OVERVIEW: The Sacks Family Foundation’s grantmaking includes support of educational and arts institutions. To a lesser extent, it has supported Jewish causes, policy development, health and human services.
IP TAKE: The Sacks Family Foundation is helmed by a couple with “deep roots in the financial industry and in the Chicago area.” Unfortunately, it lacks transparency and keeps a low public profile, which limits information available on its grantmaking priorities and activities. It also only makes grants to preselected organizations, which, coupled with its lack of website and a clear way to get in touch, means grantseekers will have their work cut out for them here. Networking may be the best way to get on this couple’s radar.
PROFILE: Founded in 2001 and based in Highland Park, the Sacks Family Foundation was established by Cari and Michael Sacks, Grosvenor Capital Management CEO Michael Sacks. Sacks serves as vice-chairman of World Business Chicago and the couple’s giving prioritizes the Chicago area. Michael J. Sacks was born in Chicago and received a B.A. in economics from Tulane University in 1984, as well as an MBA and a J.D. from Northwestern University. He also attended London School of Economics. He spent two years at Harris Associates, L.P. and joined Grosvenor Capital Management in 1990, where he was named the firm’s managing partner in 1994.
While the foundation is not transparent about its grantmaking practices, tax filings suggest that its priorities include education, the arts, Jewish causes, health and human services.
Grants for Education
Sacks’s education grantmaking includes a $5 million gift early in the decade to Northwestern University and a $1 million gift to the Art Institute of Chicago for the creation of need-based Sacks Family Scholarships. In K-12 education, the foundation also endowed college scholarships for Chicago Public Schools (CPS) graduates.
The foundation has given millions to Start Early, an early childhood development and welfare organization. Other Chicago education groups that have seen support include University of Chicago, Bernard Zell Anshe Emet Day School, GCE Lab School, and Erikson Institute, home to the Cari B. Sacks Scholarship.
Grants for Arts and Culture
The Sacks family are art collectors and Cari Sacks co-founded Curate App, an art-centric mobile app that allows users to see what any work of art would look like on their walls. Their arts giving reflects this interest. Many of the foundation’s grantees are Chicago area museums, including Museum of Contemporary Art, where Cari Sacks is a trustee and the Field Museum, where Sacks serves on the board. Other museums that have seen support include Chicago Children’s Museum, Institute of Contemporary Art Los Angeles, Art Institute of Chicago, and Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center.
Beyond museums, the foundation has also given to Focus on the Arts, The Art Center Highland Park, Harris Theater for Music and Dance, JFK Center for the Performing Arts, Open Studio Project, and Steppenwolf Theatre Company.
Grants for Health
In health, the family foundation has given significant support to Northwestern Memorial Healthcare. Other grantees include Planned Parenthood of Illinois, Digestive Health Foundation, The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, Lynn Sage Breast Cancer Foundation, American Cancer Society of Illinois, The Orphan Disease Pathway Project, and Michael Rolfe Pancreatic Cancer Foundation.
Grants for Jewish Causes
The Sacks have also supported Jewish organizations across the country. The most prominent of these is the Jewish United Fund of Metropolitan Chicago, which as received millions in support. Other grantees include Jewish Council for Youth Services, Birthright Israel Foundation, Bernard Zell Anshe Emet Day School, Survivors of the Shoah Visual History Foundation, and National Jewish Health in Chicago.
Grants for Democracy
Policy is not a very large funding area, but Sacks has given at least $7 million to the Barack Obama Foundation and over $3 million to the Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation over the years.
Important Grant Details
Most Sacks grants range from $500 to $720,000, but the most common amount is $25,000. The foundation gave away more than $6.8 million in a recent year.
- Per a recent IRS Form 990, the foundation accepts letters of inquiry, which should include the name of organization, mission statement, amount requested and contact information.
- The foundation’s phone number is 312-506-6501.
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CONTACT:
Sacks Family Foundation
1850 2nd St., Ste. 201
Highland Park, IL 60035-3176
(312) 506-6501
