Lucas to give $4 billion from Disney to education

The Force, it seems, is with education.

George Lucas, who this week agreed to sell his Star Wars franchise to The Walt Disney Company, disclosed that he intends to donate the bulk of the proceeds to a foundation focused mainly on education issues.

The Hollywood Reporter says it’s not yet clear which foundation will get the proceeds. Lucas is currently the chairman of Edutopia,  part of the George Lucas Educational Foundation. He could put money into that or create a new vehicle.

The Foundation was the vehicle Lucas used to make a $175 million donation to his alma mater USC in 2006.

“For 41 years, the majority of my time and money has been put into the company,” Lucas said in a statement Wednesday. “As I start a new chapter in my life, it is gratifying that I have the opportunity to devote more time and resources to philanthropy.”

Lucas has made other generous donations to show his commitment to education in the past, the Huffington Post said. In a 2010 letter for the Giving Pledge, the effort by Bill and Melinda Gates and Warren Buffett to encourage billionaires to give their riches to philanthropy, Lucas wrote:

“I am dedicating the majority of my wealth to improving education. It is the key to the survival of the human race. We have to plan for our collective future –- and the first step begins with the social, emotional, and intellectual tools we provide to our children.

“As humans, our greatest tool for survival is our ability to think and to adapt – as educators, storytellers, and communicators our responsibility is to continue to do so.”