Speyer Family Foundation
/OVERVIEW: The Speyer Family Foundation is the philanthropic vehicle of real estate billionaire Jerry I. Speyer and his wife, Katherine. The Speyers have been strong supporters of arts and culture in New York City, where Speyer has served as chair of the board of Museum of Modern Art. Other grantmaking in New York City has involved education and health.
IP TAKE: This a low-profile funder that gives mainly to New York’s major cultural institutions. Education and health are also areas of interest.
PROFILE: Now in his 70s, billionaire Jerry I. Speyer is one of the founding partners of New York real estate company Tishman Speyer, which controls Rockefeller Center and the Chrysler Building in New York City, among other prestigious properties around the world. Speyer grew up in New York City and attended Horace Mann School and Columbia University, where he received an undergraduate degree and an MBA. Speyer and his wife, Katherine, an architect who has also worked at Tishman Speyer, established the Speyer Family Foundation in 1961. Jerrry and Katherine have served on the boards of some of New York’s major cultural institutions, and their foundation has supported many of these organizations over the decades. Other philanthropic interests include education and health, with almost all grantmaking directed toward organizations operating in New York.
Jerry Speyer has chaired the board of the Museum of Modern Art, and Katherine chairs Lincoln Center’s redevelopment committee. In addition to these organizations, the foundation has provided ongoing support to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Apollo Theater, the Studio Museum in Harlem and the Whitney Museum.
Education is the foundation’s second largest area of giving. Funding is spread almost evenly between K-12 and higher education. K-12 grantees include charters school networks and elite private schools including Brearly, Horace Mann and Dalton. In higher education the foundation has supported Rockefeller University, New York University and select CUNY campuses.
In health, the foundation has given generously to New York Presbyterian Hospital, where Jerry has served as vice chair of the board of trustees. Other past grantees include New York University’s Langone Medical Center, the New York Genome Center and the Dubin Breast Center at Mount Sinai.
Speyer grants generally range from a few thousand to $300,000, with an average grant size of about $25,000. The foundation makes about $2 million in grants each year, most of which remains in New York City. For additional information about past grantmaking, see the foundation’s past tax filings.
This funder maintains a low profile and does not accept unsolicited proposals for funding. An address and phone number are provided below.
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CONTACT:
The Speyer Family Foundation, Inc.
45 Rockefeller Plaza, 7th Fl.
New York, NY 10111
Telephone: (212) 715-0300
