Junior Achievement of North Florida Receives $800,000 Gift from Philanthropist MacKenzie Scott

(Jacksonville, Fla.) – Junior Achievement of North Florida announced today that has received a gift of $800,000 from philanthropist MacKenzie Scott. It is part of a total of $38.8 million donated to Junior Achievement USA and JA operations in 26 communities across the country. This is the largest gift from a single donor in the organization’s 103-year history.

“We greatly appreciate the incredible generosity of MacKenzie Scott for this amazing gift to our organization,” said Shannon Italia, President of Junior Achievement of North Florida. “We see this investment as a recognition of all the great work taking place in our community because of the passion and commitment of the business leaders, educators, volunteers, and other partners who support Junior Achievement locally. This donation will allow us to make even better use of other community investments to positively impact the lives of the young people we serve.”

Junior Achievement of North Florida will be using its portion of the gift to scale their impact in the region and accelerate the timeline on launching an integrated program model that provides young people with a pathway to work readiness and financial literacy.

About Junior Achievement of North Florida

We envision a world where young people have the skillset and mindset to build thriving communities. Junior Achievement is the world’s largest organization dedicated to giving young people the knowledge and skills they need to own their economic success, plan for their future, and make smart academic and economic choices. Our volunteers, educators and supporters inspire and prepare students to succeed through learning experiences that focus on critical life skills that are not always taught in schools including workforce readiness, entrepreneurship and financial literacy. Since 1963, Junior Achievement of North Florida has been delivering JA learning experiences that help young people reach their potential. To learn more about Junior Achievement of North Florida, visit www.janfl.org.