Dreyfoos School of the Arts Foundation

What Dreyfoos School of the Arts Foundation does

The Dreyfoos School of the Arts Foundation (SOAFI) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit foundation founded in 1993 in West Palm Beach, Florida, that supplements the operating budget of the Alexander W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts — a tuition-free, donation-dependent public high school serving students from across Palm Beach County. The foundation's core function is to fund scholarships, art supplies, equipment, technology, and academic programs that the public-school budget cannot fully cover; through the 2021–2025 school years, it distributed more than $1.8 million in college and summer institute scholarships, including over $830,000 disbursed to 180+ students at the 2025 Scholarship Awards Ceremony alone. It also funds Guest Artists and Artists in Residence programs (exceeding $350,000 in the most recent disclosed year) and supports department-specific giving across dance, music, theatre, visual arts, communications, and digital media.

The foundation operates on a diversified fundraising model combining individual donations (one-time and recurring), the tiered Friends of Dreyfoos membership program ($50–$2,500), the Save the Arts sponsorship program ($600 per student for Artists in Residence), corporate event sponsorships, planned giving through the Dreyfoos Visionaries program (bequests, charitable gift annuities, charitable remainder trusts), and an $8.5 million endowment (with a second endowment housed at the Community Foundation of Palm Beach and Martin Counties since 2015). Its go-to-market is community-led: donor cultivation, alumni engagement, Facebook Fundraiser peer-to-peer giving, and signature annual galas (Dreams of Dreyfoos and PRISM) hosted at the Kravis Center's Cohen Pavilion. The digital infrastructure runs on Givecloud (donations, recurring gifts, event registration, donor management) and Constant Contact (email marketing), with no proprietary technology, AI, or developer-facing APIs.

The foundation is governed by a volunteer Board of Directors with Andrew Vahab (Class of 2001 Communications alumnus, Forbes Top Wealth Advisor 2025) serving as Chairperson of the Executive Board and Dr. Chris Snyder as CEO. Its market is strictly regional — Palm Beach County, Florida — with no disclosed geographic expansion, and its organizational scale is small (approximately 10 employees).

Name

Dreyfoos School of the Arts Foundation

Legal name

Dreyfoos School of the Arts Foundation, Inc.

Website

https://soafi.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1993

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Dreyfoos School of the Arts Foundation (SOAFI) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that funds scholarships, arts programs, and academic support for the tuition-free Alexander W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts, a public high school in West Palm Beach, Florida, serving students from across Palm Beach County.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Arts Education Nonprofit Foundation

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Grantmaking and Giving Services (8132), Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813), Fine Arts Schools (611610)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Education Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Arts, Culture & Humanities Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAJ), Scholarship & Fellowship Foundations and Trusts (EDADAHAC), Grantmaking Agencies & Education Program Grants Administration (EDADAHAD)

Keywords

• Arts education fundraising
• Scholarship foundation services
• Nonprofit donor development
• Endowment and planned giving
• Community arts sponsorship

Headquarters

HQ city

West Palm Beach

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations: Tax-deductible donations from individuals supporting art and academic programs, scholarships, and general operations. One-time and recurring gift options available.
2. Friends of Dreyfoos Memberships: Annual memberships ranging from $50 to $2,500 with tiered benefits including early access to PRISM tickets.
3. Save the Arts Program: Donations specifically designated for Artists in Residence program, approximately $600 per student.
4. Scholarship Funds: Designated donations to established scholarship funds supporting college and summer institute attendance for students.
5. Endowment Gifts: Endowment contributions starting at $25,000 that provide perpetual funding for programs and scholarships. Foundation endowment currently at $8.5 million.
6. Planned Giving: Bequests, beneficiary designations, charitable gift annuities, and charitable remainder trusts through the Dreyfoos Visionaries program.
7. Corporate Sponsorships: Corporate memberships and event sponsorships including PRISM event sponsors at Platinum, Gold, Silver, Patron, Valet, Beverage, and Decorator levels.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The Dreyfoos School of the Arts Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that raises, manages, and distributes charitable funds to support the art and academic programs of the Alexander W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts. Its core activities include soliciting individual donations and corporate sponsorships, administering tiered membership and endowment programs, awarding scholarships to students, and producing fundraising events that enable a tuition-free public arts high school.

