The Engelstad Foundation, a nonprofit

501(c)(3) organization A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, Trust (business), trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of ...

, was established in June 2002 to continue the philanthropic efforts of

Ralph Engelstad Ralph Louis Engelstad (January 28, 1930 – November 26, 2002) was an American businessman who owned the Imperial Palace casino-hotels in Las Vegas and in Biloxi, Mississippi. He also owned the Kona Kai motel in Las Vegas, which later became the ...

. It was originally developed with the purpose of promoting medical research, improving the lives of people living with disabilities and creating new possibilities for high-risk individuals. The Engelstad Foundation focuses its efforts on education, healthcare, disabled individuals and childhood issues, among other areas. The foundation controls about $800 million in assets and has given over $500 million in grants, scholarships and donations to a number of nonprofits and partners throughout the United States since its establishment.

History

In 1979, Ralph Engelstad opened the Imperial Palace hotel-casino in

Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

. He received attention for hiring disabled individuals, which was rare at the time. The Engelstad family continued quietly donating to charities and institutions in communities they had connections to. Before he died in November 2002, Ralph Engelstad put a plan into motion to create a foundation that would allow the assets he acquired to be given back after his death. In 2002, Ralph and Betty Engelstad officially formed the Engelstad Foundation with the goal of continuing Ralph's charitable work. Since its establishment, the Engelstad Foundation has provided more than $500 million in grants to organizations spanning the states of

North Dakota North Dakota ( ) is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the indigenous Dakota people, Dakota and Sioux peoples. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north and by the U.S. states of Minneso ...

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

Utah Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...

and

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

. The Engelstad family has history in the markets that the foundation serves. For example, the foundation holds strong ties to

Thief River Falls, Minnesota Thief River Falls, sometimes abbreviated as TRF, is a city and county seat of Pennington County in the northwest portion of the U.S. state of Minnesota. The population was 8,749 at the 2020 census. History Thief River Falls takes its name fro ...

, where Ralph Engelstad was born. There is a strong presence in North Dakota as well – where Ralph Engelstad graduated from the

University of North Dakota The University of North Dakota (UND) is a Public university, public research university in Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States. It was established by the Dakota Territory, Dakota Territorial Assembly in 1883, six years before the establishm ...

and met his wife, Betty, during his time in

Grand Forks Grand Forks is a city in and the county seat of Grand Forks County, North Dakota, United States. The city's population was 59,166 as of the 2020 census, making it the third-most populous city in the state, after Fargo and Bismarck. Grand For ...

. The foundation’s ties to Mississippi derive from the 1997 opening of the second Imperial Palace in

Biloxi, Mississippi Biloxi ( ; ) is a city in Harrison County, Mississippi, United States. It lies on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast in southern Mississippi, bordering the city of Gulfport, Mississippi, Gulfport to its west. The adjacent cities ar ...

. The foundation is currently based in

Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

, where Ralph Engelstad built his business as an entrepreneur and where the Engelstad family has lived for many years. In 2022, the Engelstad Foundation celebrated its 20th anniversary and crossed $500 million in giving, providing more than $523 million in funding to nonprofits throughout the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

Leadership

Former trustee Betty Engelstad serves the board as Trustee Emeritus. Betty Engelstad, widow of Ralph Engelstad, worked in a bank as a young girl which primed her for the budgeting that she would be doing for both her own family and eventually the Engelstad Foundation. Betty prefers to remain out of the public eye when it comes to the foundation’s giving, but her role in staging the creation of the foundation remains evident. The Engelstad Foundation is currently run by trustees Kris Engelstad, Jeffrey M. Cooper and Sean Mcgarry. Ralph and Betty Engelstad’s daughter, Kris Engelstad, also serves as a Trustee and CEO for the foundation. In many instances, she is the face of the foundation in the public eye. Jeffrey M. Cooper worked with Ralph Engelstad as his certified public accountant. He also served as treasurer for the Imperial Palace Casino Resort Spa in

that was owned and operated by Engelstad. Since 2002, his role has also included acting as a trustee on the Engelstad Foundation board. He also serves as the foundation's

Chief Financial Officer A chief financial officer (CFO) is an officer of a company or organization who is assigned the primary responsibility for making decisions for the company for projects and its finances; i.a.: financial planning, management of financial risks, ...

. Sean McGarry, son of Kris Engelstad, serves as a Trustee as well as Investment Director for the foundation. He is also the founder of 1930 Capital, a Las Vegas investment firm that sources, executes and manages private equity, real estate and other investments. Erin McGarry, daughter of Kris Engelstad, is the foundation’s chief granting officer, assisting with the foundation’s grant proposal and management process.

