Some Criticize Jay-Z Over $300M Philly Scholarship Fund
Why is Jay-Z receiving backlash after setting up a $300 million scholarship fund? Some people aren’t too happy with Roc Nation’s latest move. The philanthropic effort has been criticized by politicians and members of the public for allegedly undermining public schools in favor of private education.
As some on social media have noted, the program supported by Roc Nation is not so much “securing scholarships” as funneling public funds to Pennsylvania’s private and charter schools.
One critic Just to be clear for those not in Pennsylvania, the legislation Jay-Z is supporting here is a Republican-led effort to gut public education, spearheaded by future Trump cabinet member Jeffrey Yass. https://t.co/BURqIa3sJZ
Several people were quick to point out that this effort is being led by conservative lawmakers and activists in the state, including billionaire businessman Jeff Yass. Yass, who’s from Pennsylvania, has made the school choice his number one issue, according to CNBC.
The billionaire TikTok investor is a major funder of groups like the conservative Commonwealth Foundation, that have advocated for the PASS program, which would fund vouchers to allow students from underprivileged communities to attend charter and private schools.
Another person said, “Whether Jay-Z or the upper-middle-class family on the block: if you have resources and don’t allocate them to local public schools, you are making a moral and political choice. Taking children out of public schools in favor of private IS PRECISELY what hurts the most vulnerable.”
Similar voucher plans, like Arizona’s voucher program, have faced backlash for failing in their promises to cut costs and to benefit underprivileged students.
Longtime education reporter Nikole Hannah-Jones helped to explain on X why favorable reports about Jay-Z’s involvement were misguided. “It is a lie that these programs do not take from public-school funding. Fewer kids in the classroom means fewer dollars to the school,” she posted. “This is a windfall to the city’s private schools at the expense of the public ones that most kids attend.”
Jay-Z has been very active in philanthropy.
Last year, Jay-Z raised $20 million for college students. The rapper’s Shawn Carter Foundation hosted a black-tie gala in New York City to celebrate its 20-year anniversary, where it raised money to assist those facing socio-economic hardships realize their “educational ambitions.”
The Shawn Carter Foundation was co-founded in 2003 by JAY-Z and his mother, Gloria Carter, and has provided students with college scholarships and tours to historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs), study abroad opportunities, wealth-building programs, and more for underserved youth and families from disenfranchised communities.
