Kerkorian gives $18 million to Agassi Prep at benefit concert

Last October, an emotional Andre Agassi publicly thanked gaming pioneer Kirk Kerkorian for putting food on his family's table decades ago.

Saturday night, the tennis superstar again paid tribute to Kerkorian at the Grand Slam for Children benefit, this time for contributing to Agassi's second family of sorts.

Kerkorian gave $18 million to support the Andre Agassi College Preparatory Academy for at-risk students, a record donation Agassi said will "outlive all of us" as the funds guarantee the Las Vegas charter school's future in perpetuity.

"If it wasn't for Mr. Kerkorian's kindness to my family long before I ever hit a tennis ball, I wouldn't be here today. He hasn't just helped my family, but millions of people in the state of Nevada," Agassi said in a telephone interview with the Las Vegas Review-Journal just hours before officially announcing the donation.

"For him to now give a gift that assures a future for Agassi Prep is a luxury I'm not sure I ever imagined."

The 16th annual benefit, held this year at Wynn Las Vegas, raised an estimated $26.1 million, including Kerkorian's donation, according to a spokesman.

Performing to a crowd of about 1,400 were Michael Bublé, Martina McBride, Smokey Robinson, Jimmy Kimmel and Train.

The star-studded benefit concert, which rakes in about $8 million annually, is the main fundraising vehicle for Agassi's foundation. The Andre Agassi Foundation for Education endowment benefits the charter school located in an at-risk neighborhood in the urban core of Las Vegas.

The Andre Agassi College Preparatory Academy, on Lake Mead Boulevard near Martin Luther King Boulevard, provides a tuition-free high standard of education through extended school days, small class sizes and advanced technology, according to its website. The K-12 school is home to 1,045 students, Agassi said, adding there's a lengthy waiting list.

"To have a school that has high expectations is to give them a future of their choosing," said Agassi, who at 41 is retired from tennis and lives in Las Vegas with his wife, former tennis champion Steffi Graf, and their two children.

The endowment pays for the school's mortgage, daily operations and the roughly $5,000 per pupil spending beyond annual state funding, Agassi said.

Agassi said he was at a Red Sox game with his family this summer when Kerkorian called him on his cellphone.

"That always takes my breath away because of what he's meant to me in my life," the eight-time Grand Slam singles champion said of the call. "He congratulated me for the Hall of Fame. Then he continued to express his appreciation for what I'm doing with the children."

Kerkorian, who is 94, then told Agassi who to call at the UCLA Dream Fund, explaining that together they would scrutinize what needed to be done to ensure the Agassi Foundation's long-lasting existence.

"He's been too good (to us) to ask for a dollar more than we need," Agassi said of the figure that was ultimately chosen.

He estimated that after Saturday night, the endowment would have roughly $120 million to $125 million.

Kerkorian, through Tracinda Corp., is the largest shareholder of MGM Resorts International. Kerkorian's former charity, the Lincy Foundation, donated more than $1 billion to various causes, including numerous local groups such as the Nevada Cancer Institute, Opportunity Village and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southern Nevada.

Earlier this year, the Lincy Foundation gave the rest of its assets, $200 million, to create the UCLA Dream Fund, which funds scholarships, research and philanthropic pursuits.

At last year's Grand Slam for Children benefit, Agassi revealed that Kerkorian also "put bread" on his family's table during tougher times when his father worked at the original MGM Hotel, including when the hotel burned down in 1980 and there was no work.

Agassi's middle name "Kirk" is a tribute to Kerkorian's longstanding support.

"How do you put it into words?" Agassi said, struggling to adequately sum up what Kerkorian's most recent gift means to him. "It's your life's work being guaranteed; its future. It changes these children's lives forever. It's a gift for this community that will keep going."

Contact reporter Jessica Fryman at jfryman@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0264.

Trending topics:

• Andre Agassi
• Andre Agassi College Preparator
• Andre Agassi Foundation
• Grand Slam for Children Benefit
• Kirk Kerkorian
• Las Vegas

Comments

Note: Comments made by reporters and editors of the Las Vegas Review-Journal are presented with a yellow background.

1. Jack.Webb Oct. 31, 2011 | 5:31 p.m. Report Abuse

   Twoplays, EXACTLY! That is why I don't think Rush Limbaugh should be allowed near children (or small animals, or anything or anyone who is easily frightened).

