Charles Barkley, the oft-outspoken NBA legend and TNT basketball analyst, is the latest in what has been a recent string of celebrities to make a donation to an HBCU.
Barkley, who has previously pledged donations to Alabama A&M and Clark Atlanta, said he will donate $1 million to Spelman College.
The “Inside the NBA” co-host explained he was inspired to contribute to the school after witnessing the impact the institution had on the daughter of his friend and business partner John Hudson, Al.com reported.
“John has been a great mentor, a great friend, and a great business partner,” Barkley told the newspaper. “I was ready to do another HBCU and with his daughter doing great things at Spelman, so I told him, ‘Why not there?’”
Also read: Meet the 10 celebrities who made donations to HBCUs other than Howard University
In 2016, Barkley pledged $1 million each to Alabama A&M in Huntsville and Clark Atlanta In 2017, he pledged $1 million to Morehouse College In 2020, he pledged $1 million each to Miles College and Tuskegee University.
Barkley is the more recent high-profile figure to engage in HBCU philanthropy. Last month, Sean “P. Diddy” Combs pledged to donate $1 million each to Howard University and Jackson State. Rapper Ja Rule pledged to donate proceeds from NFT sales to several HBCUs.
