The multimillion-dollar gift is especially notable for its size: It’s reportedly the largest individual gift in support of student scholarships at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).

Philanthropic gifts of this magnitude have the potential to narrow the long-running endowment gap that exists between white and Black colleges and universities.

Morehouse College president Dr. David A. Thomas spoke to Atlanta Black Star about the donation, and about the larger-scale implications of wealth inequality for higher education.

While the donation was unexpected, Thomas credited the billionaire couple’s burgeoning financial support of Morehouse College as having grown from the strong relationship Morehouse, Hastings and Quillin formed over the past two years.

Adding that HBCUs “need the level of support other institutions have gotten for years,” Thomas said he hopes this gift will draw individuals, corporations and foundations to support other Black colleges in the future.