The Spencer Foundation was established in 1962 by Lyle M. Spencer. This foundation makes grants to support research in areas of education that are widely construed. It is currently led by Na'ilah Suad Nasir.
Lyle M. Spencer the founder of the Spencer Foundation, received bachelorâÂÂs and masterâÂÂs degrees from the University of Washington, and studied at the University of Chicago under a University Fellowship and a Marshall Field Fellowship in Sociology.
In 1938, Spencer co-founded Science Research Associates, Inc. (SRA), a commercial publisher of standardized tests.
In 1962, Spencer created The Spencer Foundation using the wealth generated by SRA. He would later write, âÂÂAll the Spencer dough was earned, improbably from education. It makes sense, therefore, that much of this money should be returned eventually to investigating ways in which education can be improved, around the world.âÂÂ
In 1964, SRA was acquired by the International Business Machines Corporation (IBM), and in 1966, Spencer was elected a director of IBM.
Spencer died at the age of 57 on August 21, 1968.
The Spencer Foundation was founded in 1962 by Lyle M. Spencer. It remains one of the leading funders of education research in the United States.
Upon Spencer's death in 1968, the foundation received a large endowment. The bulk of the endowment came from SpencerâÂÂs IBM shares, which amounted to about $71.6 million. With these resources, the foundation began making formal grants in 1971. As of 2020, its grants have totaled more than $500 million.
Henry Thomas James was the first president of the Spencer Foundation. He led the organization until 1985. He was succeeded by Lawrence A. Cremin, who held the position until his death in 1990. Patricia Albjerg Graham was the foundation's third president, holding the role from 1991 until 2000. She was followed by Ellen Condliffe Lagemann, president from 2000 to 2002, and Michael S. McPherson, president of from 2003 to 2017.
In 2025, the foundation is led by NaâÂÂilah Suad Nasir, who was named president in 2017.
The Spencer Foundation supports education research through a range of grants, fellowships, and research programs. Its programs are designed to advance theÃÂ understanding of education and identify ways it can be improved around the world.
The foundation awards a series of prestigious fellowships to doctoral students completing dissertation research in any area of education research. Each fellowship is for $27,500 and supports individuals in the final year of their doctoral training. The average number of fellowships awarded is 35 out of 400 applicants. Selection is determined by members of the National Academy of Education and by highly respected senior education research scholars. It provides a number of networking and professional development opportunities and informally is seen as an indicator of who are some of the most promising researchers in education.
The foundation also awards a series of prestigious fellowships to early career education researchers, typically pre-tenured professors at research-intensive institutions. Each fellowship is for a total of $70,000 and is for one or two years, depending on the preference of the recipient. The fellowship relieves the researcher from a year's worth of teaching- and service-related responsibilities in order to pursue an innovative and important education research project. The average number of fellowships awarded is 25 out of 270 applicants each year. Selection is determined by a committee of members of the National Academy of Education. Only scholars who have graduated from their doctorates within the previous five years may apply. Recipients of the fellowship are also recognized as the most promising young scholars in educational research, and this is widely considered to be one of the top distinctions available to an early-career researcher.