Overview
- $50 million is designated for the institute’s endowment and $5 million for immediate research and program needs, according to Rice.
- The donation lifts Kinder Foundation support for the institute to more than $135 million, following a $50 million endowment grant in 2022.
- Kinder Foundation CEO Nancy Kinder said a larger endowment will provide stability and independence to advance long-term solutions "for generations to come."
- Director Ruth López Turley called the grant a gift to Houston that preserves the institute’s research as a public good.
- Rice says the institute has doubled its staff over five years and focuses on housing, education, economic mobility, health and population, with ongoing fundraising to support longer-term projects and partnerships regardless of ability to pay.