As of July 2021, Knight has a net worth of $60.8 billion. In 1990, Knight founded the Philip H. Knight Charitable Foundation Trust. As of 2016, according to
Portland Business Journal, "Knight is the most generous philanthropist in Oregon history. His lifetime gifts now approach $2 billion." In 2023, Knight was America's second largest donor with $1.2 billion in giving.
Stanford University In 2006, Knight donated US$105 million to the
Stanford Graduate School of Business, which, at the time, was the largest ever individual donation to a U.S. business school. The campus was named "The Knight Management Center," in honor of Knight's philanthropic service to the school. In 2016, it was announced that Knight contributed $400 million to start the
Knight-Hennessy Scholars graduate-level education program inspired by the
Rhodes Scholarship. Graduates are charged to tackle global challenges, such as
climate change and
poverty. The first class of 51 scholars from 21 countries was scheduled to arrive at Stanford in the fall of 2018. In May 2022, it was announced that Phil and Penny Knight gifted Stanford $75 million to establish the Phil and Penny Knight Initiative for Brain Resilience. The initiative will be housed at Stanford's Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute and is set to study the cognitive decline and degenerative brain diseases such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's.
University of Oregon As of 2023, Knight has donated over one billion dollars to the University of Oregon. It is believed that Knight made his first major contribution in the late 1980s. He was UO's 2018–19 honorary degree recipient.
UO Academics Major gifts include funds supporting the renovation of the
Knight Library and construction of the Knight Law Center. Contrary to press reports, which claim that Knight financed the whole library renovation project, Knight only financed a portion of the library's renovation. Knight also established endowed chairs across the campus. In the fall of 2016, it was announced that Knight will donate $500 million to UO for a new three-building laboratory and research science complex. This donation was part of a series of large higher-education gifts.
UO Athletic Department (Oregon Ducks) Knight contributed towards the Moshofsky Center, which opened in 1998. The 2010 construction of the UO basketball team's
Matthew Knight Arena was the result of a partnership between Knight and former Oregon athletic director Pat Kilkenny. Although Knight didn't pay for the project directly, he established a $100 million "Athletic Legacy Fund." The fund supports the athletic department. Named after Knight's deceased son, the venue replaced the McArthur Court building and cost over US$200 million to build. The facility was built using bonds backed by the State of Oregon. In November 2015, it was announced that Knight and his wife would be donating $19.2 million towards a new sports complex project at the University of Oregon. The plans for the 29,000 square foot complex was announced in September. Construction started in January 2016 and ended in September 2016. The sports complex was named the
Marcus Mariota Sports Performance Center and includes
motion capture systems, neurocognitive assessment tools,
40-yard dash track, and steam machines made by Nike to help athletes break into their footwear more quickly. In 2021, Knight helped to fund the renovation of
Hayward Field, a track and field stadium at the university. The project was estimated to cost $270 million, although Knight's total contribution remained private.
Oregon Health & Science University In October 2008, Knight and his wife pledged US$100 million to the OHSU Cancer Institute, the largest gift in the history of
Oregon Health & Science University. In recognition, the university renamed the organization the "OHSU
Knight Cancer Institute." On September 27, 2013, Knight announced to the audience at the OHSU Knight Cancer Institute's biennial gala, when he announced his intention to donate US$500 million for research if OHSU could match it over the subsequent two years. On June 25, 2015, OHSU met that $500 million goal, and Knight announced his upcoming $500 million donation, to bring the total to $1 billion raised. In 2025, Knight and his wife pledged $2 billion to the Oregon Health & Science University Knight Cancer Institute, bringing the total the Knights have donated to
Oregon Health & Science to $2.7 billion.
Controversy football game in
2010 Knight's contributions to the athletic department at UO have also led to controversy. In April 2000, student leaders began organizing an
anti-sweatshop and fair labor practices campaign, and called for Dave Frohnmayer, president of the school, to support the
Workers Rights Consortium (WRC). On April 4, 2000, students began a sit-in at Johnson Hall, the UO's administrative center. In early April, an open meeting of students further demanded that the organization
Fair Labor Association (FLA) would receive no consideration from the university, as it was perceived as a group founded, funded and backed by Nike and other corporations, and had also been criticized by worker rights advocates as an exercise in dishonest public relations. University President
Dave Frohnmayer subsequently signed a one-year contract with the WRC; Knight then withdrew a US$30 million commitment toward the Autzen Stadium expansion project and offered no further donations to the university. In a public statement, Knight criticized the WRC for having unrealistic provisions and called it misguided, while praising the FLA for being "balanced" in its approach. In the face of ongoing conflict with students, Frohnmayer sided with Knight's assertion that the WRC was providing unbalanced representation, and in October 2000 the
Eugene Weekly reported Frohnmayer stating that: On February 16, 2001, the
Oregon University System enacted a mandate that all institutions within the system choose business partners from a politically neutral standpoint, barring all universities in Oregon from joining either the WRC or the FLA. Following the dissolved relationship between the university and the WRC, Knight reinstated the donation and increased the amount to over US$50 million. Also controversial was Knight's success in lobbying for former insurance executive Pat Kilkenny to be named as athletic director at the university. Kilkenny had neither a college degree nor any prior experience in athletics administration. He attended but did not graduate from UO, as he left the school with several
credit hours still owing. Prior to his appointment at UO, Kilkenny had been the chairman and chief executive officer of the
San Diego–based Arrowhead General Insurance Agency, and grew the business into a nationwide organization, with written premiums of nearly US$1 billion when he sold the company in 2006.
Other projects at
Hillsboro AirportIn October 2010, Knight donated several million dollars to the
Catlin Gabel School to establish a scholarship for incoming freshmen students. in
Marylhurst, Oregon On May 18, 2012, Knight contributed US$65,000 to a higher education
Political Action Committee (PAC) formed by
Columbia Sportswear CEO Tim Boyle. According to Boyle, the PAC will help facilitate an increase in the autonomy of schools in the
Oregon University System. Knight and wife Penny also donated to the Marylhurst Knights Opportunity Scholarship Program at
Marylhurst University, a private Roman Catholic university in
Marylhurst, Oregon; as a result, the university named a lawn on their campus "Knight's Green" in the family's honor. In December 2016, Knight disclosed that he had donated $112 million in Nike stock to charity. In 2026, Knights built own $7,600,000 private hangar in Oregon as he wanted a place for all his jets. ==Accolades==