SOURCE OF WEALTH: Apollo Management, Ares Management
FUNDING AREAS: Education & Youth, Arts & Culture, Media, Health, Environment, Jewish causes
OVERVIEW: John Kissick and family conduct their philanthropy through the Kissick Family Foundation, which, according to available tax filings, gave away $2.6 million in 2017. The Kissick family’s giving through their foundation focuses on California. Kissick steadily supports his alma mater Stanford University. Other interests include youth, arts, and Jewish causes.
BACKGROUND: John Kissick graduated from Yale University with a B.A. in economics and received an MBA in finance from Stanford University. He joined Drexel Burnham Lambert in 1975 and in 1990 cofounded Apollo Management. He went on to cofound Ares Management, where he was a partner until early 2017.
ISSUES:
EDUCATION & YOUTH: Kissick supports several Stanford University outfits including its graduate schools of business and education. He sits on the board of Stanford University’s Athletic Department and its Graduate School of Education. He also supports his undergraduate school, Yale. The Kissicks support LA’s Promise, which “helps economically disadvantaged children graduate from high school through a variety of mentoring and other programs,” Alliance for College Ready Schools, College Match, Curtis School, Educators for Excellence, Year Up, Posse Foundation, Teach for America, and Friends of Foshay Robotics, which supports Foshay Learning Center in South Los Angeles.
ARTS, CULTURE & MEDIA: Grantees include Etc Theatre Company, Geffen Playhouse, Santa Monica Museum of Art, Natural History Museum, NPR, KCRW, and KCET.
HEALTH: The Kissicks earmark sums for health organizations Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Down Syndrome Association, Planned Parenthood, Prostate Cancer Foundation, and Saint John’s Health Center.
JEWISH CAUSES: Grantees include Bet Tzedek, Jewish World Watch, and The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles.
ENVIRONMENT: The Kissicks, via their foundation, have supported Heal the Bay, National Geographic Society, Sustainable Conservation, and The Nature Conservancy.
LOOKING FORWARD: Expect Kissick’s steady giving to continue. He recently retired from Ares, which may enable a greater focus on philanthropy.
CONTACT:
The Kissick Family Foundation does not provide a clear avenue of contact but below is an address:
Kissick Family Foundation
922 Napoli Dr.
Pacific Palisades, CA 90272
