This post was written by Hatchet reporter Lauren Grady. 

Mexican business mogul Carlos Slim will fund five scholarships for GW’s graduate programs to bolster the academic success of students from his native country.

It’s the first time the University announced that Slim, a Mexican telecommunications magnate who has been the target of campus protests, has donated to GW.

Slim, worth an estimated $68.5 billion, will pay tuition for top Mexican prospective graduate students to study in the University’s advanced business, engineering or international affairs programs.

“The Carlos Slim Foundation Scholars program embodies Mr. Slim’s commitment to empowering Mexican youth through education,” University President Steven Knapp said in a release Wednesday.

University spokeswoman Michelle Sherrard did not immediately return request for comment on the total sum of Slim’s gift.

Awardees, who will make up the first class of the Carlos Slim Foundation Scholars program, will be chosen based on academic success and leadership ability. Only 16 graduate students came to GW from Mexico last year.

The program will provide students with intensive leadership training and access to international and U.S. leaders. The University now is searching for an executive director for the program.

But Forbes also named him one of the biggest philanthropists last year, giving $4 billion to his charity Fundación Carlos Slim.

The University handed Slim an honorary degree at Commencement last May, which drew dozens of picketers to the National Mall to push back against his alleged monopoly power in the country.

In 2009, the University awarded Slim the President’s Medal, citing his philanthropy and leadership.