MacKenzie Scott donates $2.7B to 286 organizations, some in the Houston area

HOUSTON - MacKenzie Scott, the billionaire philanthropist known for her impromptu multi-billion dollar donations to charities and racial equity causes, announced Tuesday that she has given $2.7 billion to 286 organizations.

Some of the organizations that received donations are from the greater Houston area and Southeast Texas, including Brazosport College, Project Row Houses and San Jacinto Community College. Click here for the full list.

Scott, the ex-wife of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, wrote in a Medium post that she and her husband, Dan Jewett, made the donations to enable the recipients to continue their work and as a "signal of trust and encouragement" to them and others.

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And she made clear in her announcement that she is troubled by the increasing concentration of vast wealth among a small proportion of individuals. She and Jewett worked with a team of researchers and philanthropy advisors "to give away a fortune that was enabled by systems in need of change."

It is the third round of major philanthropic gifts Scott has made, which together rival the charitable contributions made by the largest foundations.

In 2020, Scott made two similar surprise announcements in which she donated a combined $6 billion to COVID-19 relief, gender equity, historically Black colleges and universities and other schools.

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In December, Scott gave a record-setting $50 million donation to Prairie View A&M University. She also gave a record-setting $18 million gift to the YMCA of Greater Houston. Other Houston-area organizations she donated to last year include Easter Seals of Greater Houston and Goodwill Houston.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.