Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook, donates $100 million to Newark School System


It will be announced today on Oprah that Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg will donate $100 million to the Newark School System. This though the 26-year-old billionaire has no real ties to Newark! Zuckerberg was born in Westchester, NY and currently lives in California.

Zuckerberg -- who is said to be worth about $2 billion -- met Newark Mayor Cory A. Booker (Dem.) at a conference in July, and Zuckerberg became interested in Booker's stated plans for the school system. The two met a few more times, and an impressed Zuckerberg made the monetary pledge. It's not the first donation that the baby-faced executive has made, but it is his largest. Oprah Winfrey has also been a generous benefactor to the Newark School System in the past.



According to reports, Newark currently spends about $22,000 annually per student, yet only about 1/2 of it's 44,000 pupils graduate -- and only about 1/5 of those go on to college. And about 85 percent of Newark students attending community colleges need remedial math and english.

New Jersey Govenor Chris Christie will appear with Zuckerberg and Booker on Oprah to officially announce the donation.