Robert F. Smith is a businessman whose fortune is estimated at $ 4.4 billion. He has donated some $ 40 million to pay off the student debt of the 2019 class at the American University of Morehouse in the United States.
Robert F. Smith made the announcement at the graduation ceremony for university students. He told them that he was going to pay all their debts: about forty million dollars in all. This is the largest donation in the history of the university, attended by Martin Luther King Jr., director Spike Lee and comedian Samuel L. Jackson. “This is my promotion,” said the businessman, who was at the ceremony to receive an honorary degree. Who continued, “I know that my promotion will perpetuate this action and help improve the lives of other black Americans.”
Smith, a graduate of the prestigious Cornell and Columbia Universities, became the richest African-American in 2015 for Forbes magazine. His fortune exceeds that of the famous and influential Oprah Winfrey – who also gave to Morehouse.
The staggering cost of university education in the United States, and the growing number of people unable to repay their debts, have made the student loan issue a national affair.
