Getting to Know the I.A. O’Shaughnessy Foundation’s Minnesota Giving

Bloomington, Minnesota. Sam Wagner/shutterstock

The I.A. O’Shaughnessy Foundation is a Bloomington, Minnesota-based family foundation that carries on the philanthropic legacy of Ignatius Aloysius O’Shaughnessy (1885-1973), who was an entrepreneur in the oil industry. He created the foundation in 1941 to formalize his philanthropic work. His five children went on to become the foundation’s board of directors after his death. Today, the foundation is run by the third and fourth generations of the O’Shaughnessy family and is a significant grantmaker in the Upper Midwest region.

Here are a few things to know about the I.A. O’Shaughnessy Foundation and how it gives to local nonprofits.

Focused grantmaking

The O’Shaughnessy Foundation engages in two types of grantmaking: focused grantmaking and regional grantmaking. Focused grantmaking mostly involves education grants, reflecting the fact that education was a major interest for I.A. O’Shaughnessy. During his lifetime, he was very committed to Catholic higher education, and he made substantial grants to the College of St. Thomas and the College of St. Catherine in Saint Paul, Minnesota.

Today’s education grants go to organizations that support good schools in places where they are lacking, and to educate parents about teaching their kids during their earliest years of life. Educational equity, removing poverty-related obstacles, and addressing the needs of minority and low-income students are all part of the O’Shaughnessy Foundation’s giving strategy.

Regional grantmaking

Meanwhile, regional grantmaking involves giving to nonprofits that mostly work at the local level, all across the United States. Family members live throughout the country, so this is a way for the foundation to provide support in those places. But since the foundation is based in Minnesota, many grants do stay close to home. Local grantees include Harvest Network of Schools, Montessori Center of Minnesota and Northside Achievement Zone.

Aside from Minnesota, the O’Shaughnessy Foundation has awarded other grants in Denver, Chicago, Massachusetts and Kansas. Most regional grantmaking support goes to small organizations working in education, the arts, community service and to special projects for people living in poverty.

No unsolicited requests

The O’Shaughnessy Foundation does have a website with information about its work, but it is not open to receiving unsolicited funding requests. This is still a very family-run foundation in which all directors are appointed from I.A. O’Shaughnessy’s direct descendants and their families.

Learn more about this funder and others that give locally in Minnesota by browsing our Upper Midwest and Plains Funding Guide.