Travis Scott has announced $1 million in scholarships for 100 students graduating from HBCUs in 2022.
The cash comes from Scott’s Cactus Jack Foundation and the Waymon Webster Scholarship Fund, which is giving $10,000 scholarships to Black seniors facing financial adversity. This is Scott’s second year offering the award, which will be distributed among students at 38 different schools. The students awarded have a 3.5 or higher GPA and the scholarship is named after Waymon Webster, Scott’s grandfather.
“Excellence abounds in every Black household, but too often opportunity does not – and Black students are left behind or counted out,” Scott said in a release. “So that’s what my family and I set out to change. We congratulate all 100 scholarship recipients this year. I know we will see great things from them—and we are already looking forward to increasing our work next year.”
The scholarships are going to students at colleges like Prairie View A&M University—Webster’s alma mater—Alabama A&M University, Central State University, Florida A&M, Jackson State, Morehouse College, Texas Southern, and more. Project manager Jordan Webster—sister of Scott—graduated from Howard University this semester and said her brother’s contribution “means the world” to the students who’ve been awarded.
“I know personally how deeply important my grandfather’s academic legacy at HBCUs is to my entire family—to Travis, as well as my twin brother Josh who is at Prairie View A&M University—and now, to 100 people that Travis has been able to help out at a tough time,” she shared in the same release. “It means the world to me to be able to work with my brother as he creates hope and makes a real difference for our peers and their families.”
Daniel Moss, executive director of the HBCU Foundation, said the award was a “tremendously thoughtful gesture” that should “pay infinite dividends into our communities for decades to come.” Recipients include Nisha Encarnacion of Florida A&M University, Chisom Okwor of Fisk University, and Jordan Massey of North Carolina Central University.
“I believe that this scholarship money will allow me to repay some of [my] debts and just really help alleviate some of that stress off of my family during such a stressful time,” Massey, who thanked Scott for the award, said in a video. “It’s been a very taxing four years so this is much appreciated.”
