The Henry R. Kravis Prize in Leadership
Encyclopedia
The Henry R. Kravis Prize in Leadership is a philanthropic award for leaders in the nonprofit sector. According to Bloomberg News, the prize "honor[s] those who have demonstrated 'bold leadership' in the nonprofit sector and have shared their best practices with others."
, during which he or she is awarded $250,000. Collectively, the first five Prize recipients have impacted more than 500 million people in more than 60 countries on five continents.
The Prize is presented and administered by Claremont McKenna College
(CMC) and Marie-Josée and Henry R. Kravis. Marie-Josée Kravis is an economist and a senior fellow of the Hudson Institute
. Henry Kravis, founding partner, co-chairman and co-CEO of Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co.
, is an alumnus and trustee of Claremont McKenna College. Additionally, the Prize is affiliated with the Kravis Leadership Institute, a research institute within CMC.
The Kravis Prize builds public awareness of recipients’ endeavors and aims to increase their credibility in the eyes of other potential donors. Working together with Claremont McKenna College
and the Kravis Leadership Institute, Kravis Prize recipients help shape the next generation of leaders in the nonprofit sector with:
is the “largest non-governmental organization working to provide quality education to the underprivileged children of India. Pratham was established in 1994 to provide education to the children in the slums of Mumbai. Since then, the organization has grown both in scope and geographical coverage.”
is the executive director of the Afghan Institute of Learning (AIL), an Afghan women-led non-governmental organization
she founded in 1995. The AIL provides teacher training to Afghan women, supports education for boys and girls and provides health education to women and children.
(F.A.W.E.) is a “pan-African non-governmental organization
working in 32 African countries to empower girls and women through gender-responsive education.” Through education of women and girls, F.A.W.E. improves livelihoods and enhances education and civil liberties.
is a social worker and the founder and chairman of BRAC (Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee), which uses education, health-care and microfinance programs to lift people out of poverty. A 2002 Bloomberg Businessweek article noted that most of BRAC's 110 million beneficiaries are women, and its centers operate schools that have helped “four million girls get at least five years of education.”
is the founder of the Rural Development Institute
(RDI) (which recently changed its name to Landesa) and is active in the fields of land reform, rural development and foreign aid. Prosterman is Professor Emeritus of Law at the University of Washington
and is a frequent guest speaker at global forums on poverty alleviation.
, public health
, law
/justice
/human rights
, education
and capacity building
. According to the Kravis Prize website, the Selection Committee considers a nominee’s boldness, innovation, creativity, consistency, persistence and effectiveness in implementing their vision. Other criteria include realizing the mission of an organization and demonstrating best practices.
Additionally, the Selection Committee considers the pool of nominees’ letters of recommendations, quantitative and qualitative analyses prepared by the Prize staff and the person’s direct impact on the nonprofit sector.
The Kravis Prize Selection Committee is chaired by Marie-Josée Kravis, and also includes Harry McMahon, Amartya Sen
, Lord Jacob Rothschild, Ratan Tata
, Surin Pitsuwan
and James D. Wolfensohn.
and the Rural Development Institute
, the first recipient of the Kravis Prize, has become a case study at the Stanford Business School for how it addressed rural landlessness in India.
Case studies on several Kravis Prize recipients have been published in the Stanford Social Innovation Review, including:
The Prize also seeks to add to the work already in progress at the Kravis Leadership Institute at Claremont McKenna College
.
in New York City. As part of the celebration of the winner’s accomplishments, Henry and Marie-Josée Kravis present $250,000 to a nonprofit organization designated by the recipient, who gives the keynote address of the event.
About the Prize
The Henry R. Kravis Prize in Leadership was established in 2006 and selects an annual recipient following a rigorous due diligence and selection process. The recipient's achievements are celebrated at a ceremony in New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, during which he or she is awarded $250,000. Collectively, the first five Prize recipients have impacted more than 500 million people in more than 60 countries on five continents.
The Prize is presented and administered by Claremont McKenna College
Claremont McKenna College
Claremont McKenna College is a private, coeducational liberal arts college and a member of the Claremont Colleges located in Claremont, California. The campus is located east of Downtown Los Angeles...
