InternX
The Fund II team learned quickly that mentorships, scholarships
and internships opened the widest doors to prosperity. To that
end, Fund II created internX, a platform to connect students
studying science, technology, engineering or math with companies
searching for STEM talent. internX disproves the notion that quali-
fied black and brown tech interns don’t exist, while helping interns
learn skills, find mentors and gather the experience crucial for
developing careers and building wealth.Changing Lives,
One Grant at a Time
B
usiness leader and philanthropist Robert F. Smith
inspired the world with his 2019 commencement pledge
to pay off the student debt for nearly 400 graduates atMorehouse College in Atlanta. Smith’s pledge was a personal
one, on behalf of his family, which has been part of the American
fabric for eight generations. The gift also focused a public spot-
light on Fund II Foundation, a private charitable organization
founded in 2014 to grant to public charities the assets of a
reserve established when Smith’s Vista Equity Partners raised its
first private equity fund in 2000.
Fund II Foundation, which Smith leads as President and Found-ing Director, has awarded nearly $250 million in grants in nine
disciplines: education, social justice, environment, digitization,
career readiness, health, music and arts appreciation, cultural
preservation and veterans’ affairs. Its grantees include non-profits
that train veterans and young adults for technology careers,
promote youth environmental service and teach young people
how to preserve historic and culturally significant landmarks.
Through grants and signature in-house programs, Fund II has
touched more than 1.2 million people nationwide.
Cradle to Greatness
The foundation’s signature philosophy, Cradle to Greatness, offers
a framework to measure the success of grantees, determine those
in need of additional help and accelerate access to that help. This
enables Fund II to go deeper, investing in overlooked and underes-
timated communities, considering many pathways to success,
from birth to a career, and even promoting business ownership.
“Our Cradle to Greatness framework rekindles hope and pros-perity in communities often besieged by neglect and violence,” says
Smith. “What we want our kids to know in every domain of their
lives — on this earth, in the home, on the job, at school, everywhere
they turn — is that they are worthy.”
PHOTOGRAPHY PROVIDED BY FUND II FOUNDATIONPAID FOR AND POSTED BY
FUND II FOUNDATION