The Spencer Foundation was established in 1962 by

Lyle M. Spencer Lyle Manly Spencer (May 10, 1911 – August 21, 1968) was an American philanthropist. In 1938, he was a 27-year-old graduate student in sociology at the University of Chicago when he founded Science Research Associates (SRA), the educational p ...

. This foundation makes grants to support research in areas of education that are widely construed.

Founder

Lyle M. Spencer was the founder of The Spencer Foundation. Spencer grew up in

Appleton, Wisconsin Appleton ( mez, Ahkōnemeh) is a city in Outagamie, Calumet, and Winnebago counties in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. One of the Fox Cities, it is situated on the Fox River, southwest of Green Bay and north of Milwaukee. Appleton is the c ...

and attended college in the

Pacific Northwest The Pacific Northwest (sometimes Cascadia, or simply abbreviated as PNW) is a geographic region in western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Tho ...

. He received both an undergraduate degree and master's degree in sociology from the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seattl ...

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

. Lyle Spencer's father served as president at said university from 1927 to 1933. Spencer continued graduate work in sociology at the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chic ...

. He also served as the co-founder of a different association, Science Research Associates, also known as SRA. Spencer also participated on the trustees board of three universities, he was a director of what is now the

United Negro College Fund UNCF, the United Negro College Fund, also known as the United Fund, is an American philanthropic organization that funds scholarships for black students and general scholarship funds for 37 private historically black colleges and universities ...

, and actively sat on the committees for education at

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...

and the University of Chicago. During his graduate studies in 1938 at the University of Chicago he first founded

Science Research Associates Science Research Associates (SRA) was a Chicago-based publisher of educational materials and schoolroom reading comprehension products. The company was acquired by McGraw-Hill Education in the early 2000s. History Science Research Associates Inc. ...

(SRA), an educational publishing firm. From SRA he obtained the wealth that made all possible to create the Spencer Foundation. The SRA nearly went bankrupt in the first year and Spencer gave up this idea, essentially creating a commercial firm in 1939. IBM purchased the SRA in 1964; meanwhile Spencer maintained the position of the firm's chief executive officer up until 1968. Spencer came to realize the potential for his large fortune could affect

educational research Educational research refers to the systematic collection and analysis of data related to the field of education. Research may involve a variety of methods and various aspects of education including student learning, teaching methods, teacher tra ...

around the world after IBM bought it. Spencer left passion-filled notes on a vision for the Spencer Foundation. He expressed his concern for individual people and the individual learning process and his desire to support and fund educational projects. His essential wish was to improve educational opportunities. While serving as CEO at SRA, Spencer was also participated on the trustees board of three universities, he was a director of what is now the United Negro College Fund, and actively sat on the committees for education at Harvard University and the University of Chicago. Lyle M. Spencer died of pancreatic cancer on August 21, 1968, and was buried in

History

Upon Spencer's death in 1968, the foundation received a large endowment. The foundation began making formal

grants Grant or Grants may refer to: Places * Grant County (disambiguation) Australia * Grant, Queensland, a locality in the Barcaldine Region, Queensland, Australia United Kingdom *Castle Grant United States * Grant, Alabama *Grant, Inyo County, ...

in 1971. The foundation has since made grants totaling at $250 million.

Intentions and purposes

With Lyle Spencer's directions, the Foundation works to investigate in ways in which education can be improved around the world. There is a great dedication to research, as it is necessary for the improvement in education. The Spencer Foundation supports the research programs in high quality investigation of education. By awarding research grants and fellowships, the Foundation remains running. The foundation strengthens the connections in education research, policy and practice through communications and networking.

National Academy of Education/Spencer Foundation Dissertation Fellowship Program

The foundation awards a series of prestigious fellowships to doctoral students completing dissertation research in any area of education research. Each fellowship is for $25,000 and supports individuals in their final year of their doctoral training. The average number of fellowships awarded is 25 out of 600 applicants. Selection is determined by members of the

National Academy of Education The National Academy of Education (NAEd) is a nonprofit, non-governmental organization in the United States that advances high-quality research to improve education policy and practice. Founded in 1965, the NAEd currently consists of over 300 elect ...

and by highly respected senior education research scholars. It provides a number of networking and professional development opportunities and informally is seen as an indicator of who are some of the most promising researchers in education.

National Academy of Education/Spencer Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship Program

The foundation also awards a series of prestigious fellowships to early career education researchers, typically pre-tenured professors at research intensive institutions. Each fellowship is for a total of $55,000 and is for one or two years depending on the preference of the recipient. The fellowship relieves the researcher from a year's worth of teaching responsibilities in order to pursue an innovative and important education research project. The average number of fellowships awarded is 20 out of 200 applicants each year. Selection is determined by a committee of members of the National Academy of Education. Only scholars who have graduated from their doctorates within the previous five years may apply. Recipients of the fellowship also are recognized as the most promising young scholars in education research, and this is widely considered to be one of the top distinctions available to an early career researcher.

External links

The Spencer Foundation website
{{Authority control Educational foundations in the United States Organizations established in 1962