Ken and Linda Morris
/NET WORTH: Unknown
SOURCE OF WEALTH: PeopleSoft, Workday
FUNDING AREAS: Animals, Education & Youth, Human Services
OVERVIEW: Ken Morris and his wife Linda do their grantmaking through the Morris Foundation. Morris steadily supports his alma mater Southern Methodist University. Outside Texas, most of the couple's philanthropy via their foundation takes place out west, with an interest in social services organizations, especially those focused on education, and animal cruelty prevention and care.
BACKGROUND: Ken Morris earned a B.B.A. from SMU and an MBA from Harvard University. Morris was the co-founder of PeopleSoft, where he served as CTO and in various other technology-related roles until his retirement in 1998. He is currently vice president, student systems software at Workday.
ISSUES:
ANIMALS: Like his PeopleSoft co-founder David Duffield, Morris prioritizs animals. Via the Morris Foundation, Morris and Linda have given particularly large grants to the ASPCA. Other grantees have included Santa Cruz Humane Society.
EDUCATION & YOUTH: Ken and Linda have steadily supported his alma mater, SMU. A $2 million grant endowed the Linda A. and Kenneth R. Morris Endowed Director of the Caruth Institute for Entrepreneurship in the Cox School of Business. A $1.5 million challenge grant from the Morris Foundation, meanwhile, supported the school’s Meadows Scholars Program. Through the years, other work has included gifts for the Information Technology Center in Blanton Student Services Building and the Campus Technology Initiative. The couple has also supported places like Music in Schools Today, Saint Francis Solano School, and Lifeskills Ranch Program, a summer day camp in Idaho.
HUMAN SERVICES: Grantees have included Wardrobe For Opportunity, which works with low-income women in the Bay Area, Homeward Bound, and Peninsula Volunteers.
LOOKING FORWARD: It is unclear how much money Morris has on hand, but expect him to stick with his established interest areas.
CONTACT:
The Morris Foundation does not provide a clear avenue for getting in touch with the couple but below is an address:
The Morris Foundation
c/o Dan J. Hall, Attorney At Law
4733 Chabot Dr., Ste. 203
Pleasanton, CA 94588
LINK:
