Born into a middle-income family in Pusing, Perak, Tan Sri Jeffrey Cheah had parents who were able to support him financially through his tertiary education at the Footscray Institute of Technology (now Victoria University) in Melbourne,  Australia. But in the small town where he grew up, not everyone was as fortunate.

“Over the years I’ve seen how the poor kids in my hometown who grew up uneducated have been bullied and marginalised.

Of course education is incredibly important to society. Ask any parent!” said Cheah in an interview with Management@Work at his office in Menara Sunway. It is for this reason that Cheah has based most of his philanthropic work on education.

In April this year, Cheah saw the culmination of his work in education in the launch of The Jeffrey Cheah Foundation which is modelled after the Harvard Foundation. Cheah transferred equity ownership worth an estimated RM700 million of the not-for-profit Sunway Education Group and donated RM20 million of his personal funds to the foundation.  Sunway Education Group comprises Sunway University College, Monash University Sunway Campus, Jeffrey Cheah School of Medicine, and Sunway International School. These institutions account for over 16,000 students, 30% of whom are from some 60 countries.

“I’ve always wanted to build an education group and am very happy that this is now possible. By placing it in a trust, I can ensure that the profits of Sunway Education Group are reinvested in the universities, making them better and better. Also, by placing it out of my personal reach, I hope to attract donors interested in education as they know their funds will truly be used for the university and not for my personal benefit — I cannot be tempted,” says Cheah, adding that chairmanship of the foundation’s board of trustees would rotate every three months and at least four of the trustees were independent of The Sunway Group.

“I can’t tell them what to do,” he laughs.

The board of trustees currently includes Cheah, social activist and vice-chairman of the Malaysian Crime Prevention Foundation Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye, Sunway Group corporate adviser Tan Sri Ramon Navaratnam, chairman of Nokia Siemens Networks Malaysia Tan Sri Rainer Althoff, former banker and member in the Prime Minister’s National Innovation Council and Economic Action Council Working Group Tan Sri Dr Lin See Yan, executive deputy chairman of The Sunway Group Datuk Razman Hashim, and former vice-chancellor and president of Monash University Professor Richard Graeme Larkins.

While charity is “never wrong”, says Cheah, he believes that it’s only by establishing a foundation that has a clear mandate, a board of trustees and a recurring source of revenue, like Sunway Education Group that true philanthropy in education is achieved.

“Giving is always good. But it’s better if it is properly structured so you are sure your money goes where it is most needed,” he says.

The foundation also carries on the work of the Sunway Education Trust which since its founding in 1997 has given out over RM50 million in scholarships to deserving and needy students.  There are no plans to cap the number of scholarships the trust awards as it is based on demand.

“We will give more if we can,” says Cheah.

The business of education has always been more than mere business for Cheah, who started out in tin mining before going into property development. “Sunway [College] may have begun as a profit-making enterprise, but I believe we have a role to play, as corporations and businesses, to give back to society whenever we are able to,” he says.

When he founded Sunway University College (then known as Sunway College) in 1986, Malaysia was in recession and parents were struggling to send their children overseas for tertiary education. So Cheah initiated a twinning programme.

“We built it out-of-pocket as the banks were reluctant to fund the venture. ‘What do developers know about education?’
they asked. So the going at first was fairly tough. We lost all our paid-up capital during that recession. However, I insisted we stick it out because you cannot toy with children’s education. We could not just shut it down and leave them in the lurch,” recalls Cheah.

In 1998, the Monash University Sunway Campus was established and in 2004, the Jeffrey Cheah School of Medicine was built at the Sunway Campus at a cost of RM100 million.

“I hope for Malaysia that more universities will be established, not only because it is more cost-efficient for our students, but it will also limit the outflow of funds from our country. These graduates will also be more likely to stay and work in Malaysia, limiting the brain drain. I also believe that Malaysia has the potential to attract students from abroad and raise our nation’s international profile as an education hub,” says Cheah.

Asked what returns on investment establishing the foundation has brought Sunway Group, he says: “My intention was never to derive any benefits for the Sunway brand. Of course, if it helps, then well and good.”

A father himself, Cheah says his children fully back his decision to give a substantial portion of his personal wealth to the foundation.

“My eldest daughter Sarena [director of strategic and corporate development at Sunway City Bhd] helped me establish the foundation’s structure and is as passionate about it as I am,” he says.

The instinct to give is something that was instilled from childhood, says Cheah who has done his best to instil it in his children.
“I recall leading a lion dance troupe when I was 12 and we would collect ‘ang pows’ from the market. I always decided to share it among my friends who were less fortunate. Charity starts from the heart,” he says.

“What I hope is that I have etablished a legacy of giving that inspires others to do likewise. Everyone should give because anyone can. And while I can’t speak for others, I do believe that the Malaysian leaders of industry are capable of accomplishing a lot for this country,” says Cheah.

“Personally, I find it gratifying and extremely fulfilling to be able to do this. I believe education is a powerful tool and it brings out the best in people. To be able to leave a legacy in the foundation that will eventually build the institutions it owns into world-class universities, is my hope,” he says. “Now, what I would like to do next is to establish a grey-haired village that I can retire to with all my old friends.”

This article appeared in Management@work, the monthly management pullout of The Edge Malaysia, Issue 826, Oct 4-10, 2010.