Nau Foundation

The Nau Foundation was founded in 2007 by University of Virginia (UVA) graduate John L. Nau, III. Since then, the Nau Foundation has made grants of $27.7 million, ⁴ $16.6 million, ² $15 million, ² $11 million, ² and others to support UVA’s Karsh Institute of Democracy, Democracy Initiative, Program on Constitutionalism and Democracy, and Nau Center for Civil War History. ²

The Nau Foundation is funded by its founder, John L. Nau, III, who is CEO of Silver Eagle Beverages, the largest distributor of Anheuser-Busch products in the United States. In 2019, he contributed $36,786,626 to the foundation. ⁵

History and Leadership

The Nau Foundation was founded in 2007 and received tax-exempt status from the Internal Revenue Service that same year. ^{6 7 8}

John L. Nau, III is the president of the Nau Foundation. ⁹ He is CEO of Silver Eagle Beverages, the largest distributor of Anheuser-Busch products in the United States. ¹⁰ Nau graduated from the University of Virginia (UVA) in 1968 and served on UVA’s Board of Visitors from 2011 until 2015. ¹¹ Nau has also been on the board of directors of the National Park Foundation, American Battlefield Trust, and others. ³

Activities and Funding

The Nau Foundation’s grantmaking activities are primarily focused on educational institutions and the study of American history. ^{1 2 3 1}

In June 2022, the Nau Foundation made $17.6 million in grants to the University of Virginia. Of these grants, a $15 million grant will establish an endowment for the Karsh Institute of Democracy and a separate $2.6 million grant will fund a three-year project to digitize Civil War records. ²

In May 2022, the Nau Foundation gave a $27.7 million grant to UVA to support the university’s Democracy Initiative and its Program on Constitutionalism and Democracy. This grant will establish 10 new democracy professorships at UVA. ¹² As of August 2022, this was the largest-ever gift to the College and Graduate School of Arts and Sciences at the time of its issuance. ¹

The Nau Foundation has also issued $16.6 million grant to UVA to establish the John L. Nau III Center for Civil War History ² and an $11 million grant for the construction of the building housing UVA’s department of history. ²

In 2020, the Nau Foundation gave $1,000,000 to the University of Texas-San Antonio history department. ³

In 2019, Nau Foundation issued a grant of $545,000 to the College Foundation of the University of Virginia and $150,000 to Sull Ross Borderland Research Institute. Nau Foundation also approved future payments of $1,410,000 to the College Foundation of UVA and $1,050,000 to Sull Ross Borderland Research in 2019. ¹³

Funding

The Nau Foundation is primarily funded by John L. Nau. In 2019, Nau contributed $36,766,626 to fund the organization. ⁵ John Nau and his wife Barbara Nau also contributed $500,000 to fund the foundation in 2017. ¹⁴

In 2020, the foundation reported revenue of $2,090,846 and expenses of $6,590,994. ⁹ In 2019, Nau Foundation reported revenue of $37,103,295 and expenses of $728,504. ¹⁵