LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Communities In Schools of Nevada says it has received a $5 million donation from philanthropist MacKenzie Scott -- the largest one-time gift it has ever received.
Scott is the ex-wife of Jeff Bezos and helped build Amazon. Forbes estimates her net worth is around $47.5 billion.
Scott's donation reaches far wider than Nevada, though. According to a press release from CIS of Nevada, the national Communities In Schools Network and its national office received a total of $133.5 million from the philanthropist.
$5 million is what was allocated to the CIS of Nevada, which is one of 40 affiliates of the 110 organizations in the CIS Network selected to receive funding. It's also the fifth-largest state office of the national organization.
“We are beyond grateful to be named a recipient of this generous gift from MacKenzie Scott,” wrote CEO and State Director of CIS of Nevada Tami Hance-Lehr in a press release. She continued:
“Through our evidence-based approach to ensuring kids stay in school, led by the work of our caring and trusted site coordinators on school campuses, we are mobilizing our state’s resources to surround students with a community of support. Through their thorough research, Ms. Scott and her team were inspired to invest having seen our proven success serving students across the country along with our ability and emphasis of creating educational and racial equity. It’s not only a great day for Communities In Schools. It’s a great day for every Nevadan who cares about our children’s success, and for the thousands of students and families we serve statewide.”
Communities In Schools is a national organization dedicated to preventing dropouts and helping students of all backgrounds overcome obstacles and succeed.
CIS Nevada operates in 81 high-needs schools across four rural and urban school districts throughout Nevada. The organization places full-time site coordinators in enrolled schools to support more than 75,000 students considered at high risk for dropout.
Learn more on cisnevada.org.
