The Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation (Kauffman Foundation) is a non-profit foundation based in Kansas City, Missouri. It has an asset base of $2 billion.[1] The Kauffman Foundation states that its vision is to foster "a society of economically independent individuals who are engaged citizens, contributing to the improvement of their communities."[2] It focuses its grant making and operations on two areas: advancing entrepreneurship and improving the education of children and youth. Established in the mid-1960s by the late entrepreneur and philanthropist Ewing Marion Kauffman, the Kauffman Foundation is the largest American foundation to focus on entrepreneurship. The current President and CEO is Carl Schramm.
In entrepreneurship, the foundation works nationwide to advance an entrepreneurial society in which job creation, innovation, and the economy flourish. Associates of the Kauffman Foundation work with educators, researchers, and other partners to understand the economic impact of entrepreneurship, train the next generation of entrepreneurial leaders, develop and disseminate programs that enhance entrepreneurial skills and abilities, and improve the environment in which entrepreneurs start and grow businesses.
In education, the foundation works to improve the academic achievement of disadvantaged children, particularly in Kansas City’s urban core. Associates of the foundation work with partners to support programs that directly impact a child’s academic achievement, with a concentrated focus on math, science, engineering and technology skills. Through a comprehensive ten-year initiative to significantly improve math and science education in Greater Kansas City, the Kauffman Foundation hopes to help create a national model for how to prepare the next generation of entrepreneurs and workers needed in America’s global knowledge economy.
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The Kauffman Foundation seeks to further understand the phenomenon of entrepreneurship, to advance entrepreneurship education and training efforts, to promote entrepreneurship-friendly policies, and to better facilitate the commercialization of new technologies by entrepreneurs and others, which show promise for improving the economic welfare of our nation.
Major Initiatives
Ewing Kauffman believed that investments in education should lead students on a path to self-sufficiency, preparing them to hold good-paying jobs, raise their families, and become productive citizens. The youth education programs supported by the Kauffman Foundation focus on advancing student achievement in math, engineering, technology and science. The foundation also hopes to introduce students to entrepreneurship and explore the future of learning.
Major Initiatives
To develop effective programs and help inform policy that will best advance entrepreneurship and education, the Kauffman Foundation's research initiatives are designed to provide a broader and more in-depth understanding of what drives innovation and economic growth.
The Kauffman Foundation believes more can be done to rapidly and efficiently commercialize innovations developed by university researchers. Foundation associates study the reasons the system is not more productive, work with universities, philanthropists, and industry to ensure greater output, and ultimately grow the number of university-based technologies that become breakthrough products and services.
Major Initiatives
Partnership