OVERVIEW: The Firoz and Najma Lalji Foundation supports business education, arts and culture and health, working mainly in the Seattle area.
IP TAKE: The Firoz and Najma Lalji Foundation tends to stick with a small corps of grantees year after year. This funder maintains a low profile and does not accept applications for funding. A connection to the family or a past grantee might be the only way in here.
PROFILE: The Firoz and Najma Lalji Foundation was founded in 2007 by businessman Firoz Lalji and his wife, Najma. Firoz Lalji co-founded Zones Inc., a Seattle-based global provider of IT products and solutions to businesses. The foundation does not maintain a website, which limits information available on its grantmaking priorities and activities. According to tax filings, the Firoz and Najma Lalji Foundation primarily funds grantmaking related to higher education, as well health and arts and culture in the Seattle area.
Grants for Higher Education
Higher education appears to be a main are of focus for the Lalji Foundation. Grantmaking focuses on business education at the London School of Economics and the University of Washington’s Foster School of Business.
- Firoz Lalji is a graduate of the London School of Economics and served as the chair of the school’s North American Board. LSE is home to the Firoz Lalji Institute for Africa and the Firoz Lalji Global Hub.
- The foundation provides ongoing support to the Foster School of Business, where Firoz serves on the advisory board. Support has gone to the Consulting and Business Development Center, which focuses on “structural barriers that disproportionately affect under-represented minority owned businesses as well as businesses in rural, urban, and suburban communities with historically high unemployment rates.”
Grants for Arts and Culture
Lalji’s arts and culture giving has increased in recent years, with grants staying in the foundation’s home state of Washington. Firoz has served as a trustee for the Pacific Northwest Ballet, which receives ongoing support. Other arts grantees include the Seattle Art Museum and the the Gage Academy of Art.
Grants for Public Health
Lalji’s does not name specific priorities for its health giving. Grants support Bellevue’s Overlake Hospital Foundation and the Lion’s Gate Hospital Foundation in Canada.
Important Grant Details:
Grants range from $2,500 to around $120,000.
- This funder does not make many grants each year and appears to support a small corps of grantees steadily.
- With only a few exceptions, grants stay in Washington.
- The foundation does not accept unsolicited applications for funding.
- For additional information see the foundation’s tax filings.
The foundation keeps a low profile and does not provide a way to get in touch. Its phone number is listed as (425) 505-2513.
PEOPLE:
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CONTACT:
The Firoz and Najma Lalji Foundation
10655 NE 44th Street Rm/Ste 700
Bellevue, WA 98004
(425) 505-2513
