OVERVIEW: Sarofim Foundation’s grantmaking supports education, human services, and arts and culture. Giving mainly serves the greater Houston area.
IP TAKE: According to IP’s Michael Kavate, the Sarofim Foundation is set to ramp up its giving thanks to a bequest of over $1 billion from the estate of its late founder, the billionaire Fayez Sarofim. As of yet, the foundation has not announced any major changes in its thematic or geographic areas of focus, so we can expect Houston-area organizations to be the largest beneficiaries. The foundation’s current president, Ryan Dolibois, comes from K-12 education, so this may be a main area of expanded giving in the near future. So far, Sarofim prefers a proactive approach to grantmaking and does not accept unsolicited proposals, but keep up with foundation staff on LinkedIn and check the website for updates.
PROFILE: The Sarofim Foundation was established by billionaire financier Fayez Sarofim, who died in May 2022. The foundation aims to “tackle complex challenges with relentless optimism” and “build on Houston’s philanthropic heritage to create positive and lasting impact.” Born in Egypt, Fayez Sarofim was heir to a fortune his family made in the cotton industry in Egypt. He established Fayez Sarofim & Co. in Houston in 1958, and it has become one of the largest and oldest privately-owned investment consulting firms in the United States. He established the Sarofim Foundation prior to his death “in gratitude for the opportunities this country and Houston provided him as an emigrant from his native Egypt.” That said, this is not the first Sarofim Foundation. In the 1970s, Kavate notes, Sarofim created a “personal trust under his name that gave modestly for decades, averaging just under $2 million a year by the end of his life. But his will directed the transfer of its assets, totalling $28 million, to the new organization.” Sarofim’s son Christopher serves on the board of the latest foundation. The Sarofim Foundation’s grantmaking mainly stays in Texas, where its areas of interest include the arts, education, health and human services.
Grants K-12 and Higher Education
Education has been a main area of focus for the Sarofim foundation, accounting for more than half of its overall giving. According to recent coverage of the foundation by IP’s Michael Kavate, education will figure prominently in the foundation’s future work.
- Even prior to the establishment of the Sarofim Foundation, the family strongly supported K-12 education in the Houston area.
- Sarofims ‘s widow, Susan Sarofim, co-founded TEACH to provide Houston Independent School District educators with enhanced skills to teach at-risk students.
- The foundation’s current president, Ryan Dolibois, was previously vice president at YES Public Schools, a Houston-area charter network that receives ongoing support.
- Other K-12 grants have gone to Houston schools including St. Thomas High School, St. John’s School and the Christo Rey Jesuit College Preparatory School.
- Higher education giving has been more substantial over the years.
- In his lifetime, Sarofim provided millions in support to Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas, whose school of fine arts bears his name.
- More recently, the foundation pledged $10 million to Princeton University, Christopher Sarofim’s alma mater.
- Other higher education recipients include Harvard University, Rice University and the University of St. Thomas in Houston.
Grants for Arts and Culture
Houston-area arts organizations are another major focus for the Sarofim Foundation, with grants supporting several of the area’s landmark venues and institutions.
- Sarofim was a longtime patron of Museum of Fine Arts Houston. In addition to annual donations of $100,000 or more, the museum received a $70 million gift in 2015 to expand its campus.
- Other grantees include the Houston Ballet, the Houston Grand Opera, the Contemporary Arts Museum of Houston, the Children’s Museum of Houston and the Alley Theatre, among others.
Grants for Public Health
Houston-area hospitals and health systems have received steady support from Sarofim during his lifetime and continue to receive funding from the foundation.
- Sarofim gave $25 million to Memorial Hermann to support the construction of the Susan and Fayez Sarofim Pavilion, which opened in 2020.
- A gift of $120 million financed the Fayez S. and Susan K. Sarofim Research Building at the University of Texas’s McGovern Medical School.
- Other past grantees grantees include New York’s Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Baylor College of Medicine, the Texas Children’s Hospital and Cancer Center, the Bellville Hospital Foundation and the Harris County Hospital District Foundation.
Grants for Housing, Homelessness and Human Services
Human services has been a somewhat smaller area of giving for the Sarofim Foundation, but several Houston-area organizations do receive support.
- The United Way of Greater Houston regularly receives funding in the hundreds of thousands each year.
- Other grantees include the Houston Food Bank, Star of Hope Mission, the Beacon and the Society of St. Vincent de Paul.
Important Grant Details:
Sarofim’s grants range form $2,500 to about $810,000, although gifts for special projects have been awarded in the millions. In a recent year, the foundation made about $3.6 million in grants.
- Expect this foundation’s giving to ramp up in the coming years, as it reportedly received a bequest of more than $1 billion from the estate of its founder.
- Giving mainly stays in the Houston area and goes to well-established organizations, many of which receive ongoing support.
- The foundation does not accept unsolicited proposals at this time.
- Reach out to the Sarofim Foundation via email at info@sarofimfoundation.org or see its LinkedIn page.
- A mailing address and phone number are provided below:
Sarofim Foundation
Two Houston Center, Suite 2907
Houston, TX 77010(713) 276-1400
PEOPLE:
Search for staff contact info and bios in PeopleFinder (paid subscribers only.)
LINKS:
