# Lake Forest Academy

Lake Forest Academy is an Endowment / Foundation based in Lake Forest, United States.

## Overview

- **Organization type:** Endowment / Foundation
- **Headquarters:** Lake Forest, United States
- **Region:** North America
- **Address:** 1500 West Kennedy Road, Lake Forest, IL 60045, United States
- **Founded:** 1857
- **Assets under management:** $50M–$100M (Altss estimate)
- **Website:** lfanet.org
- **LinkedIn:** https://www.linkedin.com/school/lake-forest-academy/

## Regulatory record

- **Reports private funds:** No

## About

Lake Forest Academy was founded in 1857 by Sylvester Lind and has operated for over 165 years as a co-educational boarding and day school in Lake County, Illinois. The institution maintains a sizable real asset footprint alongside its educational mission, with holdings that include its main campus, faculty housing, a fine arts collection, and a Florida golf course. The endowment deploys capital across an unusually broad mandate for an independent school — buyout, venture at seed through late-stage, growth equity, fund of funds, and secondaries. Direct real estate exposure is a core pillar: the Academy is a partner in the Bronx Hub Development alongside Starwood Capital Group and holds an interest in the mixed-use asset at 2395 Frederick Douglass Boulevard in Harlem. The institution's advisory relationships with Capstone LLC founder David Barrosse and J.P. Morgan's Charles Cooper provide structured policy and private-capital perspectives. The pool is estimated at roughly $62 million (Altss estimate). Beyond the main Lake Forest campus, the Academy controls properties in the Bronx, Harlem, and Gulf Breeze, Florida. Philanthropic and operational partners include The Brinson Foundation, which provides scholarship grant support, and the Zafirovski Family Foundation, where Life Trustee Robin Zafirovski links the institution to an education- and mentoring-focused grantmaking vehicle. What differentiates Lake Forest Academy from a typical independent school endowment is the direct operating-company and real estate joint-venture exposure typically reserved for family offices. The combination of on-balance-sheet real property in partnership with an institutional sponsor like Starwood, plus venture-stage commitments, creates a hybrid asset-owner structure where campus preservation is just one return stream among several.

## Sectors

- Real Estate
- Venture (General)
- Education

## Offices

- Bronx, NY
- Harlem, NY
- Gulf Breeze, FL

## People

- Jessica P. Douglas — Chair of the Board of Trustees
- Charles T. Cooper — Vice Chair of the Board of Trustees and Managing Director at J.P. Morgan Private Bank

## Questions

### Who oversees investment decisions for the Lake Forest Academy endowment?

The Board of Trustees, chaired by Jessica P. Douglas, governs the endowment. Charles T. Cooper, a managing director at J.P. Morgan Private Bank, serves as Vice Chair. The board draws on the advisory capabilities of professionals like Capstone LLC founder David Barousse and private-capital investor Jim Cowart, rather than maintaining a standalone investment office.

### How did Lake Forest Academy build its real estate portfolio?

The Academy holds direct real estate beyond its Illinois campus through joint ventures and wholly owned parcels. It partnered with Starwood Capital Group on the Bronx Hub Development and owns an asset at 2395 Frederick Douglass Boulevard in Harlem. These interests position the endowment alongside institutional real estate managers.

### What is the Academy’s investment mandate?

The endowment deploys capital across a multi-asset mandate that includes buyout, venture from seed to late-stage, growth equity, fund of funds, secondaries, and direct real estate. This breadth is unusual for a secondary-school endowment and reflects a posture closer to a diversified family office.

## Related profiles

- [Florida Bar Foundation](https://altss.com/profile/florida-bar-foundation)
- [Semmes Foundation](https://altss.com/profile/semmes-foundation)

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Last updated: 2026-06-03T20:00:00.000Z

Canonical page: https://altss.com/profile/lake-forest-academy

Maintained by Altss — https://altss.com — methodology: https://altss.com/methodology