TV personality and comedian Steve Harvey vowed to pay tuition for eight incoming freshman from his alma mater in Ohio.
Speaking to students from Kent State University in late June, Harvey told the incoming group of freshman, “almighty God has a plan for you,” promising to “cover the total cost of attendance” for eight kids.
The funding for the tuition is coming from the Steve and Marjorie Harvey Foundation, working in collaboration with Kent State. In order for the students to keep the funding, though, they have to maintain a 2.5 grade point average, according to The Christian Post.
“Don’t blow this shot,” Harvey said, adding, “This is a really, really cool moment for me. I want y’all to take advantage of this, man. Do something with yourself. Don’t blow this shot.”
He continued, “There’s a lot of people out here that will not get a shot like this. … I can’t tell you how many black kids in that area, up there, northeast Ohio, thousands.”
The 62-year-old talk show host went on to tell the new Kent State students just how blessed they are to receive the scholarship funding from his foundation, telling them their eight names just “got pulled out of the sky.”
Their scholarships — amounting to about $23,000 per student — are in memory of Devin Moore, a Kent State student who died suddenly in 2017 while playing basketball on campus.
Harvey ’s charitable foundation also gave $10,000 to the college’s Male Empowerment Network, which has a stated mission “to support the academic, professional, social, and personal development of men of color at Kent State University.”
One student, Zethran, told Harvey the money will allow him to “push myself past the limits I created for myself.”