Spelman College Receives $16 Million Gift from the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation to Support Student Scholarships
ATLANTA, Oct. 14, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Spelman College is pleased to announce a $16.5 million gift from the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation to expand student scholarship support. The funding is part of a broader $50 million, 10-year scholarship commitment from the Blank Foundation to support students at Spelman, Clark Atlanta University, Morehouse College, and Morris Brown College.
This investment is dedicated exclusively to scholarships and will provide critical financial aid to Spelman juniors and seniors with the greatest financial need, ensuring they can complete their degrees and pursue their career goals without interruption. The decade-long commitment aligns directly with Goal 2 of Spelman's Strategic Plan, which prioritizes enhancing student access and success.
“We are profoundly grateful to the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation for this generous $16.5 million gift dedicated to student scholarships,” said Spelman Interim President Rosalind "Roz" Brewer. “This investment is a powerful affirmation of our shared belief that a world-class education should be accessible to all. For nearly 145 years, Spelman College has led the way in preparing our students for the world as they will shape it. As a recognized leader in student access and social mobility, we are committed to empowering every scholar who walks through our doors. This gift is a crucial investment that will significantly expand our ability to bridge the financial gap for students with the greatest financial need.”
The gift underscores the Blank Foundation’s commitment to educational equity and community uplift and reinforces Spelman's mission to develop leaders who will change the world.
The announcement comes on the heels of the Blank Foundation's public unveiling on October 13 of its $50 million total investment in Atlanta's Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). Spelman is profoundly grateful for this partnership and the doors it will open for future generations of Spelman scholars.
About Spelman College
Founded in 1881, Spelman College is a leading liberal arts college widely recognized as the global leader in the education of women of African descent. Located in Atlanta, the College’s picturesque campus is home to 2,300 students. Spelman is the country's leading producer of Black women who complete Ph.D.s in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). The College’s status is confirmed by the U.S. News & World Report, which ranked Spelman No. 39 among all liberal arts colleges, No. 30 for undergraduate teaching, No. 1 for social mobility among liberal arts colleges, and No. 1 for the 18th year among historically Black colleges and universities. Recent initiatives include a designation by the Department of Defense as a Center of Excellence for Minority Women in STEM, a Gender, and Sexuality Studies Institute, the first endowed queer studies chair at an HBCU and a program to increase the number of Black women Ph.D.s in economics. New majors and minors have been added, including documentary filmmaking and photography, data science, refugee studies and gaming. Collaborations have also been established with MIT’s Media Lab, the Broad Institute and the Army Research Lab for artificial intelligence and machine learning, among others.
Outstanding alumnae include Children’s Defense Fund founder Marian Wright Edelman, former Walgreens Boots Alliance CEO Rosalind Brewer, political leader Stacey Abrams, Federal Reserve Governor Lisa D. Cook, former Acting Surgeon General and Spelman’s first alumna president Audrey Forbes Manley, Harvard University professor and former Dean Evelynn Hammonds, actress and producer LaTanya Richardson Jackson, global bioinformatics geneticist Janina Jeff and authors Pearl Cleage and Tayari Jones.
To learn more, please visit spelman.edu and @spelmancollege on social media.
Brijea Daniel Spelman College brijeadaniel@spelman.edu
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