Walter Scott
/SOURCE OF WEALTH: Berkshire Hathaway, Peter Kiewit
FUNDING AREAS: Education & Youth, Community
OVERVIEW: Walter Scott and family move philanthropy through the Suzanne & Walter Scott Foundation. Its primary giving themes focus on developing community spaces, investing in the next generation of leaders, and empowering youth through higher education. According to available tax filings, in 2017 the Scott Foundation awarded just one grant to the Omaha Community Foundation for $14.8 million. He’s a Giving Pledge signatory.
BACKGROUND: Born in Omaha in 1931, Walter Scott Jr. graduated from Colorado State University with a degree in civil engineering in 1953. He began his career at Peter Kiewit, a construction giant in his native Omaha, Nebraska, rising to the rank of CEO in 1979. Scott is a longtime friend of Warren Buffet, and owes the bulk of his fortune to Berkshire Hathaway Energy.
ISSUES:
EDUCATION & YOUTH: The foundation supports a rage of Education projects. It funds merit-based higher education scholarships at the University of Nebraska at Omaha, Scott’s alma mater Colorado State University, with smaller programs at several other universities. In 2016, one of the three University of Nebraska, Omaha campuses was renamed the Scott Campus in his honor. Scott is also heavily involved with the Boy Scouts, which he participated in as a youth. The foundation supports Youth Development through both local and national projects with the Boy Scouts. Other grantees have included Horatio Alger Association, Avenue Scholars, and Mount Saint Michael Benedictine School.
COMMUNITY: Scott’s late wife Sue was recruited to serve as founding executive director of the Omaha Zoo Foundation. She stepped down from the post in the late 1980s, but was a volunteer with the museum until her death in 2013. The family have been major supporters of Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium through the years, home to the Suzanne & Walter Scott Aquarium and African Grasslands. The foundation has also been involved with local healthcare including support of Children's Hospital and Medical Center, the University of Nebraska Medical Center and the Buffett Cancer Center. The Foundation's leadership and support also helped to bring new events spaces such as TD Ameritrade Park and Baxter Arena to Omaha. Through grants to Nebraska Game and Parks it has also provided important enhancements to the education and conservation of local natural resources.
LOOKING FORWARD: This is a billionaire family to continue to watch in the Omaha area.
