In 1938, he was a 27-year-old graduate student in sociology at the University of Chicago when he founded Science Research Associates (SRA), the educational publishing firm which provided the basis of his wealth and ultimately made possible the creation of The Spencer Foundation.
That same year, Spencer, as President of SRA, testified before Congress and made explicit his belief in the reformative power of well-funded education research: "In my judgment, hard-minded, sensible investments in educational research can provide the most effective single method of strengthening our schools."
In 1964, SRA was purchased by IBM, but Spencer continued as the firm's chief executive and guiding spirit until his death in 1968.
After the sale of SRA to IBM in 1964, Spencer realized the potential impact his now much-increased fortune could have on the course of educational research throughout the world.
His personal memoranda, sketchy yet impassioned notes outlining his vision for the Foundation, reveal a concern for individual people and the individual learning process, a desire to support educational projects that lacked other sources of funding, and an interest in a grassroots approach to improving generally educational opportunities both here and abroad: "Improve learning process, including diffusion into developing countries;" "Maybe non-cognitive;" "Prejudiced against bricks and mortar;" "All support periods finite;" "Projects where other money not readily available at this point;" "Tend to bet on people even more than the project itself."