Starr Foundation
/OVERVIEW: The Starr Foundation supports health, medical research, education, human needs, foreign policy, the environment and arts and culture. It generally provides ongoing support to large, well-established organizations.
IP TAKE: This foundation boasts a large endowment, and its grantees include leading institutions of higher education, medical research and policy development. The Starr Foundation does not accept unsolicited proposals for funding.
PROFILE: Founded in 1955 by insurance entrepreneur, Cornelius Vander Starr, The Starr Foundation has developed into one of the largest private foundations in the country. With around $1.5 billion in assets, Starr focuses its giving on education, medicine and healthcare, human needs, public policy, culture and the environment. This New York City-based foundation favors well-established non-profit organizations that have a proven track record of success.
Education is the foundation’s largest area of giving, and grantmaking consists mainly of college scholarships for “deserving students” at 100 pre-selected colleges and universities in the U.S. The foundation also supports exchange programs for foreign students to study in the U.S. and for U.S students to study abroad. Health funding is another large area of giving, supporting both medical research and healthcare systems for underserved communities in New York City and “overseas.” The foundation supports hunger programs, vocational training, literacy and programs for the disabled in New York City through its human needs initiative. Public policy grantmaking are aimed at the improvement of international relations and support for democratic institutions around the world. In arts and culture, the foundation gives to both large and smaller, community-based organizations, with an emphasis on providing access to elderly and disabled audiences. And environmental funding, which is the foundation’s smallest giving area, generally supports conservation efforts in the U.S.
The Starr Foundation’s grants range anywhere from a few thousand to over $1 million, but its average grant size is about $50,000, and it makes over $60 million in grants most years. Past grantees include Rockefeller University, Weill Cornell Medicine, the World Trade Center Performing Arts Center, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Yale University and the National Committee on United States-China Relations, Inc. For additional information about past grantmaking, see the foundation’s recent tax filings.
The Starr Foundation does not accept and will not review unsolicited proposals for funding. Foundation staff may be reached by telephone at 212-909-3600.
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