Dale LeFebvre, Founder and Executive Chairman of 3.5.7.11 Investments,  to Receive 2024 Horatio Alger Award

The Horatio Alger Association names 11 outstanding individuals, each of whom has overcome adversity to achieve professional and personal success, to its Member Class of 2024 

WASHINGTON, D.C. (February 6, 2024) – Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans, Inc., a nonprofit educational organization honoring the achievements of outstanding individuals and encouraging youth to pursue their dreams through higher education, today announced that Dale LeFebvre, Founder and Executive Chairman of 3.5.7.11 Investments, has been selected for membership in this prestigious organization. Mr. LeFebvre joins 10 other exceptional business, civic and cultural leaders from across North America in receiving 2024 honors. For more than 75 years, the Horatio Alger Award has been annually bestowed upon esteemed individuals who have succeeded despite facing adversities, and who have remained committed to higher education and charitable efforts in their communities.  

Raised in Beaumont, Texas, Mr. LeFebvre learned from a young age that he’d have to work for every penny he earned. He started his first business at age nine, cutting grass for neighbors. Along with his entrepreneurial spirit, Mr. LeFebvre had a passion for learning, which he attributes to his great-grandmother. Against the odds, Mr. LeFebvre attended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) where he excelled, earning an internship with Senator Edward Kennedy, and later graduating with a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering. After graduating from MIT, he joined McKinsey & Company as one of the first MIT graduates to be hired as a business analyst. Focused on continuing his education, however, he returned to school to concurrently pursue his Juris Doctor and MBA from Harvard Law and Harvard Business School. Leaving graduate school with $250,000 in debt, Mr. LeFebvre faced new financial pressures but believed in himself, the strength he witnessed in his great-grandmother, and the power of education and entrepreneurship. 

After receiving his graduate degrees and spurred by his gift for creative problem-solving and entrepreneurship, Mr. LeFebvre became the managing partner for a private equity firm, and subsequently became the co-founder and managing partner for AIC International Investments, where he led fundraising efforts for a $230 million fund. After continued success, in 2006 Mr. LeFebvre founded 3.5.7.11, his privately owned equity investment firm. Today, Mr. Lefebvre has raised more than $1 billion in institutional capital for businesses specializing in transportation, infrastructure, energy, financial services and technology. He holds dozens of issued patents, and the 3.5.7.11 portfolio operates nationally, employing more than 1,000 team members.  

Mr. Lefebvre has been awarded the National Bell Labs Fellowship at MIT, the Traphagen Fellowship from Harvard Law, and the Aspen Institute’s Henry Crown Fellowship. He serves on the Board of Directors for Lincoln Financial Group, the National Smithsonian Board, and the Board of Trustees for the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. 

“Hailing from humble beginnings, Dale LeFebvre understood the value of education from a young age,” said Terrence J. Giroux, executive director, Horatio Alger Association. “To him, a college degree was a ticket to a brighter future, and he saw firsthand where that ticket took him. I’m certain that Mr. LeFebvre’s story will resonate with our Scholars and provide our Association with another stellar example of what the American Dream represents.” 

Mr. LeFebvre generously gives to many education, civil rights, arts, culture and humanities causes. He is a patron of the John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts, the Smithsonian Institution, and the University of the Virgin Islands. In 2014, Mr. LeFebvre was appointed by President Barack Obama to the Advisory Committee on the Arts at the Kennedy Center. An avid art lover, he was named a founding Milestone Donor of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture after donating $1 million in 2016.  

“Throughout my career, I’ve been asked to share my story and let others know, especially the younger generation, that your adversities do not define you and instead can motivate you,” said Mr. LeFebvre. “I’m honored to join an Association that empowers students to overcome challenges and build their dreams, no matter how daunting they may at times seem.” 

2024 marks the 40^th year that the Association has awarded annual need-based scholarships to high school students who have displayed dedication to pursuing higher education despite significant obstacles throughout their lives. The Association, which aims to preserve and protect the American Dream for future generations, also seeks to educate young people about the endless opportunities available by the free-enterprise system through commitment, honesty, and diligence. The scholarships are made possible thanks to the generosity of Horatio Alger Members, who will have collectively provided more than $245 million to over 35,000 students. 

“It is our utmost honor to present the Horatio Alger Award to these 11 outstanding leaders who have exemplified perseverance, passion and a deep appreciation for higher education,” said James F. Dicke II, chairman, Horatio Alger Association and 2015 Horatio Alger Award recipient. “These influential leaders not only spearhead their own endeavors, but they give generously to causes, organizations and communities in need. Our 2024 awardees embody the Association’s mission and are proof that the American Dream is within reach for anyone who seeks it.”  

Mr. LeFebvre and the Member Class of 2024 will be formally inducted into the Association on April 4-6, 2024, during the Association’s annual Horatio Alger Award Induction Ceremonies in Washington, D.C. The three-day event is an annual ceremony to honor both the achievements of Members and National Scholars, who will have multiple opportunities to meet, interact and exchange stories of perseverance.  

  

For more information about Horatio Alger Association and its Member Class of 2024, please visit www.horatioalger.org and follow the organization on Facebook, X, LinkedIn  and Instagram.  

  

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About Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans:  

Founded in 1947, the Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans, Inc. is dedicated to the simple but powerful belief that hard work, honesty and determination can conquer all obstacles. The Association honors the achievements of outstanding leaders who have accomplished remarkable successes in spite of adversity by bestowing upon them the Horatio Alger Award and inducting them as lifetime Members. Horatio Alger Members support promising young people with the resources and confidence needed to overcome adversity in pursuit of their dreams through higher education. Through the generosity of its Members and friends, in 2023, the Association awarded more than $18 million in undergraduate and graduate need-based scholarships to 1,800 students across the United States and Canada, and provided college support and mentoring services to its Scholars. Over the past 40 years, more than $245 million has been awarded in undergraduate, graduate, military veteran and career and technical education scholarships to more than 35,000 deserving students. For more information, please visit www.horatioalger.org.