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Fund for Wisconsin Scholars
John and Tashia Morgridge established the Fund for Wisconsin Scholars in 2007 with a $175 million grant. The wealth origin traces to John Morgridge's tenure as...
Fund for Wisconsin Scholars
John and Tashia Morgridge established the Fund for Wisconsin Scholars in 2007 with a $175 million grant. The wealth origin traces to John Morgridge's tenure as CEO and Chairman of Cisco Systems. Unlike many philanthropies that fund institutions, the foundation disburses need-based grants directly to Wisconsin public high school graduates enrolled at four-year University of Wisconsin campuses. The couple are signatories of the Giving Pledge, and their broader philanthropic network includes the Morgridge Family Foundation, the Morgridge Institute for Research, and the Tosa Foundation. The foundation's investment portfolio spans private equity, U.S. equity, non-U.S. equity, and fixed income. Its private capital strategy touches numerous sub-strategies including buyout, distressed debt, early-stage venture, growth equity, secondaries, and mezzanine. The foundation deploys capital through a fund-of-funds model as well as direct co-investments and SPVs. Investment activity is global in scope, with specific holdings referenced across U.S. equity and international equity allocations. Operational management resides with Executive Director Kelly Ruppel, a former PwC principal who serves as the primary steward of the portfolio. The endowment corpus is estimated at approximately $264 million by Altss research. Governance centers on a board that includes John D. Morgridge, the founders' son, and has previously included Ted D. Kellner, CEO of Fiduciary Management, Inc. In 2023, Kelly Ruppel continued in her role as Executive Director and Secretary, managing the foundation's investment program and grant operations. The foundation maintains deep operational ties to the University of Wisconsin System, which aids in identifying eligible scholars and validating enrollment status across its four-year campuses. Unlike a typical foundation that writes checks to university endowments or academic departments, the Fund for Wisconsin Scholars operates as a last-dollar grant program directed at individual low-income students. This architecture routes a large institutional asset base through a high-volume, low-dollar disbursement mechanism, with student eligibility linked to federal Pell Grant qualification. The structural result is a counter-cyclical endowment: market gains enlarge the corpus during bull runs, but the grant pool's size is driven by macro-level college enrollment and demographic trends in Wisconsin, not internal institutional budgets.
General information
Firm type
Endowment / Foundation
Year founded
2007
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
Madison
Corporate office
Madison, WI, United States
Principals
Kelly Ruppel
Executive Director & Secretary
John P. Morgridge
Co-Founder
Tashia F. Morgridge
Co-Founder
John D. Morgridge
Board Member
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who controls investment decisions at the Fund for Wisconsin Scholars?
Day-to-day management of the foundation's investment portfolio falls under Executive Director Kelly Ruppel, previously a principal at PwC. The board, which has included founding family member John D. Morgridge and Fiduciary Management CEO Ted D. Kellner, oversees the overarching asset allocation and strategy. The foundation does not publicly disclose an internal investment committee structure or external OCIO relationship in detail.
How is the Fund for Wisconsin Scholars distinct from the broader Morgridge Family Foundation?
The Fund for Wisconsin Scholars is a standalone 501(c)(3) endowed with a specific $175 million gift and tasked exclusively with making tuition grants to University of Wisconsin students. The Morgridge Family Foundation, based in Denver, has a separate board and a broader mission encompassing education, health, and arts grants nationally. Both entities were created by John and Tashia Morgridge but operate with independent governance and programmatic mandates.
Does the Fund for Wisconsin Scholars invest directly or through fund managers?
The foundation utilizes a multi-asset strategy that includes a fund-of-funds approach as well as direct co-investments and special-purpose vehicles. Its private capital program covers venture capital, growth equity, buyout, distressed debt, mezzanine, and secondaries. Public equity exposure spans both domestic and international markets, alongside a fixed-income allocation.
What is the eligibility criteria for a student to receive a grant from this foundation?
To qualify, a student must be a graduate of a Wisconsin public high school, eligible for a federal Pell Grant, and enrolled full-time at a four-year campus within the University of Wisconsin System. The foundation's program is designed as a last-dollar grant, stepping in to cover remaining tuition and fee costs after federal and state aid have been applied.
Where does the endowment's underlying wealth originate?
The entire $175 million initial endowment came from John and Tashia Morgridge's personal wealth, generated during John Morgridge's career at Cisco Systems. He served as CEO and later Chairman of Cisco, and the foundation's assets were seeded with company stock. Morgridge was a key early business leader at Cisco, joining in 1988 and leading the company during its explosive growth and IPO.
Profile maintained by Altss using OSINT (open-source intelligence), regulatory filings, licensed data partners, and verified direct submissions. Read the methodology. Last updated: . Continuous refresh with full update cycles at least every 30 days.
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