(CMC) and Marie-Josée and Henry R. Kravis. Marie-Josée Kravis is an economist and a senior fellow of the Hudson Institute
Hudson Institute
The Hudson Institute is an American think tank founded in 1961, in Croton-on-Hudson, New York, by futurist, military strategist, and systems theorist Herman Kahn and his colleagues at the RAND Corporation...
. Henry Kravis, founding partner, co-chairman and co-CEO of Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co.
Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co.
KKR & Co. L.P. is an American-based global private equity firm, specializing in leveraged buyouts, based in New York. The firm sponsors and manages private equity investment funds. Since its inception, the firm has completed over $400 billion of private equity transactions and was a pioneer in...
, is an alumnus and trustee of Claremont McKenna College. Additionally, the Prize is affiliated with the Kravis Leadership Institute, a research institute within CMC.
The Kravis Prize builds public awareness of recipients’ endeavors and aims to increase their credibility in the eyes of other potential donors. Working together with Claremont McKenna College
Claremont McKenna College
Claremont McKenna College is a private, coeducational liberal arts college and a member of the Claremont Colleges located in Claremont, California. The campus is located east of Downtown Los Angeles...
and the Kravis Leadership Institute, Kravis Prize recipients help shape the next generation of leaders in the nonprofit sector with:
- Annual lectures by Prize recipients to Claremont McKenna students, faculty and alumni;
- Summer internships that place Claremont McKenna students with the organizations of Prize recipients and allow students to lead a project for that organization;
- Case studies incorporated into the college’s academic curricula, which feature the efforts of Prize recipients; and
- Research conducted by both faculty and students in the area of nonprofit impact.
Vicky Colbert (2011)
Vicky Colbert founded the internationally recognized Escuela Nueva Foundation in 1987. Colbert and ENF work to alleviate inequality and poverty through a collaborative learning educational program in Colombia. The program provides effective teacher training, improves curriculum and fosters classroom environments that are engaging and compelling to students. The ENF model moves away from traditional "teacher-centered" environments, which often emphasize rote memorization directed by the teacher, and instead encourages "child-centered" environments that fully engage students and allow them to learn at their own pace.Pratham (2010)
According to its website, PrathamPratham
Pratham is a non-governmental organisation that works towards the provision of quality education to the underprivileged children in India. Established in Mumbai in 1994 to provide pre-school education to children in slums, it now has activities in 21 states of India and has supporting chapters in...
is the “largest non-governmental organization working to provide quality education to the underprivileged children of India. Pratham was established in 1994 to provide education to the children in the slums of Mumbai. Since then, the organization has grown both in scope and geographical coverage.”
Sakena Yacoobi (2009)
Sakena YacoobiSakena Yacoobi
Sakena Yacoobi is the founder of the .Dr. Sakena Yacoobi is Executive Director of the Afghan Institute of Learning , an Afghan women-led NGO she founded in 1995. The organization was established to provide teacher training to Afghan women, to support education for boys and girls, and to provide...
is the executive director of the Afghan Institute of Learning (AIL), an Afghan women-led non-governmental organization
Non-governmental organization
A non-governmental organization is a legally constituted organization created by natural or legal persons that operates independently from any government. The term originated from the United Nations , and is normally used to refer to organizations that do not form part of the government and are...
she founded in 1995. The AIL provides teacher training to Afghan women, supports education for boys and girls and provides health education to women and children.
F.A.W.E. (2008)
According to its website, the Forum for African Women EducationalistsForum for African Women Educationalists
The Forum for African Women Educationalists is a pan-African non-governmental organization founded in 1992 by five women ministers of education to promote girls’ and women’s education in sub-Saharan Africa by making sure they have access to schools and are able to complete their studies and...
(F.A.W.E.) is a “pan-African non-governmental organization
Non-governmental organization
A non-governmental organization is a legally constituted organization created by natural or legal persons that operates independently from any government. The term originated from the United Nations , and is normally used to refer to organizations that do not form part of the government and are...
working in 32 African countries to empower girls and women through gender-responsive education.” Through education of women and girls, F.A.W.E. improves livelihoods and enhances education and civil liberties.
