OVERVIEW: The Morse Family Foundation primarily funds grantmaking related to education, the arts, health, human services, Jewish causes, and the environment.
IP TAKE: The foundation lacks transparency, which limits information available on its grantmaking priorities and activities.
PROFILE: Established in 1967, the Morse Family Foundation is steered by real estate mogul Lester Morse Jr., his wife Enid, and family. Lester serves as chairman of Lester Morse Company, a real-estate-acquisition and mortgage-brokerage concern in New York. The foundation lacks transparency, which limits information available on its grantmaking priorities and activities. According to tax filings, the Morse Family Foundation primarily funds grantmaking related to education, the arts, health, human services, Jewish causes, and the environment.
Enid Morse is a trustee emerita of the board of Teachers College and their daughter Leslie is vice chair. Last decade, the couple established the Enid and Lester Morse Endowed Professorship in Teacher Education in 2002. Lester supports his alma mater Yale University including its School of Music where he established the Morse Summer Music Academy. The Morses have strongly supported Juilliard School, where Lester sits on the board of trustees. In addition, Lester is trustee of Carnegie Hall, which has received millions from the family. The Morses help fund the Carnegie Hall Family Concerts. They are also steady backers of Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum, home to the Enid and Lester Morse Historic Design Lecture Series. Son Douglas chairs the board of Habitat for Humanity New York City, and the family has supported Habitat for Humanity International.
Grants range from $25 to $500,000. In a recent fiscal year, the foundation gave away around $1.1 million. Past grantees have included Collegiate School, The Met, WNYC Radio, UJA-Federation of New York, Central Synagogue, Natural Resources Defense Council, and St. John’s Hospital Foundation.
The foundation keeps a low profile and does not accept unsolicited proposals.
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CONTACT:
Morse Family Foundation
c/o Lester Morse Company, 60 East 42nd Street, #1807
New York, NY 10165