State Fair of Texas Shocks with Jaw-Dropping $19M Grants and Scholarships Giveaway!

The nation’s largest state fair — a record 2.5 million people visited last year — produces much more than a good time: It also helps to feed, shelter, and educate underprivileged residents who live nearby.

The majority of people view people think of the State Fair of Texas as a great time of fun that lasts throughout the year within Fair Park. Its primary purpose is to highlight Texas the state’s vast agricultural sector and inform people about it.

However, the country’s biggest state fair – an all-time high of 2.5 million attendees this year — provides many more benefits than just a great occasion: The fair accounted for $18.5 million worth of charitable giving in 2022.

The majority of which was earmarked for the benefits of Fair Park and South Dallas. “We are better neighbors and providers than we’ve ever been,” claims long-time State Fair board member Bruce Sifford who is chairman of the board.

Mitchell Glieber made philanthropy a top priority when he was elected the president of the group in the year 2014. “We not only want to put on a great state fair but also be one of the most impactful nonprofits in the North Texas area 365 days a year,” Glieber explains. “Community involvement is the third pillar of our mission.”

One of his initial moves was hiring an expert in community affairs who visited the neighborhood to discuss with residents what the fair can do to help people, something that hadn’t ever been done prior. 

“We recognize that there are still wounds dating to the ’60s when the city of Dallas used eminent domain to displace a neighborhood for parking for Fair Park and Starplex Amphitheater, now known as Dos Equis Pavilion,” Glieber states. “We needed to hear and listen and make sure they knew we understood where they were coming from.”

There are staff members committed to running a variety of initiatives that directly assist the most vulnerable residents of Fair Park and South Dallas.

 This includes the awarding of more than $4 million of donations, sponsorships, and programming for community groups since 2016 and the awarding of 97 Juanita-Craft Scholarships that will total $582,000 to 2023 students of six nearby public high schools.

They also donated an estimated 195,319 portions of vegetables to nearby charities like Austin Street Shelter; and offered several educational activities for adults as children.

“All of our team here have embraced this work with the commitment that we are not only about corny dogs and rides and turkey legs, but that we are making a difference in the community, and that is something we are very proud of,” Glieber states.

One of the strategies employed by the State Fair was to turn a huge garden storage structure located near the Texas Star Ferris wheel into a hydroponic garden that produces collard and lettuce greens as well as micro-greens and kale. Since its beginning in 2016, Big Tex Urban Farms has produced 1.2 million portions of greens that are fresh. “We distribute all of it to South Dallas nonprofit organizations who serve people in this particular area because it’s a food desert,” Glieber adds.

Local kids are invited to come to the farm for a chance to learn about agriculture. Horticulture director Drew Demler goes into the neighborhood to show people how to make the food they eat and cook with the produce. 

Big Tex Urban Farms has become so popular that visitors visit from all over the country for excursions, and even the Fair’s Senior Vice-President for Brand Experience, Jason Hays was a guest speaker during a British agricultural conference held within the United Kingdom.

The other major offer is another important program the Big Tex Business Masterclass, an educational program that lasts for five months and provides existing food and beverage companies with how to successfully implement practices and discipline while creating connections, expansion, and marketing possibilities. 

The completion of the course doesn’t guarantee admission for an event like the State Fair of Texas, however, it gives a behind-the-scenes look and insight into what is required to become the food and drink vendor for events and fairs.

 “This is one of our most impactful programs in terms of supporting small businesses because it allows them to prepare to be a fair and festival concessionaire, which can be a game changer for them,” Glieber states.

Other projects also include NextFest an annual professional and college event that is open to students of the nearby Dallas ISD high schools; A book fair co-sponsored by both organizations that distributed thousands of books to adults and kids from South Dallas; and quarterly gatherings for community engagement in which nonprofit leaders from the local area who are supporting Fair Park and South Dallas review issues and exchange the best practices.

Soon to be announced: a youth agricultural club that will be in partnership in collaboration with Jubilee Park and Community Center as well as TR Hoover CDC and The Dallas Police Department.

 “If you looked at the calendar of events for our community affairs department, it would kind of overwhelm you,” Glieber states. “We are getting faith from people who did not have a relationship with fairs before. We’ve made a turn and have become a person that they can trust. We’d like to establish trust and support the people.”

Fair also offers other scholarships along with the DISD grants. This is an amount of $1.3 million that was awarded to 222 students in May. This includes 116 scholarships for youth livestock for education in agriculture and five scholarships for seasonal workers and five scholarships for honorary with diverse criteria.

Since the fair began awarding grants in the year 1992 in 1992, the fair has given scholarships to over 3000 students, for a total exceeding $17.4 million. The recipient Marcus D. Johnson, for instance, is currently the director of residence at James Madison High School.

The State Fair of Texas also hosts the biggest food drive in support of the North Texas Food Bank. By offering reduced admission prices to those who donate canned food items The effort has yielded greater than 2.8 million lbs since 2010. The 280,000 pounds last year is equivalent to the equivalent of 233,333 meals. Additionally, fair officials collect the leftover food and drinks of concessionaires after the conclusion of the fair and then deliver these to local shelters and food pantries as part of a program known as State Fair Cares.

Fair revenues are crucial for keeping the old Art Deco buildings in Fair Park, most of which weren’t designed nor designed to be permanent. The fair has pumped $8.64 million into it this year.

It also has a significant impact on the economy of Dallas Fort Worth between $410 million annually, not including those generated by the auto event, as per the study from 2016. The fair also generates jobs for 7,000 and wages for seasonal employees beginning at $17.82 per hour.

“We are so broad-based now,” Sifford adds. “We are doing good deeds for people who need it, and we’re very proud of that.”