A $70 million donation could help tribal colleges in Michigan as growing funding gaps pose challenges.
The American Indian College Fund announced in late October that philanthropist Mackenzie Scott, an early contributor to Amazon and ex-wife to founder Jeff Bezos, donated millions to fund the organization’s seven-year plan to strengthen higher education.
Saginaw Chippewa Tribal College President Carla Sineway said funding to the College Fund can help students in Mount Pleasant succeed through scholarships and grants.
“The focus right now is student success and making sure the students have help beyond the classroom,” she said.
Scott’s $70 million donation is the largest investment the College Fund has received in five years. Her funding comes as tribal colleges deal with funding challenges from the federal government and a slow down in philanthropic support.
In his 2027 budget proposal, President Donald Trump seeks to cut over $300 million from minority-serving institutions like historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) and tribal universities and colleges (TCUs).
This is the second year in a row the administration has proposed steep cuts to Native American higher education programs despite Congress’s historic promises to fund tribal colleges.
“We don't get the same benefits that other colleges have,” Sineway said. “We don't have a tax base… All of our funding is soft money.”
Sineway said that the 2025 federal government shutdown, the longest in the nation’s history, put the college’s programs “into a crunch.”
“People need to really understand that tribal colleges are a hub of the community and are a place where maybe this is the first time a student has felt good about education,” she said.
Cheryl Crazy Bull, president and CEO of the American Indian College Fund, thanked Scott for her donation in a statement.
“This gift gives us more very welcome resources to build on our history of success with supporting Native students and tribal communities,” Crazy Bull wrote. “By pairing scholarships with culturally relevant support programs and institutions, Native students graduate and enter careers to serve their communities.”
