Glorya Kaufman

Born in Detroit, Glorya Kaufman’s love of dance began in childhood and blossomed during the city’s jazz heyday. After marrying Donald Bruce Kaufman, she helped launch KB Homes—the first publicly traded homebuilding company on the NYSE. Following Don’s tragic passing in 1983, Glorya turned her focus to philanthropy, founding the Glorya Kaufman Foundation and dedicating her life to uplifting others through the arts. Her transformative gifts reshaped arts education across the country. She established dance programs at Inner-City Arts, Mar Vista Family Center, Alvin Ailey, Juilliard, and UCLA. Her crowning achievement, the USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance, stands as a pioneering institution that blends artistic excellence with entrepreneurial vision. Glorya’s generosity extended far beyond dance. She championed libraries, museums, and health initiatives—funding mobile eye clinics for preschoolers, domestic violence centers, and medical facilities like the Venice Family Clinic. Her support of the Geffen Playhouse, MOCA, LACMA, and the Actors Fund reflected her deep belief in the arts’ power to heal and connect. She also founded the Glorya Kaufman Performing Arts Center at Vista Del Mar and began work on a Creative Community Center with the Wende Museum to foster education and cultural exchange. Sadly, Glorya Kaufman passed away in July 2025. Her biography, The Gloryous Dance Affair, chronicles a life devoted to compassion, creativity, and community. Her legacy lives on in every dancer she inspired, every institution she built, and every life she touched.