$50,000 Donation on Syllabus in Top Schools’ Giving Courses

The New York Times writes about the proliferation of courses on philanthropy at major universities, endowed by a billionaire donor, in which the curriculum includes giving away $50,000.

The courses at Northwestern, Stanford, Harvard, Princeton, and other elite institutions are backed by Geoffrey P. Raynor, founder of the Fort Worth, Tex., hedge fund Q Investments. His gifts stipulate that the institutions set aside two hours for him to talk to students about his views on philanthropy, which he terms “practical philosophy.”

Students are required to find and vet nonprofit organizations among which to divvy up the cash pot. Participants said they viewed the challenge as preparation for careers in the nonprofit sector or to become philanthropists themselves. Last year Mr. Raynor’s Once Upon a Time Foundation lowered its grants for the courses from $100,000 to $50,000 and encouraged students to raise the balance themselves.