Serena Williams Foundation/Serena Ventures
/OVERVIEW: The American tennis star Serena Williams philanthropic vehicles include the Serena Williams Fund and Serena Ventures. While the Serena Williams Fund awards scholarships, the Serena Williams Fund invests mainly in companies that are led by people from underrepresented groups working in the areas of education, climate change technology, economic opportunity and more.
IP TAKE: Serena Williams’s nontraditional approach to philanthropy involves investments of $1 million or more into companies that are owned and led by women and people of color. To date, Serena Ventures has supported early-stage projects in the areas of health, fintech, education, climate change technology and e-commerce. This is not a traditional grantmaker, as Williams’s recipients are for-profit companies, although many of them have strong potential to make positive change. This is not a transparent or accessible funder, so it will prove a difficult nut to crack. Grantmaking often occurs according to the founder’s evolving interests.
Networking with the organization’s staff, whose names and bios are offered on the site, will be key for getting on Serena Ventures’ radar, as the organization does not offer a straightforward way of getting in touch. Through her eponymous foundation, Williams also awards college scholarships. This project does not appear to run an open application program, but interested scholarship seekers may email the foundation with inquiries.
PROFILE: The Serena Williams Fund, also known as the Serena Williams Foundation, is the philanthropic vehicle of the American tennis star Serena Williams. Williams has won 23 singles titles and four Olympic medals, which has secured her status as one of the greatest tennis players of all time. She is also one of the highest-paid female athletes in history. The Serena Williams Fund aims to “provide assistance to youth whose parents and families have been affected by violent crimes” and to “assist underprivileged youth around the world in receiving the highest quality education available to them.” While the fund appears to award scholarships for higher education, its website is sparse, and it is not currently registered as a tax-exempt organization in the United States, making it difficult to know the scope of its philanthropic work. In 2014, Williams established Serena Ventures, a for-profit investment firm that “writes checks to power change,” by supporting early-stage companies led by people from underrepresented groups in the areas of health and wellness, education, climate technology, social enterprise and more.
Grants for Higher Education
According to its website, the Serena Williams Foundation awards college scholarships that are renewable for up to four years. The foundation does not describe eligibility requirements, geographic restrictions or other guidelines for its scholarships, but recipients appear to be from the state of California. Students interested in applying for scholarships may email the foundation with inquiries.
Grants for Economic Development, Climate Change, Health, K-12 , BIPOC, Women and Girls
The Serena Williams Foundation does not appear to have dedicated programs or initiatives for work and opportunity, health or climate change, but Serena Ventures makes investments related to these causes. The fund, which has raised $111 million recently, invests mainly in businesses and startups founded by women and individuals of other underrepresented backgrounds. Recipient companies include Esusu, which helps renters build credit, and Pachama, a climate technology company that uses “remote sensing and AI to capture carbon and protect forests.” Other funded projects include the health equity company Hued, the online study group platform Fiveable and the woman-owned e-commerce platform Calico.
Important Grant Details:
Because the Serena Williams Fund and Serena Ventures are not registered as nonprofits, it is difficult to understand their finances. Serena Ventures’ investments, however, tend to be in the millions of dollars and prioritize women- and minority-owned business that make positive social impact. For additional information on these projects, see the company’s investments page.
Neither the Serena Williams Foundation nor Serena Ventures run open application programs for funding. Students interested in applying for scholarships may email the Serena Foundation, and enterprises seeking backing from Serena Ventures may reach the company via its contact page. The names and bios of the company’s main staff members are available at Serena Ventures’ team page.
PEOPLE:
Search for staff contact info and bios in PeopleFinder (paid subscribers only).
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