Moody Foundation

The Moody Foundation is one of the largest private foundations in Texas, with more than $3.5 billion in assets. ¹ Based in Galveston, Texas, the foundation makes grants to charitable nonprofits in Texas and operates its own initiated projects. ^{2  3} It does not make grants to political organizations, political candidates, lobbyists or related organizations. ⁴

The Moody Foundation was created by financial services entrepreneur William Lewis Moody, Jr. and his wife Libbie Rice Shearn Moody.  ⁵

History and Background

The Moody Foundation was created by financial services entrepreneur William Lewis Moody, Jr. and his wife Libbie Rice Shearn Moody “to benefit, in perpetuity, present and future generations of Texans.”  ⁵ Today, the foundation affirms its founders’ intent by requiring that all funds from its grants must be expended within the state of Texas. ⁴

William Moody was best known for founding the American National Insurance Company (ANICO), which was the first major insurer headquartered west of the Mississippi River.  ⁵ He went on to found or hold stakes in a variety of banks, newspapers, hotels, ranches, and other businesses.  ⁵

He created the Moody Foundation in 1942 and willed the majority of his estate to the foundation upon his death in 1954.  ⁵ As a result of this bequest, the foundation held a controlling stake in ANICO and other insurance firms, banks, newspapers, and other businesses. ⁵

From Moody’s death through 2026, the Moody Foundation became one of the largest grant makers to charities in Texas, frequently donating more money in a year to Texas-based recipients than major philanthropies such as the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation, Brown Foundation, or the community foundations for San Antonio, Dallas, or Austin.  ¹

Leadership

William and Libbie’s daughter Mary Moody Northern took over the leadership of the Moody Foundation upon her father’s death in 1954. ⁵  As of 2026, the Moody family was still in control, with all three seats on the foundation’s board occupied by family members. ⁶

As of 2026, the chair, CEO, and president of the Moody Foundation was Frances “Francie” Moody-Dahlberg, William and Libbie’s great-granddaughter. ⁷ In 2024, the foundation reported that she received a total of $323,679 in compensation for an average of 37.5 hours a week of work. ⁸ As of 2026, Moody-Dahlberg sat on the boards of Southern Methodist University, the AT&T Performing Arts Center, Moody Neurorehabilitation Institute, and the Moody Endowment, and the advisory board of Crystal Charity Ball. ⁹

As of 2026, the foundation’s vice chairman was Ross R. Moody, who sat on the boards of Moody Neurorehabilitation, the Moody Endowment, and the National Advisory Council for the Moody College of Communication at the University of Texas at Austin. ¹⁰ In 2024, the foundation reported that he received $100,250 in compensation for an average of 10 hours a week of work.  ⁸ He was the CEO of life insurance company National Western Life Group until it was sold for $1.9 billion in 2023. ¹¹

As of 2026, Elizabeth “Elle” Moody was the Moody Foundation’s treasurer, senior vice president for grants, and chief communications officer.  ⁸ In 2024, the foundation reported that she received $322,456 in total compensation for an average of 47.5 hours a week of work. ⁸ She sat on the Rice University board of trustees, the advisory board for the Moody Center for the Arts at Rice University, the board of Ballroom Marfa, the national leadership board for the Blanton Museum of Art, and the board of the Moody College of Communication Advisory Council at the University of Texas at Austin. ¹²

Charitable Activities

The Moody Foundation’s activities are broadly separated into grants to charitable nonprofits and operating its own initiatives.  ⁴

It does not make grants to political organizations, political candidates, lobbyists or related organizations. ⁴

Grantmaking

From 2015 through 2026, the Moody Foundation’s charitable giving generally ranged from roughly $75 to $125 million per year. ⁸ Its primary giving areas have typically been education, social services and family well-being, health and wellness, and the arts. ¹³ It limits its giving solely to programs in Texas, and requires all grant funds to be spent within the state. ⁴

In 2019, the Moody Foundation pledged $130 million to the University of Texas at Austin’s campaign to build a new 15,000-seat multipurpose arena, now known as the Moody Center.  ^{14  15} This was the largest gift ever to the university from a foundation. ¹⁴

In 2024, the foundation reported making $121,331,301 in current-year grants and approving $193,889,469 in future grants to a total of 470 recipients. The largest grant was a pledge of $130 million to the Children’s Medical Center Foundation of Texas toward a capital campaign to build a new pediatric hospital in Dallas. ⁸

The Moody Foundation has a significant focus on education, with more than $500 million in grants to schools, universities, and other education-related recipients in Texas between 2013 and 2023.

In 2023, the Moody Foundation announced that it would be committing $1 billion to improving education in Texas by 2035. ⁶ Its “M-PACT” initiative is planned to include both programmatic grants in areas of early learning and postsecondary education, as well as contributions to the endowment funds of public colleges and universities.  ⁶

COVID-19 Response

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Moody Foundation distributed several rounds of COVID-19 relief grants, awarding more than $15 million to nonprofits in Texas. ¹⁶ Some of the largest grants awarded in 2020 included $300,000 to the American National Red Cross for COVID-19 relief, $750,000 to Dallas Children’s Advocacy Center for a psychology Ph.D. internship program, $949,578 to the Highland Park ISD Education Fund, $1 million to the Houston Independent School District for COVID-19 relief, $600,000 to North Texas Food Bank for COVID-19 relief, $3.2 million to Pease Park Conservancy for general support, and $20 million to Southern Methodist University for the Moody School of Graduate and Advanced Studies. ⁸

Foundation Initiatives

As of 2026, Moody Foundation operated four ongoing focus initiatives. ³

The Generation Moody Education Initiative supports education for residents of its home community of Galveston, Texas from pre-K through post-secondary schooling. Launched in 2018, it has distributed more than $55 million in grants.  ³

The Moody Scholars Program provides scholarships to students seeking undergraduate degrees in Texas at both private and public institutions. ¹⁷ Over the life of the program, it has awarded more than $26 million in scholarships to more than 6,360 students in Texas.  ¹⁷

The Moody Gardens complex, created to increase Galveston’s year-round tourism industry, claims to generate annual revenue in excess of $36 million.  ¹⁷ The complex consists of a hotel and convention center, a 3-D IMAX theater, an aquarium, and a one-acre rainforest environment, among other attractions. The Gardens also encompasses an environmental education program used by educators in the area. ¹⁸ In 2024, the foundation donated $7 million to Moody Gardens.  ⁸

The Moody Neurorehabilitation Institute, formerly known as the Transitional Learning Center, is a nonprofit rehabilitation and research center founded in 1982 after a Moody family member suffered a traumatic brain injury in an auto accident. ^{19  3} The Institute offers rehabilitation services to individuals suffering from traumatic brain injuries as well as providing various research opportunities for scientists. Research fields include internal medicine, physical therapy, and neurology. ¹⁹

Financials

In 2024, the Moody Foundation reported more than $3.5 billion in assets. ⁸ While the foundation’s holdings were initially largely in the form of American National Insurance Company stock after William Moody’s death in 1954, it diversified over the decades and holds a portfolio that as of the end of 2024 included shares in 125 different companies, 42 investment funds, more than 280 corporate and government bonds, and a variety of other assets. ⁸

According to its 2024 tax form and reporting by Inside Philanthropy, the Foundation received $1.2 billion in contributions through a “split-interest trust” under the name Libbie Shearn Moody, the wife of the group’s late cofounder William Lewis Moody Jr. That same year, it donated over $121 million to local organizations and causes in the state of Texas, while reporting a $4 billion endowment by the end of 2024. ²⁰