Arthur B. Schultz Foundation

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OVERVIEW: The Arthur B. Schultz Foundation funds grassroots organizations in East Africa and Central America involved in women’s education and economic development, as well as disability inclusion initiatives.

IP TAKE: The Arthur B. Schultz Foundation is stringently focused on women’s development and disability inclusion in East Africa and Central America. Giving is likely to increase in the coming years, as the foundation plans to spend down its assets. For organizations working in these very specific areas, an introduction from one of the foundation’s current grantees is the best way to gain this funder’s attention. Grassroots organizations led by women and/or disabled people are strongly prioritized.

PROFILE: The Arthur B. Schultz Foundation was established in 1985 by Arthur Schulz, co-founder of sports equipment manufacturer Cobra Golf. The foundation’s mission is to advance “opportunities for women and people with physical disabilities.” The foundation focuses its grantmaking on grassroots organizations in East Africa and Central America involved in “education and leadership, life skills, entrepreneurship, and advocacy for adolescent girls, women, and people with disabilities.” Its grantmaking programs are Education, Leadership & Life Skills; Disability Inclusion and Entrepreneurship.

This funder plans to spend down the entirety of its assets by about 2035 but will increase the grant and gift amounts in coming years.

Grants for Global Development, Women and Girls

Global development is the main focus of the Schultz Foundation giving, but more than half of its grantmaking focuses on development through women’s education and economic development initiatives.

  • The foundation’s Education, Leadership & Life Skills giving program supports “high quality education for adolescent girls and young women.” Priorities include programs that help women develop life and leadership skills, as well as initiatives for reproductive health and education.

    Grantees of this program include Tanzania’s Empowered Girls, which aims to “enlighten, equip, and empower girls to thrive” and Limitless Horizons IXIL, which operates in Guatemala to empower and educate Indigenous youth, women and families in Chajul.

  • The Entrepreneurship program focuses its support on organizations that provide “entrepreneurship and vocational training for women.”

    Recipients include AkiraChix, which works in multiple locations throughout East Africa to run technology training programs for disadvantaged women, and Uganda’s Bulogo Women’s Group, which creates “sustainable opportunities for women and girls to lift themselves and their families out of extreme poverty” through skills and information sharing.

Grants for Global Health and Disabilities Inclusion

The Schultz Foundation’s Disability Inclusion grantmaking supports “organizations focused on high-quality, locally sourced and manufactured mobility devices, inclusive education, advocacy, and job training for people with disabilities.” Giving prioritizes organizations that are led by or employ disabled people.

Grantees of this program include Uganda’s Gulu Disabled Person’s Union, which advocates for participation, recognition and support for people with disabilities, and Guatemala’s Acated, which provides training and assistance to rural organizations that care for and educate disabled children.

Important Grant Details:

This funder’s grants range from $1,000 to $125,000.

  • Grantmaking is concentrated in East Africa and Central America, with a significant portion of funding going to organizations in Uganda, Tanzania, Kenya and Guatemala.

  • This funder tends to support small- to medium-sized grassroots organizations with strong reputations in the areas where they operate.

  • Most grantees receive multi-year support.

  • The foundation plans to spend down its assets over the next 10 to 15 years and will increase the size of its grants moving forward.

  • Grant inquiries require “require an introduction from one of our current ABSF partners” and the foundation generally makes between one and three grants to new organizations each year.

  • For additional information about past grantmaking, see the foundations impact stories and financials pages.

This foundation can be reached via its contact page.

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