Philanthropy

As a foundation that has been granted charitable status, the Engelstad Foundation is required to file IRS 990-PF form annually. In fiscal year ending December 2022, the foundation reported total assets of $826,907,501, revenue of $53,710,352 and charitable disbursements of $52,007,432. The Engelstad Foundation promotes the welfare of others through generous donations to what they believe to be good causes. Donations to organizations focus on various categories including animal compassion, at-risk individuals, education, historical preservation, medical research and support, people with disabilities and veterans. The extent of the organization’s philanthropic endeavors has led multiple associations to honor the foundation. In 2020, the Engelstad Foundation was honored as

Las Vegas Sun The ''Las Vegas Sun'' is one of the Las Vegas Valley's two daily subscription newspapers. It is owned by the Greenspun family and is affiliated with Greenspun Media Group. The paper published afternoons on weekdays from 1990 to 2005 and is now ...

VEGAS INC Angel Awards: Foundation of the Year. Kris Englestad was named the CommonSpirit Philanthropist of the Year at CommonSpirit Health’s 12th annual Philanthropy Summit in February 2023. The Engelstad Foundation was honored as a Candlelighters Sustaining Impact Honoree, receiving the Sustaining Community Award for their investment in changing the lives of those in Southern Nevada March 2023.

Key Partnerships

Nevada Health and Bioscience Corporation - Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine

Kris Engelstad, of the Engelstad Foundation, formed a donor development limited liability corporation, the Nevada Health and Bioscience Corporation (NHBC), with several Las Vegas philanthropists including MaryKaye Cashman, of Cashman Equipment; Lindy Schumacher, of the Lincy Institute; and Marianne Johnson, of

Boyd Gaming Boyd Gaming Corporation is an American gaming and hospitality company based in Paradise, Nevada. The company continues to be run by founder Sam Boyd's family under the management of Sam's granddaughter, Marianne Boyd-Johnson, who currently serv ...

. Through a public-private partnership with the NHBC, the nonprofit organization managed $120 million in philanthropic donations from the Engelstad Foundation, the Lincy Foundation, the Boyd Family Foundation and

Bank of America The Bank of America Corporation (Bank of America) (often abbreviated BofA or BoA) is an American multinational investment banking, investment bank and financial services holding company headquartered at the Bank of America Corporate Center in ...

, as well as a $25 million contribution from the state of Nevada to build the Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine Building at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. The school celebrated the grand opening of the building on Oct. 5, 2023. The building was constructed and delivered under-budget and ahead of deadline. The Engelstad Foundation donated $15 million to construct the

Kirk Kerkorian Kerkor Kirk Kerkorian (; June 6, 1917 – June 15, 2015) was an American businessman, investor, and philanthropist. He was the president and CEO of Tracinda Corporation, his private holding company based in Beverly Hills, California. Kerkorian ...

Medical Educational Building.

Andre Agassi Foundation for Education - THE BIG IDEA CHALLENGE: An Education Innovation Contest

The

Andre Agassi Andre Kirk Agassi ( ; born April 29, 1970) is an American former professional tennis player. He was ranked as the List of ATP number 1 ranked singles players, world No. 1 in men's singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 101 ...

Foundation for Education and the Engelstad Foundation partnered to financially back THE BIG IDEA CHALLENGE: An Education Innovation Contest. In 2022, THE BIG IDEA CHALLENGE was launched as an incubator-type contest that encouraged individuals to submit the creative idea that they believed could transform education in Nevada. The contest awarded grants to three winners to make their ideas a reality. Winners also received assistance from Nevada GrantLab to manage the funding and bring the idea to life. More than 200 applications for the challenge were accepted from January through March 2022 and the contest awarded a total of $275,000 in grants.

high school teacher Ben Nguyen received a $200,000 grant for his "A Platform for the Future" concept that aims to build a platform for localized job shadowing, training, and mentorship. Retired Las Vegas teacher Eleanor Cormier received a $50,000 grant for her Project 300 Early Learning Academy model, an online virtual tutoring program for kindergarteners in urban elementary schools that will aim to strengthen their literacy skills utilizing Common Core State Standards in English language arts. Henderson, Nev. resident Dorothy Blake was awarded a $25,000 grant to expand the Mindful Music Moments program into Nevada by launching a pilot program. In 2023, THE BIG IDEA CHALLENGE, in its 2nd year, selected three winners that received a total of $500,000 in grants. Las Vegas educators Shardae Chenoweth and Dr. Biante’ Gainous, received $200,000 to grow their Financially Lit platform, an experiential learning opportunity for students to exist within a microeconomy where scholar dollars are the currency. Rhea Watson, with Las Vegas-based Scholarship Solutions, received $150,000 for her “A Scholarship A Day” app that aims to provide students access to college and scholarship information and opportunities. Natalie Adame, Robele Abdi and Nefeli Georgilas, received $150,000 for their SchoolM8 Educational Management web app, which will help students streamline their educational journey in one centralized website.

