History

The Hogg Family

Hogg Family Governor James S. Hogg, the state's first native Texan to hold that office, shared with his children a love of the state and its people, and a commitment to public service. He and his wife, Sallie Stinson, raised their daughter Ima and three sons Will, Mike and Tom in a loving home in which the arts and education were emphasized. After his wife died in 1895, Hogg invited his older sister, Mrs. Martha Frances Davis, to come to his home to help rear his children.

The governor engendered in his children a desire to address social ills and problems affecting the disadvantaged. Hogg's young daughter, Ima, accompanied him on tours of state hospitals, schools and prisons, institutions where mental health conditions were common. Miss Ima's interest in mental health further developed when, as a student at The University of Texas, she studied under noted psychologist Dr. A. Caswell Ellis.

Though in debt when he left the governor's office in 1895, Hogg built a modest family fortune through his law practice and investments. He bought Varner-Hogg Plantation, the family's historic property in the Gulf Coast community of West Columbia, in 1901. Convinced that great quantities of oil lay beneath its surface, he stipulated in his will that the mineral rights could not be sold for 15 years after his death in 1906.

Miss Ima Hogg As their father predicted, oil was discovered on the plantation and became the source of the family's wealth. Miss Ima and her brothers viewed this windfall not as personal gain but as a trust for the people of Texas. She used her legacy to help found the Houston Symphony Orchestra, establish the Houston Child Guidance Center, and serve on the Houston School Board. In 1966, she presented Bayou Bend, the River Oaks mansion she and her brothers commissioned in 1927, to the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston along with her collection of early American art and antiques. The next year, she donated to The University of Texas at Austin a complex of historic buildings and surrounding land in the community of Winedale near Round Top, Texas.

Hogg Foundation's Early Years

Will Hogg Active in The University of Texas Ex-Students' Association and a member of the Board of Regents, Will led the successful fight in 1917 to prevent Gov. James E. "Pa" Ferguson from wresting away the university's autonomy. Will died in 1930 and Miss Ima and her brother Mike established the Hogg Foundation for Mental Hygiene in his memory at The University of Texas at Austin in September 1940. The original $2.5 million endowment came from Will's estate.

The foundation's mission was to educate the people of Texas about the little-known concept of "mental hygiene." The foundation sent experts and university scholars to small communities and rural areas across the state to promote positive, preventive and therapeutic aspects of mental health. The foundation gained national attention through its work, coupled with the university's reputation and expertise.

Dr. Robert Lee Sutherland, professor and author of an influential textbook on sociology, led the foundation during its first 30 years. He maintained a close working relationship with Miss Ima, who continued to influence the foundation's mission and focus until her death in 1975. He was also active as a sociologist and professor until his retirement in 1974, when he was named president emeritus of the Hogg Foundation.

In its first decade, Hogg Foundation staff made hundreds of visits to small Texas towns to share emerging ideas about mental health with professional and civic groups. At the outbreak of World War II, foundation staff also focused on the needs of military troops and their families. By the close of World War II Sutherland and other representatives of the foundation had lectured on mental health issues in 152 Texas communities, working with 2,000 groups and more than 400,000 people.

By 1950, the foundation began using educational literature and radio and TV broadcasts to inform the public about mental health and the treatment of mental illness. The foundation also played a critical role in drafting revisions to Texas laws governing state hospitals and special schools.

Expansion of Mission and Services

In 1955, the foundation began awarding grants for research, training and fellowships to help practitioners, students and nonprofit organizations better address emerging challenges in mental health care. The foundation changed its name from the Hogg Foundation for Mental Hygiene to the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health in 1956.

In the 1960s, the foundation's emphasis was on promoting campus mental health and addressing problems of society, especially among disadvantaged populations. During this period, the foundation's grant-making program grew to encompass projects demonstrating innovative ideas in mental health services.

Dr. Wayne Holtzman Dr. Wayne H. Holtzman, psychologist and associate director of the foundation, succeeded Sutherland as director in September 1970. By this time, the foundation had established itself as a leader in philanthropy and mental health across the Southwest.

Miss Ima died in London in 1975 at the age of 93. In her will, she directed part of her estate to fund a separate endowment to support mental health services for children, youth and their families in Houston and Harris County. The endowment has awarded more than $28 million in grants since 1976.

After Sutherland's death in 1976, the Hogg Foundation established the Sutherland Chair in Mental Health and Social Policy at The University of Texas School of Social Work. It also initiated in 1978 a series of biennial Robert Lee Sutherland seminars that have convened thousands of professionals over the years to discuss mental health issues of importance to Texas.

In 1990 the foundation launched the $5 million School of the Future project, which provided integrated prevention and treatment services for lower-income schools in Austin, Dallas, Houston and San Antonio. Foundation staff worked with private and public partners to provide evaluation, research and technical assistance. The goal of the School of the Future was to demonstrate how community renewal, family preservation and child development could be achieved in disadvantaged urban environments.

Dr. Charles Bonjean By the early 1990s, the foundation's focused on providing grants to mental health researchers and nonprofit organizations in Texas. Hogg Foundation staff also provided technical assistance to grant recipients and other agencies. The foundation established the National Advisory Council to work with staff on strategic planning. The council's members include state and national experts in mental health, advocacy, philanthropy and related disciplines.

Dr. King Davis In 1993, Dr. Charles Bonjean replaced Holtzman as the foundation's executive director. Bonjean's emphasis on professional collaboration led to the foundation's focus on three areas: children and their families, youth development and minority mental health.

Dr. King Davis, who became executive director when Bonjean retired in 2002, led the effort to establish a competitive process for awarding grants to achieve greater results with the foundation's limited funds. In 2005, as part of its strategic planning process, foundation staff met with state and national stakeholders to identify critical areas in which the foundation's grant-making could have a significant impact. Through this process the foundation selected three priority funding areas: integrated health care, cultural competence and workforce development.

Hogg Foundation Today

Dr. Octavio N. Martinez, Jr. became executive director of the foundation in August 2008 after Davis returned to teaching at The University of Texas School of Social Work.

A native Texan, Martinez has worked as a clinical psychiatrist at the Albemarle Mental Health Center and an associate professor at the Brody School of Medicine in North Carolina; as an assistant professor and psychiatrist at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio; and in commercial real estate, banking and finance in Austin.

As executive director, Martinez leads the foundation's philanthropic initiatives, strategic planning and operations. He also represents the foundation at national, state and local levels in discussions, conferences and meetings on mental health and philanthropy.

Under Martinez's leadership, the foundation is focusing on initiatives and issues that are most likely to improve mental health in Texas. These include: