# Sullivan Scholars Foundation

Sullivan Scholars Foundation is an Endowment / Foundation based in Cleveland, United States.

## Overview

- **Organization type:** Endowment / Foundation
- **Headquarters:** Cleveland, United States
- **Region:** North America
- **Address:** Cleveland, OH, United States
- **Assets under management:** Undisclosed

## Regulatory record

- **Reports private funds:** No

## About

The Sullivan Scholars Foundation operates as a scholarship-granting entity, established by the children of the late Thomas C. Sullivan, the former CEO and Chairman of RPM International. While a formal founding year is not widely publicized, the foundation channels the family's manufacturing wealth into a structured educational program administered through the Cleveland Foundation, targeting eligible eighth-grade students in the Greater Cleveland community. The foundation's strategy is singular: merit- and need-based scholarships for secondary education. It does not function as a diversified endowment making program-related investments or direct venture commitments. Its deployment is limited to scholarship distributions. The geographic footprint is confined to the Cleveland metropolitan area. No portfolio companies, fund commitments, or co-investment partners are disclosed. Frank C. Sullivan leads the foundation's trusteeship alongside T. Sean Sullivan, another son of the late patriarch. The Sullivan family's broader philanthropic infrastructure includes the Sullivan Family Fund and the Thomas C. and Sandra S. Sullivan Foundation. Frank Sullivan maintains institutional affiliations beyond the family office, holding board seats at the Greater Cleveland Partnership, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and the Cleveland Clinic's Digestive Disease Center Leadership Board. The foundation's structural differentiator is its reliance on the Cleveland Foundation as an operational host. Rather than building independent administrative infrastructure, the Sullivan Scholars Foundation piggybacks on one of the oldest and largest community foundations in the United States for grantmaking and back-office functions. This architecture allows the Sullivan family to centralize scholarship execution without duplicating overhead.

## Sectors

- Education

## People

- Frank C. Sullivan — Chairman and Trustee
- T. Sean Sullivan — Trustee

## Questions

### Who runs investment decisions at the Sullivan Scholars Foundation?

The foundation is not structured as an investment vehicle. It distributes scholarships and does not publicly disclose an investment committee. Its assets are administered through the Cleveland Foundation, which manages the endowment pool.

### How is the Sullivan Scholars Foundation related to the Cleveland Foundation?

The Sullivan Scholars Foundation operates through the Cleveland Foundation, which provides administrative and grantmaking infrastructure. This means the Sullivan family sets the scholarship criteria and provides the funding, while the Cleveland Foundation handles operational execution.

### Does the Sullivan Scholars Foundation participate in fund commitments or direct deals?

No. The Sullivan Scholars Foundation is purely a scholarship-granting entity. There is no public record of the foundation making fund commitments, direct private investments, or co-investments alongside external GPs.

## Related profiles

- [Sullivan & Cromwell Master Pension Plan Trust](https://altss.com/profile/sullivan-cromwell-master-pension-plan-trust)
- [Sulzer](https://altss.com/profile/sulzer)

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

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