criticised for ignoring.

The maverick philanthropist has earmarked at least USD 3.1 billion for organizations in southern states since 2020 — nearly a third of the USD 10.6 billion in gifts disclosed on her new Yield Giving website. Her two largest donations in the region went to Prairie View A&M University in Texas and Enterprise Community Partners, a national organisation focused on housing and racial equity. Both received USD 50 million. Altogether, she's made 479 donations in the region.

Scott's focus on the South is just one of the early findings from the data posted on Yield Giving. Altogether, she has made 1,604 gifts that total USD 14 billion. The website lists the recipients for all the donations, including amounts for 1,153. A full report of those outstanding donation amounts has been delayed, the site says, to benefit the recipient groups.

With each donation, the website notes one or more of 53 "focus areas" for the nonprofit. Because her contributions are unrestricted, the organisation can use the money for operations or any area of its mission work.

For instance, Scott lists a USD 10 million gift to Goodwill Industries of Middle Tennessee as addressing economic development but also financial inclusion, workforce development, vocational education, and youth development.

As a result, the data provides a sense of Scott's giving priorities, though not a precise accounting. The philanthropist has earmarked the most cash from her reported donations to education, with USD 8.9 billion going to groups with a focus on K-12, post-secondary, vocational, or some other form of learning institution. Health care groups have received USD 8.4 billion. (Donations may be designated for multiple focus areas; gifts to address education may also be counted as targeting health or other topics.) Outspoken on racial and gender issues, Scott made USD 7.5 billion in gifts to groups that focus on equity and justice.

Other takeaways from the data: — The vast majority of her disclosed giving — USD 8.9 billion — went to domestic issues. Globally focused groups received a little more than USD 1 billion. — Co-Impact, a collaborative of big philanthropists trying to improve the health and well-being of people globally, received the largest reported gift, USD 75 million. The next largest were: GiveDirectly (USD 60 million), the Hispanic Scholarship Fund, Prairie View, and Enterprise Community Partners (USD 50 million each). — Affiliates of large federated organisations collectively saw gifts of hundreds of millions, including United Ways, which received at least USD 625 million. Earlier this year, Habitat for Humanity announced USD 436 million in gifts from Scott to its network of groups — Her smallest gifts (USD 300,000) went to Junior Achievement of New Mexico, the Caribe Girl Scouts Council in Puerto Rico, and Junior Achievement of West Kentucky. • The average gift size was USD 9.2 million.