Billionaire Michael Bloomberg Invests $10M to Build a Direct K–12 Pathway Into Alabama HBCUs

A significant investment from billionaire Michael Bloomberg is opening new doors for Black students in Alabama by bringing K–12 education directly onto the campuses of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), AfroTech reports. Both Bloomberg Philanthropies and the national education organization City Fund have donated $10 million each to support public charter schools designed to connect students with early college experiences at nearby HBCUs. The United Negro College Fund will serve as a key partner in the effort.

According to Forbes, the initiative will support two schools in Alabama’s Black Belt region, an area that has long faced limited access to high-quality public education. The first is the D.C. Wolfe Charter School in Shorter, a redevelopment of the former D.C. Wolfe Elementary School expected to open in fall 2026, just minutes from Tuskegee University. The second is I Dream Big Academy, which opened in August 2025 on the campus of Stillman College in Tuscaloosa.

Students at both schools will gain early exposure to college life through dual enrollment courses, engagement with university faculty, and community-based internships that help build academic readiness years before graduation. The goal is to normalize college pathways early and make HBCU environments a familiar part of students’ educational journeys.

“There are two schools that have been announced, and there are a few more in the pipeline that we’re really excited about,” Jasmine Jenkins, senior program officer for education and advocacy at Bloomberg Philanthropies, told Forbes.

“This is a continuation of the work that Mike Bloomberg and Bloomberg Philanthropies has been doing for over a decade — supporting high-quality public charter schools and supporting the work that historically Black colleges and universities have been doing for decades,” she added.

Bloomberg Philanthropies has consistently invested in initiatives that support Black students and HBCUs. In 2022, the organization donated $10 million to UNCF to help launch new charter school programs serving Black communities. In 2024, Bloomberg made a $600 million donation benefiting medical schools at four HBCUs.

The new $10 million commitment arrives during a powerful wave of philanthropic support for HBCUs nationwide. Over the past several months, historically Black institutions have received more than $800 million in new funding. That includes major unrestricted gifts from philanthropist MacKenzie Scott, such as $80 million to Howard University, $63 million to Morgan State University, $38 million to Spelman College, and $19 million to Dillard University, along with a $50 million commitment from businessman Arthur Blank. Bloomberg has also pledged $100 million in the past to reduce medical school debt at four HBCUs.

The stakes are high. A 2024 White House fact sheet reports that HBCUs produce 40 percent of Black engineers, 50 percent of Black teachers, 70 percent of Black doctors and dentists, and 80 percent of Black judges. Supporters of the Alabama initiative believe that giving students hands-on access to HBCU campuses earlier can make those pipelines even stronger.

At Stillman College, the impact of I Dream Big Academy is already being felt. “Middle school students have access to field and faculty experiences on campus, and when they reach ninth grade, they’ll be able to enroll in dual-enrollment courses at Stillman,” Stillman President Yolanda Page told reporters. “This puts them on the path to their degree earlier than they had anticipated.”

With Alabama only passing public charter legislation in 2015, the expansion of high-quality charter schools is expected to be especially meaningful in the state’s Black Belt communities. By blending K–12 education with the legacy and resources of HBCUs, this new model offers a hopeful blueprint for how early access, investment, and intention can reshape educational outcomes for the next generation.

Cover photo: Billionaire Michael Bloomberg Invests $10M to Build a Direct K–12 Pathway Into Alabama HBCUs/Photo credit: Stillman College