Ginnie and Peter Haas Jr. Fund

OVERVIEW: The Ginnie and Peter Haas Jr. Fund supports education, immigration, health, human services and youth in the Bay Area of California.

IP TAKE: This funder has worked extensively in education in recent years. Unfortunately, it lacks transparency limiting information about its grantmaking practices.

PROFILE: The Ginnie and Peter Haas Jr. Fund, which has also gone by the name of the Peter E. Haas Jr. Fund, is part of the Haas legacy of giving in California. This particular Haas foundation is based in Novato. Peter Haas Jr. was born in 1947 to a Jewish family in San Francisco. He is a distant relative of Levi Strauss, the founder of the denim and clothing company, and was appointed manager of Levi Strauss Company in 1972. In addition to the Haas Fund, he has been involved with the Levi Strauss Foundation, the Red Tab Foundation, the Walter and Elise Haas Fund, the Novato Youth Center Honorary Board and the San Francisco Foundation. The fund supports education, immigration, health, human services and youth in the Bay Area.

Grants for Education

Little is know about the fund’s specific grantmaking priorities, but education has received the lion’s share of funding in recent years. Many grants have been administrated by the Marin County Foundation.

Haas has given heavily to Novato Unified School District, as well as Marin County Office of Education, Career Technical Education Foundation Sonoma County, and Pivot Learning. The Haas Fund has also supported the California Campus Catalyst, which supports undocumented students and families in Northern California.

Grants for Public Health

While the fund does not appear to have a grantmaking program dedicated to health, tax records show that this is a priority area. Previous grantees include Leland Stanford Junior University for cancer research, Healthcare Foundation Northern Sonoma County, Marin Community Clinic, and North Marin Community Services.

Grants for Community Development

The Haas Fund focuses its grantmaking on Marin County and the Bay Area and consequently supports community development and human services organizations. Past grantees include Friends of Stafford Lake Bike Park, Youth Leadership Institute Ritter House and the Marin Child are Council.

Grants for Democracy and Civic Participation

Outside of the Bay Area, the fund has supported several national civic participation groups that can scale their efforts. Past grantees in this area include Protect Democracy Project, State Voices, Voto Latino, and Civic Nation.

Important Grant Details:

Grants range from about $10,000 up into the million; however, the most common amount is closer to $50,000. Haas does not appear accept unsolicited grant applications from nonprofits. The foundation’s principal officer is Thomas Peters, Ph.D., who is the president and CEO of the Marin Community Foundation. The phone number to reach the foundation staff is 415-464-2500.

PEOPLE:

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