Daisy Soros


Daisy M. Soros is a Hungarian-born American philanthropist and supporter of the arts. She is the chairman of the Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowship for New Americans, a fellowship program that supports two years of graduate studies for 30 New Americans each year. She was married to the late Paul Soros, founder of Soros Associates and older brother of financier George Soros.

Early life and education

Daisy Margaret Schlenger was born in Bratislava, they began dating, and married in 1951. Together they had two children, Peter and Jeffrey. Peter is an investment banker and lives in England with his two sons. Jeffrey, a producer, philanthropist, and former President of The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, resides in California with his wife and two children. Both Peter and Jeffrey serve on the Board of the Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowship Program, Jeffrey as its President.

Philanthropy

Soros has been involved with various charitable organizations for decades. In 1993, she became a member of the Board of Overseers of Weill Cornell Medical College. In an effort to promote the mission and ideals of academic medicine, she founded the popular Information Please luncheon lecture series. She also serves on the Steering Committee for the Medical College’s Discoveries that Make a Difference Campaign and is founder of the Dean’s Council.
In 1997, Paul and Daisy Soros established the Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowship for New Americans in order to provide assistance to young New Americans for graduate studies. Initially with a fifty million dollar trust fund, the Soroses donated an additional $25 million in 2010.
She also serves on the boards of The Society of the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, The Foreign Policy Association and The American Austrian Foundation. Additionally, she is an honorary trustee of the International House.

Involvement in the arts

Daisy Soros serves as secretary on the board of the New York Philharmonic and the Metropolitan Opera, director emeritus of the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, the chairman’s council of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Vice President of Venetian Heritage, and is former Chairman of the Board of the Friends of the Budapest Festival Orchestra.

Awards and honors

Soros has received several awards and honors for her philanthropic work, including: