About

Founders Pledge at Yale School of Medicine and Yale School of Public Health is a pre-exit philanthropy program that engages a community of entrepreneurs who have ties to Yale School of Medicine (YSM) and Yale School of Public Health (YSPH), and who wish to solve big problems in medicine, science, and health in partnership with Yale. The program makes it possible for leaders like you to get involved in philanthropy at an early stage, without making a binding commitment up front. It encourages you to envision the kind of transformative impact you can have—in improving lives—by investing in the pioneering research, education, and innovation of YSM and YSPH.

As a member of our Founders Pledge community, you will benefit from features designed to help you and your company succeed.

Founders Pledge is open to alumni of YSM and YSPH degree programs, residencies, and fellowships and to friends of YSM and YSPH who:

• Are founders or key employees of (typically) a privately held startup company—or a startup that recently had an exit or liquidity event.
• Hold equity in that company.
• Wish to make a meaningful philanthropic gift one day to YSM or YSPH to support that school’s mission and ensure a healthier world.

Start by making the pledge—a step now that simply sets your intention to be involved with YSM or YSPH through philanthropy. It expresses your general intent to gift to YSM or YSPH some portion—to be determined later—of shares that you hold in your company, or some portion of your future proceeds from an exit/liquidity event of your company, such as an IPO or acquisition.

Upon making the pledge, you become a Founders Pledge member and join a dynamic community of philanthropically minded individuals who are eager to make a transformational difference at YSM or YSPH and in the world.

When your company is nearing an exit/liquidity event, we can begin a conversation about the type of gift you wish to make to support an initiative that you are passionate about. You may envision supporting research, a program or center, a professorship, scholarships, or some other existing or emerging initiative.

We will work with you to shape your gift’s specific focus, size, and timing. Please consult with your tax and/or financial advisors concerning the structure (typically shares of equity and/or cash) and timing of your gift. We will work closely with you to ensure the lasting impact of your investment.

With your permission, we will highlight your gift on the Founders Pledge website. We greatly value our members’ vision and their commitment to transforming medicine, science, and health… for all humanity.

We invite you to consider a gift that may seem like a stretch today but will likely feel within reach in the future, once your business achieves the exciting milestone of a successful exit event. The Founders Pledge helps you to dream big about how you would like to support a high-impact, transformational initiative at YSM or YSPH.

Some members may decide to gift one or two percent—or more—of their ownership in their company or their personal proceeds from an exit/liquidity event of the company. As always, we are grateful for gifts at all levels. We are happy to discuss a range of giving opportunities.

To learn more, please contact our team in the Office of Development. You may reach us via the Founders Pledge Inquiry Form or founderspledge@yale.edu. We look forward to hearing from you!