Opportunity Village

In 2021, the Engelstad Foundation partnered with Opportunity Village to sponsor the building of Betty’s Village, a $35 million housing project for individuals with special needs. The development initially housed 70 adults and includes amenities, such as a gym and pool for residents. In the spring of 2023, Opportunity Village announced the plan to construct 100 more housing units with construction set to begin in the spring of 2024 and estimated to take 18 months to two years to complete. The additions will be built on 17.6 acres of land located in northwest

. The first phase will include beds and the second phase will have a community center along with more housing. The units at Betty’s Village vary between one and two-bedroom homes and the tenant’s rent is covered by

Medicaid Medicaid is a government program in the United States that provides health insurance for adults and children with limited income and resources. The program is partially funded and primarily managed by U.S. state, state governments, which also h ...

. The Engelstad Foundation pledged a $10 million match grant for the expansion. The project is named after Betty Engelstad.

Project 150

The Engelstad Foundation partnered with the estate of

to provide a $1.3 million donation to fund the second location for Project 150, a Las Vegas nonprofit that provides resources for high school students in need. The location aims to connect services for thousands of homeless, displaced, and disadvantaged students in Las Vegas.

Touro University Nevada

The Englestad Foundation has gifted over $8 million

Touro University Nevada Touro University Nevada (TUN) is a private university in Henderson, Nevada, United States. It is part of the Touro College and University System. Touro University Nevada is a branch campus of its sister campus Touro University California. His ...

(Touro University) to fund scholarships, partnership programs, mobile health care outreach, and bench-to-bedside research. The Engelstad Foundation’s partnership with Touro University started with a $1.5 million gift to fund the university’s second mobile healthcare clinic. The foundation went on to provide an additional $4 million gift, which created the school’s first scholarship endowment for our medical students. Of the $4 million gift, $3 million was endowed to provide for student scholarships and $1 million funded additional outreach initiatives for the university’s three mobile healthcare clinics. Additionally, the

’s Engelstad Research Complex was created with support from the Englestad Foundation’s gifts totaling $1.8 million. Beginning in 2022, a $1 million grant from the Engelstad Foundation funded the Las Vegas Crisis Response Medical Training Program, led by Touro University. More than 1,200 officers with

Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (also known as the LVMPD or Metro) is a combined city and county law enforcement agency for the Las Vegas, City of Las Vegas and Clark County, Nevada, United States. It is headed by the Sheriff of Clar ...

have been instructed in lifesaving medical training. The Engelstad Foundation and Touro University also provide the

with individual trauma kits, also referred to as IFAKs, and train on how to use them. In 2024,

College of Osteopathic Medicine received $500,000 from the Engelstad Foundation towards cancer research, conducted within the Touro University Nevada’s Engelstad Research Complex, aiming to develop a drug that prevents

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...

metastasis Metastasis is a pathogenic agent's spreading from an initial or primary site to a different or secondary site within the host's body; the term is typically used when referring to metastasis by a cancerous tumor. The newly pathological sites, ...

Warrior Pathway Program

Announced in February 2024, the Engelstad Foundation partnered with

Mike Rowe Michael Gregory Rowe (born March 18, 1962) is an American television host and narrator. He is known for his work on the Discovery Channel series '' Dirty Jobs'' and the series '' Somebody's Gotta Do It'' originally developed for CNN. He hosted ...

, creator and host of the TV series

Dirty Jobs ''Dirty Jobs'' is an American television series that originally aired on the Discovery Channel in which host Mike Rowe is shown performing difficult, strange, disgusting, or messy occupational duties alongside the job's current employees. The sho ...

, and the mikeroweWORKS Foundation, to create the “Warrior Pathway Program.” The four-year program provides approximately $4.5 million in full-ride scholarships, funded by the Engelstad Foundation, to trade schools for students at Western High School in

. Students who complete the program through their senior year, will be offered scholarships to two-year or shorter technical training programs. It is estimated that roughly 50 freshman students will have trade school paid for after graduation in 2027.

Wave Neuroscience

The Engelstad Foundation funded a $1.5 million grant to Wave Neuroscience that will support Wave Neuroscience’s Phase Two

clinical trial Clinical trials are prospective biomedical or behavioral research studies on human subject research, human participants designed to answer specific questions about biomedical or behavioral interventions, including new treatments (such as novel v ...

, which aims to develop and validate treatments for

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental disorder that develops from experiencing a Psychological trauma, traumatic event, such as sexual assault, domestic violence, child abuse, warfare and its associated traumas, natural disaster ...

(PTSD) and

Traumatic Brain Injury A traumatic brain injury (TBI), also known as an intracranial injury, is an injury to the brain caused by an external force. TBI can be classified based on severity ranging from mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI/concussion) to severe traumati ...

(TBI), currently underway with

Texas A&M University Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, TA&M, or TAMU) is a public university, public, Land-grant university, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas, United States. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of ...

Health Science Center (Texas A&M Health) Institute of Biosciences and Technology.

References

{{reflist 2002 establishments in Nevada Organizations established in 2002 Charities based in Nevada