Panthers owner David Tepper has made his second big donation this week to a college in his area.
Wednesday, Tepper and his wife Nicole announced a $250,000 gift to Johnson C. Smith University, a historically black college in Charlotte.
The donation is for students overcoming financial hardship in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, and Nicole Tepper said it was the beginning of a partnership.
“This is an important first step in our relationship with Johnson C. Smith,” Nicole Tepper said in a statement. “I’ve visited the university and met with President [Clarence] Armbrister. We want to make a difference.”
The funds will be used to help students whose families were impacted by the loss of jobs during the pandemic, so they can return to school this fall.
“We are elated the Teppers chose to invest in the students at Johnson C. Smith University,” Armbrister said. “The donation to the University affirms their commitment to minority students in the Charlotte community and beyond. The continued success of historically Black universities like JCSU is at a critical point.
“Partnerships like this are essential to sustaining HBCUs which are educating the next generation of leaders in the workplace and in the community. With COVID-19’s significantly disproportionate impact on people of color, these scholarship funds could not have been donated at a better time for our students.”
Earlier this week, Tepper made a donation to the University of South Carolina’s Department of Sport and Entertainment Management.
