# J.A. and Kathryn Albertson Foundation

J.A. and Kathryn Albertson Foundation is an Endowment / Foundation based in Boise, United States.

## Overview

- **Organization type:** Endowment / Foundation
- **Headquarters:** Boise, United States
- **Region:** North America
- **Address:** Boise, ID, United States
- **Founded:** 1966
- **Assets under management:** Undisclosed
- **Website:** jkaf.org
- **LinkedIn:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/jkaf-org

## Regulatory record

- **Reports private funds:** No

## About

The J.A. and Kathryn Albertson Foundation was founded in 1966 in Boise, Idaho, by Joe and Kathryn Albertson. Joe Albertson built the Albertsons grocery chain from a single store in 1939 into one of America's largest food retailers. The foundation is now led by President Jamie Jo Scott, a great-granddaughter of the founders, who directs its strategy alongside input from other family members through the Scott family's private holding company, Alscott Inc. The foundation maintains a narrow geographic mandate: it deploys capital exclusively within Idaho, aiming to create what it calls limitless learning for all Idahoans. The foundation pursues a focused program-related investment strategy centered on three pillars: learning innovation, awareness-building, and community investments. Its asset base includes significant commercial and agricultural real estate holdings, notably the Whitetail Club and Shore Lodge resort properties in McCall, Idaho, Tree Top Ranches in Idaho and Oregon, the Iron Horse Ranch, and the Alscott Building in Boise. The foundation is also linked to the development of the Idaho Outdoor Fieldhouse and the preservation of public spaces like Kathryn Albertson Park. Its philanthropic grants target large-scale educational initiatives rather than a high volume of small donations, reflecting a strategy of concentrated, transformative capital deployment within a single state. The foundation does not publicly report its endowment size, total deployment figures, or staff headcount. Its structure is deliberately interwoven with the Scott family's for-profit activities. Alscott Inc., chaired by J.B. "Joe" Scott, serves as the family office and holding company for private investments, while the foundation functions as the charitable vehicle. The foundation's structural differentiator is its legally separate but operationally adjacent relationship to a single-family holding company, allowing the Scotts to run commercial real estate and hospitality assets through Alscott Inc. while funding educational nonprofits through the foundation — all within a strictly Idaho-centric geographic silo. This dual-structure model concentrates both for-profit returns and philanthropic outcomes on a single geography, a pattern distinct from nationally diversified foundations that lack a co-located family office arm managing business assets in the same region.

## Sectors

- Education
- Real Estate

## People

- Jamie Jo Scott — President
- J.B. "Joe" Scott — Founder & Chairman of Alscott Inc.
- Brian Scott — Vice President of Alscott Inc.

## Questions

### How is the foundation related to the Albertsons grocery chain?

The foundation was established in 1966 by Joe Albertson, who founded the Albertsons grocery chain in 1939, and his wife Kathryn. It is not a corporate foundation of the supermarket company, which has been publicly traded and gone through multiple ownership changes since Joe Albertson stepped down. The foundation is a private family philanthropy now led by the founders' great-granddaughter, Jamie Jo Scott, whose family retains no operational control over the Albertsons Companies grocery business.

### Does the foundation invest outside of Idaho?

No. The foundation's stated mandate limits both its grant-making and programmatic investments to initiatives within Idaho. Its mission explicitly aims to benefit Idahoans, and there is no public evidence of out-of-state philanthropic grants. The family's private holdings, managed separately through Alscott Inc., include land in Oregon, but the foundation's educational funding is Idaho-exclusive.

### What is the relationship between the foundation and Alscott Inc.?

Alscott Inc. is the Scott family's private holding company and family office, chaired by J.B. "Joe" Scott. It owns and manages the family's for-profit assets, including commercial real estate like the Alscott Building, resort properties such as the Whitetail Club and Shore Lodge, and ranching operations. The J.A. and Kathryn Albertson Foundation is a legally separate philanthropic entity, but both are led by the same family members and operate with a shared geographic focus. This structure keeps business assets distinct from the charitable endowment while allowing coordinated family governance.

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Last updated: 2026-08-11T02:43:31.692Z

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