Bill and Susan Oberndorf Foundation
OVERVIEW: The Bill and Susan Oberndorf Foundation provides substantial support to charter school networks and the education reform and school choice movements in the U.S. Other areas of giving include higher education, civic engagement, public health, arts and culture, global development and environmental conservation.
IP TAKE: In addition to supporting some of the largest charter school networks in the U.S., the Oberndorf Foundation has given substantial support to policy development for the school choice movement. The University California San Francisco and Stanford University have also received large sums in recent years. This funder is not as open to funding public schools.
This funder restricts transparency about its grantmaking and prefers to maintain a low profile. It does not maintain a website and does not provide a direct avenue for getting in touch. It’s not responsive, accessible or approachable — by design.
PROFILE: The Bill and Susan Oberndorf Foundation was established by Bill Oberndorf, an investor and founder of SPO Partners, and his wife, Susan. Oberndorf founded the investment firm SPO Partners in 1989. He regularly supports conservative causes and helped fund the recall on San Francisco’s District Attorney, Chesa Boudin, in 2022.
The foundation is based in San Francisco and invests in charter schools and the broader education reform and school choice movements in the United States. To a lesser extent, the foundation supports higher education, civic engagement, public health, arts and culture, global development and environmental conservation. This funder does not maintain a website or outline specific goals for its funding.
Grants for K-12 Education
K-12 education is by far this funder’s largest area of giving. The Oberndorfs are vocal supporters of the charter school movement and have given to many of the major charter school networks, as well as policy development initiatives aimed at increasing school choice. In a recent year, the foundation gave $2 million to the Alliance for School Choice, which develops policy toward increasing options for quality education and giving scholarships and tax credits to families so that their children can attend a school of their choice. Another grantee, the NewSchools Venture Fund, has received ongoing funding to invest in innovative new schools, educational technology and educator and leadership development programs. Other K-12 grantees include the Gateway Public Schools and KIPP charter school networks, the Foundation for Excellence in Education, the San Francisco Education Fund, the Center for Education Reform, Milwaukee Collegiate Academy and Mission Dolores Academy in San Francisco.
Grants for Higher Education
This funder does not outline specific strategies for its higher education giving, but recent tax filings show a broad interest in ongoing support for the University of California San Francisco and Stanford University, schools with which its founder is affiliated. UCSF in particular regularly receives annual gifts reaching into the tens of millions.
Grants for Civic Engagement and Democracy
The Oberndorf Foundation has demonstrated an interest in research on public policy and social welfare. The foundation has given to conservative organizations including the American Enterprise Institute and the National Review Institute but has also given to Everytown for Gun Safety and the NARAL Pro-Choice America Foundation.
Grants for Public Health
This funder’s health grantmaking has mainly supported organizations in the greater San Francisco area with grants of $50,000 or less. Past grantees include UCSF’s Benioff Children’s Hospital, the San Francisco Free Clinic, the California Pacific Medical Foundation and the Peer Health Exchange. In New York, the foundation has given to the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.
Grants for Arts and Culture
Arts and culture grantmaking has also focused on the greater San Francisco area, with grants supporting the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, the San Francisco Botanical Garden, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco, the San Francisco Film Society, the California Historical Society and Northern California Public Broadcasting.
Grants for Global Development
Global development is not a large area of giving for this funder. In a recent year, the foundation gave $100,000 to the Ploughshares Fund, which promotes international peace and aims to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons.
Grants for Environmental Conservation and Justice
Environmental conservation is another modest area of giving for this funder. The foundation has demonstrated an interest in environmental education programs, prioritizing the state of California. Grantees include Education Outside, the Edible Schoolyard Project and Ten Stands, both of which provide resources and programming for K-12 environmental education. The foundation has also given to the Environmental Defense Fund and the Golden Gate National Conservancy.
Important Grant Details:
This funder makes over $14 million a year in grants ranging from a few thousand to over $7 million. Its average grant size is about $25,000. The foundation’s largest area of giving, by far, is K-12 education, and Northern California is an apparent area of geographic priority. For additional information about past grantmaking, see the foundation’s recent tax filings.
The Bill and Susan Oberndorf Foundation does not appear to accept applications for funding or provide a direct avenue for getting in touch. The foundation can be reached by telephone at 415-500-6900, and an address is provided below.
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CONTACT:
Bill and Susan Oberndorf Foundation
615 Front St.
San Francisco, CA 94111
(415) 500-6900