2. twoplays Oct. 31, 2011 | 1:52 p.m. Report Abuse

   No Drug Addicts, should be allowed near children, why isn't this Drug addict, being checked by the school district. Cause he brings in money. If police knew anyone was taking illegal drugs, there would be an investigation. Only in Vegas.

3. Jack.Webb Oct. 31, 2011 | 1:23 p.m. Report Abuse

   "joey7jh wrote on October 31, 2011 08:14 AM: Good grief you Libs kill me. You get all upset that the wealthy are wealthy . . . ."
   
   Flat-out making $#!+ up.

4. joey7jh Oct. 31, 2011 | 8:14 a.m. Report Abuse

   Good grief you Libs kill me. You get all upset that the wealthy are wealthy yet when they make large charitable donations you get all upset that it isn't going to something YOU want it to go to ie. government workers (CCSD). Thanks to Agassi and Kerkorian some good will come of the donation, actually helping KIDS instead of going to union bosses to funnel it back to Obama.

5. Moron Oct. 31, 2011 | 12:43 a.m. Report Abuse

   I have never heard of any athlete who has done more for others. Andre Agassi has showed that not all succes has gone into his head and there are still some who care for the less fortunate. I think that the education was one of the only thing that was great in LV. Schools in LV with sponcored hobbies for my kids, university (my kid got Quinn scholarship and grants) and Agassi boys and girls club as well as the academy make LV tolerable. I still think Kerkorian got unfair benefit with his deals. He got city to use eminent domain laws to get people loose their land and then resold the land (i.e. lied that he was going to build casinos) for an enormous profit. Great that at least now he gives some of it to Agassi who, on the other hand, is honest. LV children need more help.

6. TankerUSMA1975 Oct. 30, 2011 | 11:30 p.m. Report Abuse

   @n7v. Oh yeah, I forgot, the best government is NO government. Which government won't cut schools? I would like you to explain why any government, or any logical person would want to get rid of a school that is providing an excellent education to it's students. In fact, I would think that the government would want to duplicate it. I forgot, that doesn't fit your model of government and education.

7. NewNVRes Oct. 30, 2011 | 11:07 p.m. Report Abuse

   Great News for an Excellent School and the leaders of tomorrow.
   It's time all of Nevada adopted the Educational Model that Andre has proven successfully. If More money is needed - Let's raise taxes and do it. If Different Educators are needed - Let's replace the existing ones. If a different Bureaucracy is needed to manage the School System - Let's fire the existing one. If higher expectations are required for Parents and Students, lets end the absolute right to an education for students not willing to participate. If Students and Parents want a higher educational standard then accountability must be displayed by all parties.

8. Jack.Webb Oct. 30, 2011 | 9:47 p.m. Report Abuse

   Bloggy's found another pretext to hijack the conversation and swing it around to his agenda, yet again.
   
   That's what narcissists always do: they attempt to dominate any and every conversation with whatever it is THEY want to talk about.
   
   Have you ever seen Bloggy get involved with ANYONE else's comments? Of course not. Nobody else's comments have any importance
   
   . . . to Bloggy.
   
   Narcissist.

9. n7v.blogspot.com Oct. 30, 2011 | 9:40 p.m. Report Abuse

   It's always the same story.
   
   When someone donates land for a public park, the government responds by adjusting its parks budget to pay for upkeep. That money either comes at the expense of maintenance for existing parks, from non-parks budget items, or from higher taxes. No matter which way you slice it, you're talking about adjusted priorities.
   
   When someone gives money to a particular public school, the government will respond by keeping that school off the chopping block during periods of dwindling enrollment and consolidation.
   
   And generally, such gifts benefit the whole *institution* of public education. In the absence of such gifts, the politicians might decide that public education was getting to be too expensive to fund "adequately", and decide to cutback on K-16 and perhaps spend more on mental health services -- especially if fad-conscious rich people start throwing money at psych hospitals.

10. Jack.Webb Oct. 30, 2011 | 9:27 p.m. Report Abuse

    "jr62 wrote on October 30, 2011 06:43 PM: Agassi's 15 minutes of fame are way gone."
    
    "While still a teenager, he reached the semifinals of both the French Open and the US Open in 1988, and made the US Open semifinals in 1989."
    
    Better make that more than 20 years of fame.

Read All Comments