OVERVIEW: The Michael and Susan Dell Foundation supports education, global development and public health in the U.S., India and South Africa.
IP TAKE: The Dell Foundation focuses on evidence-based and results-driven programs and aims to effect broad change in its areas of interest. Although it mainly works with grantee partners, it accepts applications for some of its sub-programs through its online system.
This is an accessible funder that likes to help its grantees in a variety of ways. They’re supportive and responsive funders that don’t leave you wondering.
PROFILE: Based in Austin, Texas, the Michael and Susan Dell Foundation was established by Dell Technologies founder and CEO Michael Dell with his wife, Susan, in 1999. It is a private foundation that is not affiliated with Dell, Inc. The foundation’s overarching goal is to “accelerate opportunity for children growing up in urban poverty.” In its early years, it focused its efforts on education in the Central Texas area, but today it supports education, health and economic development across the U.S. and in India and South Africa. The Michael and Susan Dell Foundation’s stated grantmaking initiatives are education, family economic stability and health.
Grants for Education
Education is by far Dell’s largest area of funding and grants support the sub-initiatives of quality schools, classroom supports and college success. All three programs prioritize students of low socio-economic status and aim to close achievement gaps for underserved students. Grantmaking focuses on data-driven interventions and the expansion of highly effective programs.
Grants for K-12 Education
K-12 grantmaking stems from Dell’s quality schools and classroom supports programs. The quality schools program makes grants to school systems in the U.S., India and South Africa that are geared toward providing high quality educational experiences to students from low-income backgrounds. In the U.S., grantmaking from this subprogram has focused on charters schools and increasing educator diversity. In India, the foundation has prioritized the implementation of research-based interventions that improve academic outcomes and the teaching of life skills that correlate with academic success. Similarly, in South Africa Dell has focused on programs that eliminate tuition and school fees, as well as increasing the quality of reading instruction. The classroom supports subprogram focuses on bringing “tools, technology and resources” to under-sourced classrooms. In addition to technology-based learning interventions, the foundation has funded programs that help teachers assess student knowledge, analyze classroom data and plan for more effective instruction. K-12 grantees include South Africa’s Acorn Education, the Ed-Fi Alliance, Rocketship Public Schools and ClassKlap, a technology-driven education system that has had success in low-income areas in India.
Grants for Higher Education
Dell’s college success initiative prioritizes low-income and first-generation college students in the U.S. and South Africa as they navigate the pressures and difficulties of postsecondary education. In the U.S., the foundation runs a signature program, Dell Scholars, which provides scholarships, mentoring, technology and other supports to students who meet the foundation’s GPA requirement of grit, potential and ambition. With the support of the program, cohorts of Dell Scholars have achieved a six-year graduation rate of 80%, beating the national average of 20%. The success of the scholars program led the foundation to establish its enabling innovation program, which partners with large university systems and other organizations to develop similar systems of support for high-risk students. Partners have included the National Scholarship Providers Association, the University of Pretoria and Arizona State University.
Grants for Global Development
Dell’s family economic stability program makes grants through two sub-initiatives. The jobs and livelihoods program works in both India and South Africa to help disadvantaged young people get the training and preparation needed for jobs in growth industries. The second sub-initiative works only in India to establish accessible financial services for urban families living in poverty. Recent grantees of the family economic stability programs include India’s Arthan Finance, the South African digital training platform WETHINKCODE and Amazi, a South African organization that provides women with training for jobs in the beauty industry.
Grants Public Health
Dell’s health and wellness initiative supports childhood health and wellness across the U.S. This program works broadly in the areas of nutrition, exercise and mental health. Funding has overlapped somewhat with Dell’s urban education grantmaking, focusing on services and wellness education provided at or through schools. Grantees have included charter school networks, which have used funding to establish school-based counseling, mental health and health screening programs. The program also supports nutrition education programs. One grantee, Foodcorps Inc., a subsidiary of Americorps, used funding to run its school-based nutrition and gardening programs.
The health and wellness program also runs sub-initiatives that are exclusive to Central Texas. These programs emphasize preventive medicine, primary care and high-quality professional development for the medical community in greater Austin. Grantees include the Texas Health Institute, the People’s Community Clinic and the University of Texas at Austin.
COVID-19 Response
The Dell Foundation has responded to the COVID-19 crisis with more than $100 million in rapid grants. The foundation committed $20 million to the COVID-19 Therapeutics Accelerator. Another $80 million has been earmarked for nonprofits providing protective gear to frontline workers and organizations supporting community recovery in hard-hit areas
Important Grant Details:
The Michael and Susan Dell Foundations makes over $70 million in grants each year, with grants ranging from a few thousand to over $1 million. Its average grant size is about $50,000. Grantmaking is generally limited to the U.S., India and South Africa, and more than half of U.S. funding remains in Texas. For a clearer picture of past grantmaking, see the foundation’s grants database at its website.
The Dell Foundation accepts unsolicited applications for some of its education, health and economic development subprograms. See the foundation’s guidelines and FAQ sections for additional information. General inquiries may be directed to foundation staff via email or telephone at 512-600-5500.
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