Product overview

The Dreyfoos School of the Arts Foundation (SOAFI) operates a donation and scholarship management ecosystem built on the Givecloud platform. The organization does not offer a traditional software product but provides programs and services centered on fundraising events (Dreams of Dreyfoos, Prism), scholarship programs (SOAFI Scholarships, Faculty-Selected Scholarships), membership (Friends of Dreyfoos), designated giving (Donate by Department, Save the Arts), and student performance services. The core digital presence is a donation portal supporting one-time and recurring gifts, social login, and multiple payment methods.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Friends of Dreyfoos Membership Annual membership program for individual and corporate supporters with tiered levels from $50 (Contributing) to $2,500 (Corporate), offering benefits including early access to PRISM tickets and donor recognition.
• Save the Arts Designated giving program supporting the Artists in Residence program, with sponsorship tiers covering one or more students at approximately $600 per student.
• Dreams of Dreyfoos (Annual Fundraising Gala) Annual fundraising gala held at the Kravis Center Cohen Pavilion featuring student performances, individual ticket sales, and multi-tier event sponsorships (Platinum, Gold, Silver, Patron, Valet, Beverage, Decorator).
• Prism 2026 Annual signature event featuring student performances and fundraising opportunities for the foundation, with sponsorship packages and ticketed attendance.
• Donate by Department Designated giving program allowing donors to direct contributions to specific departments including Communications, Dance, Digital Media, Music (Band, Jazz, Piano, Strings, Vocal), Theatre, and Visual Arts.
• Student Performance Requests Service allowing external organizations to request student performances from A.W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts, submitted via Google Forms.
• SOAFI Scholarships Comprehensive scholarship program including Summer Institute scholarships and College scholarships for Dreyfoos students, administered by the foundation.
• Scholarships Selected by Faculty Faculty-selected scholarships for graduating seniors, including specialized awards for theatre, visual arts, music, dance, and other art departments.

Named customers1 record

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Community Foundation of Palm Beach and Martin CountiescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2015Second endowment housed at the Community Foundation of Palm Beach and Martin Counties since fall 2015. Managed by the Community Foundation's professional advisors, providing access to various planned gift tools that would otherwise not be available to a smaller organization.
• Harvard, Yale, Stanford, MIT, NYU, Juilliard, Columbia, Duke, UCLA, University of Florida, Florida State University, University of Miami, SCAD, RISD, SAIC, Pratt Institute, CalArts, MassArtminorOthersInstitutions where Dreyfoos scholarship recipients continue their education. Represents prestigious college destinations for Dreyfoos graduates including Harvard, Yale, Stanford, MIT, NYU, Juilliard, Columbia, Duke, UCLA, University of Florida, Florida State University, University of Miami, SCAD, RISD, SAIC, Pratt Institute, CalArts, MassArt, and many others.
• Hall Art FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEstablished Hall Artist Scholarship endowment providing up to $10,000 annually for students pursuing visual or performing arts in college, renewable for up to 4 years. Also provides Hall Artist Summer Institute Scholarship of $2,500 for rising sophomores and juniors.
• GivecloudcoreTechnology or IntegrationProvides the secure online donation and fundraising platform powering soafi.org, including payment processing, recurring gifts, event registration, and donor management.
• Kravis CentercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCohen Pavilion at Kravis Center hosts the Dreams of Dreyfoos annual gala event, providing venue for major fundraising and student performances.
• Armory Art CenterminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNew Wave Dreyfoos Student Residency at the Armory Art Center provides $5,000 scholarship and one-month studio residency for qualifying students.
• New Wave ArtminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNew Wave Summer Artist in Residence program founded by gallerist Sarah Gavlak in 2018. Offers $5,000 grant scholarship towards student tuition along with exclusive access to private studio space in CityPlace, West Palm Beach.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• National YoungArts Foundation: National nonprofit supporting emerging artists with scholarships and mentorship, similar in mission to SOAFI's arts scholarship programs but operating at a much larger national scale.
• Interlochen Center for the Arts: Larger and more established arts education institution with similar mission of developing young artists through scholarships, endowed funds, and donor programs. Comparable in fundraising model though not a public school partnership.
• The Juilliard School: Premier performing arts conservatory with significant scholarship endowment programs and named funds. Comparable in arts scholarship mission but operates at postsecondary level and is a much larger institution.

Direct peers

• Duke Ellington School of the Arts Project: Nonprofit supporting Duke Ellington School of the Arts, a public magnet high school in Washington DC, with scholarship programs, corporate sponsorships, and capital campaigns for arts education funding.
• Boston Arts Academy Foundation: Foundation supporting Boston Arts Academy, the city's only public high school for the arts, with comparable scholarship programs, donor events, and endowment fundraising for tuition-free arts education.
• New World School of the Arts Foundation: Foundation supporting New World School of the Arts, a tuition-free public arts high school and college in Miami, FL with similar structure: scholarship fundraising, endowed funds, and donor cultivation for a public arts magnet school in Florida.
• Los Angeles County High School for the Arts (LACHSA) Foundation: Foundation supporting LACHSA, a tuition-free public arts high school in Los Angeles with scholarship programs, corporate sponsorships, and endowment campaigns analogous to SOAFI's mission.

Others

• Community Foundation for Palm Beach and Martin Counties: Strategic partner that houses one of SOAFI's endowments and provides planned giving infrastructure. Comparable as a regional grantmaking and endowment management organization serving the same Palm Beach County donor base.

Regional players

• Miami City Ballet: Florida-based arts organization with comparable scholarship, donor cultivation, and galas/fundraising event model serving the same South Florida donor ecosystem, though focused on dance rather than multi-discipline arts education.
• Palm Beach County Cultural Council: Regional arts funding body in Palm Beach County that supports arts organizations including SOAFI-adjacent initiatives. Comparable in regional arts funding ecosystem and donor base overlap.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/Dreyfoos.ALUMNI
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/dreyfoos-school-of-the-arts-foundation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Dreyfoos School of the Arts Foundation