Fazle Hasan Abed (2007)
Sir Fazle Hasan AbedFazle Hasan Abed
Sir Fazle Hasan Abed, KCMG is a social worker with dual Bangladeshi/ British nationality and the founder and chairman of BRAC . For his outstanding contributions to social improvement, he has received the Ramon Magsaysay Award, the UNDP Mahbub Ul Haq Award and the inaugural Clinton Global Citizen...
is a social worker and the founder and chairman of BRAC (Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee), which uses education, health-care and microfinance programs to lift people out of poverty. A 2002 Bloomberg Businessweek article noted that most of BRAC's 110 million beneficiaries are women, and its centers operate schools that have helped “four million girls get at least five years of education.”
Roy Prosterman (2006)
Roy ProstermanRoy Prosterman
Roy Prosterman is Professor Emeritus of Law at the University of Washington and the founder of the Rural Development Institute , which changed its name to Landesa in January 2011. He is also active in the fields of land reform, rural development, and foreign aid...
is the founder of the Rural Development Institute
Rural Development Institute
The Rural Development Institute was established in 1989 by Brandon University as an academic research center focusing on issues affecting rural communities in Western Canada and elsewhere...
(RDI) (which recently changed its name to Landesa) and is active in the fields of land reform, rural development and foreign aid. Prosterman is Professor Emeritus of Law at the University of Washington
University of Washington
University of Washington is a public research university, founded in 1861 in Seattle, Washington, United States. The UW is the largest university in the Northwest and the oldest public university on the West Coast. The university has three campuses, with its largest campus in the University...
and is a frequent guest speaker at global forums on poverty alleviation.
Selection Committee
The Kravis Prize is awarded annually based on nominations received from members of its Selection Committee and visitors to the Prize website. Nominations are considered by the committee and include a broad range of sectors in the nonprofit field, such as economic developmentEconomic development
Economic development generally refers to the sustained, concerted actions of policymakers and communities that promote the standard of living and economic health of a specific area...
, public health
Public health
Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals" . It is concerned with threats to health based on population health...
, law
Law
Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...
/justice
Justice
Justice is a concept of moral rightness based on ethics, rationality, law, natural law, religion, or equity, along with the punishment of the breach of said ethics; justice is the act of being just and/or fair.-Concept of justice:...
/human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
, education
Education
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
and capacity building
Capacity building
Capacity building also referred to as capacity development is a conceptual approach to development that focuses on understanding the obstacles that inhibit people, governments, international organizations and non-governmental organizations from realizing their developmental goals while enhancing...
. According to the Kravis Prize website, the Selection Committee considers a nominee’s boldness, innovation, creativity, consistency, persistence and effectiveness in implementing their vision. Other criteria include realizing the mission of an organization and demonstrating best practices.
Additionally, the Selection Committee considers the pool of nominees’ letters of recommendations, quantitative and qualitative analyses prepared by the Prize staff and the person’s direct impact on the nonprofit sector.
The Kravis Prize Selection Committee is chaired by Marie-Josée Kravis, and also includes Harry McMahon, Amartya Sen
Amartya Sen
Amartya Sen, CH is an Indian economist who was awarded the 1998 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences for his contributions to welfare economics and social choice theory, and for his interest in the problems of society's poorest members...
, Lord Jacob Rothschild, Ratan Tata
Ratan Tata
Ratan Naval Tata is the present chairman of Tata Sons and therefore, Tata Group. Also, he is one among the few in the world...
, Surin Pitsuwan
Surin Pitsuwan
Surin Pitsuwan is a longtime Thai politician. He was born in Nakhon Si Thammarat, into an assimilated Thai family of Malay descent.-Early life:...
and James D. Wolfensohn.
Marie-Josée Kravis
- Selection Committee Chair
- Senior Fellow, The Hudson Institute
- New York CityNew York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, New YorkNew YorkNew York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
Harry T. McMahon
- Executive Vice Chairman, Bank of AmericaBank of AmericaBank of America Corporation, an American multinational banking and financial services corporation, is the second largest bank holding company in the United States by assets, and the fourth largest bank in the U.S. by market capitalization. The bank is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina...
Merrill LynchMerrill LynchMerrill Lynch is the wealth management division of Bank of America. With over 15,000 financial advisors and $2.2 trillion in client assets it is the world's largest brokerage. Formerly known as Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc., prior to 2009 the firm was publicly owned and traded on the New York...
- Chairman, Claremont McKenna CollegeClaremont McKenna CollegeClaremont McKenna College is a private, coeducational liberal arts college and a member of the Claremont Colleges located in Claremont, California. The campus is located east of Downtown Los Angeles...
