Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell is giving back to his old community, donating $12 million to the Greenwich Country Day School in Connecticut for scholarships and a new gym for the school. Donovan and his sister Jordan Mitchell both attended the school and his mother, Nicole Mitchell, taught there from 2007 to 2019. All three were involved in the donation.
Mitchell just signed a contract extension worth up to $196 million with the Jazz. He called the extension “life changing,” and while the money will change his life, he wanted to impact others with it as well.
The scholarships will assist low-income students so they can attend. There will also be a yearly “faculty support fund” given to select teachers, as well as the new gym.
Mitchell tweeted his excitement of being able to help the school. He said:
“Man this means so much to me! Not just building a brand new gym but giving scholarships to less fortunate kids who normally wouldn’t have the opportunity to attend private school!”
The gym will be named the D.O.N.! The Determination Over Negativity Mitchell Family Athletic Center and is described as “state-of-the-art.” It will have a NCAA-regulation court and stands on each side.
The Mitchell Family Scholarship Fund “will help GCDS remain a leader in providing need-based aid for students in grades Nursery through 12.”
The Nicole Mitchell Faculty Support Fund “will be given to a teacher in each division (4) in the school who have been at GCDS for at least 3 years, and have demonstrated the ‘passion, enthusiasm, optimism, and love for children always shown by Nicole Mitchell.'”
The school says the gifts will allow them to reward the hard work of teachers and make their school more accessible to students.
Head of School Adam Rohdie said in a statement, “These two funds perfectly highlight Donovan’s understanding of the power of a great education. This gift will allow GCDS to reach an even broader cross-section of students and it allows us to celebrate those teachers that make the magic at our school every day.”
The school says this donation is the largest single gift in school history.
Mitchell attended the school from third to ninth grade.
