Jeffrey Cheah Foundation (JCF) is founded on the fundamental premise of giving to society, a philosophy that has governed the Sunway Education Trust Fund since its inception in 1997. Through the unique not-for-profit structure of the Foundation, operating surpluses are ploughed back into the institutions or disbursed as scholarships, research grants and expansion of faculty and facilities to ensure quality education in perpetuityIn 2010, the Sunway Education Trust Fund was officially converted into the Jeffrey Cheah Foundation where the equity of Sunway Education Group’s learning institutions worth more than RM1 billion today was transferred to the Foundation, making it the largest education-focused social enterprise in Malaysia with 16 institutions. Sunway Education Group is owned and governed by the Jeffrey Cheah Foundation with its creed – “Nurturing the seeds of wisdom”.
Jeffrey Cheah Foundation is governed by a distinguished board of 11 trustees with His Royal Highness Sultan of Selangor as its Royal Patron. Tan Sri Dr. Jeffrey Cheah is the Founding Trustee of the eponymous foundation.
In fulfilling its commitment towards democratising quality education, the Foundation has also forged academic ties with some of the world’s preeminent institutions including Harvard University, University of Cambridge and University of Oxford, allowing a two-way flow of scholars and researchers between Sunway Education Group and the world-class institutions towards elevating the standards of teaching and research in this part of the world.
The Jeffrey Cheah Foundation has also entered into a partnership with the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN), led by Professor Jeffrey D. Sachs, a world-renowned economist and champion of sustainable development in 2016. The partnership, which constituted a USD $10m endowment, funded the establishment of the Jeffrey Sachs Center on Sustainable Development at Sunway University in December 2016, the first such centre in Asia. The Center is set to become a regional hub for research and policy practice, creating world-class programmes to train a new generation of students, practitioners and policy leaders; and develop linkages with major Malaysian and international universities in joint problem-solving around the SDGs.
As of 2016, the Foundation has disbursed in excess of RM270 million in scholarships to thousands of deserving students. The Jeffrey Cheah Foundation Community Scholarship which started in 2002 is also given to deserving youths to support them in taking the pivotal step in transforming their lives for the better.
Jeffrey Cheah Foundation (JCF) is committed to democratising quality education. In 2010, the Sunway Education Trust Fund was officially converted into the Jeffrey Cheah Foundation where the equity of Sunway Education Group’s learning institutions is worth more than RM1 billion today was transferred to the Foundation, making it the largest education-focused social enterprise in Malaysia with 16 institutions.