Board of Trustees
- Los Angeles, California
Lord Jacob Rothschild
- Chairman, RIT (Rothschild Investment Trust) Capital Partners
- Deputy Chairman, BSkyB Television
- LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, EnglandEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
Amartya Sen
- Thomas W. Lamont University Professor, Harvard UniversityHarvard UniversityHarvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
- Nobel Laureate, EconomicsEconomicsEconomics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek from + , hence "rules of the house"...
(1998)
- Cambridge, MassachusettsMassachusettsThe Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
James D. Wolfensohn
- Chairman, Wolfensohn & Company, L.L.C.
- Former President, The World Bank
- Washington, DC
Ratan Tata
- Chairman, Tata GroupTata GroupTata Group is an Indian multinational conglomerate company headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. Tata Group is one of the largest companies in India by market capitalization and revenue. It has interests in communications and information technology, engineering, materials, services, energy,...
- MumbaiMumbaiMumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
, IndiaIndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
Best Practices
In a 2010 interview with the New York Times, Marie-Josée Kravis said she wanted the Prize to identify institutions that delivered their services efficiently and share those best practices with other nonprofit groups. The work of Roy ProstermanRoy Prosterman
Roy Prosterman is Professor Emeritus of Law at the University of Washington and the founder of the Rural Development Institute , which changed its name to Landesa in January 2011. He is also active in the fields of land reform, rural development, and foreign aid...
and the Rural Development Institute
Rural Development Institute
The Rural Development Institute was established in 1989 by Brandon University as an academic research center focusing on issues affecting rural communities in Western Canada and elsewhere...
, the first recipient of the Kravis Prize, has become a case study at the Stanford Business School for how it addressed rural landlessness in India.
Case studies on several Kravis Prize recipients have been published in the Stanford Social Innovation Review, including:
- Rural Development InstituteRural Development InstituteThe Rural Development Institute was established in 1989 by Brandon University as an academic research center focusing on issues affecting rural communities in Western Canada and elsewhere...
, “Curbing Mission Creep,” Winter 2008. "Despite temptations to broaden its focus, the Rural Development Institute has remained single-mindedly devoted to its mission. As a result, the organization has helped 400 million poor farmers around the world take ownership of some" 270 million acres (1,092,652.2 km²) "of land – all on a modest budget."
- BRACBRAC (NGO)BRAC, based in Bangladesh, is the world's largest non-governmental development organization. Established by Sir Fazle Hasan Abed in 1972 soon after the independence of Bangladesh, BRAC is present in all 64 districts of Bangladesh, with over 7 million microfinance group members, 37,500 non-formal...
, “In the Black with BRAC,” Winter 2009. “Serving more than 110 million people per year, BRAC is the largest nonprofit in the world. Yet it doesn’t receive the most charitable donations. Instead, BRAC’s social enterprises generate 80 percent of the organization’s annual budget. These revenues have allowed the organization to develop, test, and replicate some of the world’s most innovative antipoverty programs.”
- Forum for African Women Educationalists, “Strength Through Flexibility,” Winter 2010. “Development experts have long known that educating girls is one of the surest ways to improve life for everyone in poor countries. Yet the path to school has not been smooth for many girls—especially in sub-Saharan Africa. Over the past 17 years, however, the Forum for African Women Educationalists (FAWE) has delivered high-quality education to millions of girls across 35 African countries. The secret to FAWE’s scale and impact, say its leaders, is its flexibility.”
The Prize also seeks to add to the work already in progress at the Kravis Leadership Institute at Claremont McKenna College
Claremont McKenna College
Claremont McKenna College is a private, coeducational liberal arts college and a member of the Claremont Colleges located in Claremont, California. The campus is located east of Downtown Los Angeles...
.
Award Ceremony
Every year, the recipient of the Kravis Prize is honored in an award ceremony at the Museum of Modern ArtMuseum of Modern Art
The Museum of Modern Art is an art museum in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, on 53rd Street, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It has been important in developing and collecting modernist art, and is often identified as the most influential museum of modern art in the world...
in New York City. As part of the celebration of the winner’s accomplishments, Henry and Marie-Josée Kravis present $250,000 to a nonprofit organization designated by the recipient, who gives the keynote address of the event.