MacKenzie Scott facts for kids

MacKenzie Scott (born April 7, 1970) is an American novelist and a very generous giver, known as a philanthropist. She was also one of the first people to help build Amazon. From 1993 to 2019, she was married to Jeff Bezos, who co-founded Amazon.

As of July 2025, MacKenzie Scott is one of the richest people in the world. She has a net worth of about US$41.9 billion. This wealth comes from her ownership in Amazon. She is the third-wealthiest woman in the United States. In 2020, Time magazine named her one of the 100 most influential people. Forbes also listed her as one of the world's 100 most powerful women in 2021 and 2023.

In 2006, Scott won an American Book Award for her first novel, The Testing of Luther Albright. Her second novel, Traps, came out in 2013. She also started an organization called Bystander Revolution in 2014. This group works to stop bullying. MacKenzie Scott has promised to give away at least half of her wealth to charity. She has already given billions of dollars to many different organizations.

Early Life and Education

MacKenzie Scott Tuttle was born on April 7, 1970, in San Francisco, California. Her mother was a homemaker, and her father was a financial planner. She has two brothers.

MacKenzie loved writing from a young age. She remembers writing a 142-page book called The Book Worm when she was just six years old. Sadly, this book was lost in a flood.

In 1988, she finished high school at the Hotchkiss School in Lakeville, Connecticut. She then went to Princeton University, where she earned a bachelor's degree in English in 1992. At Princeton, she studied creative writing with the famous author Toni Morrison. Morrison said that MacKenzie was "one of the best students" she ever taught.

Career Highlights

After college, MacKenzie Scott worked as a research assistant for Toni Morrison. She helped Morrison with her 1992 novel, Jazz. Later, she worked in New York City at a company called D. E. Shaw. This is where she met Jeff Bezos.

Building Amazon

In 1993, MacKenzie and Jeff Bezos got married. The next year, they moved to Seattle. Jeff Bezos then started Amazon, and MacKenzie was a big help. She was one of the first people to work there.

MacKenzie was very involved in Amazon's early days. She helped with the company's name and its business plan. She also managed accounts and helped ship orders. She even helped get Amazon's first shipping contract. After 1996, she focused more on her writing and raising her family.

Writing Books

In 2005, MacKenzie Scott published her first novel. It was called The Testing of Luther Albright. She won an American Book Award for it in 2006. She said it took her ten years to write this book. This was because she was also helping to build Amazon and raise her children.

Her former professor, Toni Morrison, praised the book. Morrison called it "a rarity: a sophisticated novel that breaks and swells the heart." MacKenzie's second novel, Traps, was published in 2013.

Personal Life

At a naturalization ceremony on June 14, 2016 (center in the back)

MacKenzie Scott met Jeff Bezos in 1992. They were both working at D. E. Shaw. After dating for three months, they got married. In 1994, they moved to Seattle, Washington. They have four children together: three sons and one daughter, who was adopted.

In 2019, MacKenzie and Jeff Bezos divorced. MacKenzie received a large amount of Amazon stock. This made her one of the wealthiest women in the world. After her divorce, she changed her last name to Scott. This name comes from her middle name given at birth.

In 2021, MacKenzie Scott married Dan Jewett. He was a science teacher at Lakeside School. Their marriage was announced when Jewett joined the Giving Pledge. However, in September 2022, Scott filed for divorce. Their divorce was finalized in January 2023.

Giving to Charity

In May 2019, MacKenzie Scott joined The Giving Pledge. This is a promise by wealthy people to give away most of their money to charity. She has committed to donating most of her wealth during her lifetime or in her will.

In July 2020, Scott announced she had given $1.7 billion to 116 non-profit groups. These groups focused on things like racial equality, LGBTQ+ equality, and climate change. She gave over $800 million to colleges that serve Black, Hispanic, and Native American students.

In December 2020, she gave another $4.15 billion to 384 organizations. These donations helped people affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. They also worked to fix long-term unfairness in society. Her total giving in 2020 was $5.8 billion. This was one of the largest amounts ever given by one person to charities in a single year.

Scott continued her giving in June 2021, donating $2.7 billion to 286 organizations. By July 2021, she had given $8.5 billion to 780 groups in just one year. In February 2022, she gave $264.5 million to nine organizations. This included $15 million to the Association for Women's Rights in Development. .....

In May 2022, the Big Brothers, Big Sisters foundation received $122.6 million from Scott. She has also given money to groups in Kenya, India, Brazil, and Latin America. By April 2022, her total donations since 2019 were over $12 billion. In September 2022, she donated two of her homes in Beverly Hills, worth $55 million, to the California Community Foundation. This foundation helps with affordable housing and immigrant programs.

In October 2022, Scott gave $84.5 million to Girl Scouts of the USA. This was the largest donation from an individual in the organization's history. By November 2022, she had given almost $14 billion to 1500 organizations.

In March 2023, Scott announced an "open call" for small non-profit groups. She planned to give $1 million to 250 groups. However, she ended up giving much more. In March 2024, she donated $640 million to 361 small non-profits. Many received $2 million each, and others received $1 million. In 2023, she donated nearly $2.2 billion to 360 organizations. These groups supported early learning, affordable housing, and fairness for different races and genders. She also gave $5 million to help with recovery from the Maui wildfires. As of December 2023, Scott had donated over $16 billion. By March 2024, her donations reached $17.2 billion.

In December 2024, Scott shared a new approach. She began investing her wealth in companies that are working to solve big problems in society. She wants her giving to support ventures that align with her goals.

Many people have praised MacKenzie Scott's way of giving. The New York Times noted that she gives her money quickly and without much fuss. This helps focus attention on the non-profit groups themselves. Scott believes that the people working directly on challenges know best how to use the money. Her donations have helped many organizations raise even more money from other donors. In December 2022, she launched a website called Yield Giving. This site shares details about her donations.

See also

In Spanish: MacKenzie Scott para niños

• List of Princeton University alumni