Name and Shame: A New Initiative Tracks Undue Donor Influence at Universities

Name and Shame: A New Initiative Tracks Undue Donor Influence at Universities

The proliferation of "strings-attached" gifts has raised concerns over undue donor influence on campuses. In response, a trio of concerned academics are launching a new database to track “violations of academic norms in financial donations.”

Read More

Dept. of Mega-Gifts: An Alumni Couple Cements Their Philanthropic Legacy

Dept. of Mega-Gifts: An Alumni Couple Cements Their Philanthropic Legacy

After 50 years of support, philanthropists Sidney and Lois Eskenazi recently gave $20 million to their alma mater, Indiana University. The gift underscores how the regional higher ed fundraising boom benefits public universities and the liberal arts.

Read More

"Hard Dollars in Cleveland." A Community Foundation Ramps up its Impact Investing

"Hard Dollars in Cleveland." A Community Foundation Ramps up its Impact Investing

News keeps coming of community foundations expanding their use of impact investing, as they look to get more leverage on capital-intensive challenges like housing. The Cleveland Foundation is the latest institution to make a big new move in this space.

Read More

Chasing Financial Health: A Top Bank's Latest Investment in Underserved Communities

Chasing Financial Health: A Top Bank's Latest Investment in Underserved Communities

The lack of savings in underserved communities leaves vulnerable populations ill equipped to weather unexpected emergencies and achieve financial security. JPMorgan Chase recently unveiled a new $125 million effort to address this problem.

Read More

All Too Rare: A Gift Underscores a Persistent Lack of Support for Community Colleges

All Too Rare: A Gift Underscores a Persistent Lack of Support for Community Colleges

One of the most vexing issues in higher ed philanthropy right now is how community colleges struggle to raise money. What will it take for donors to give these affordable, diverse, and critically underfunded engines of economic mobility a second look?

Read More

"Changing Attitudes." A New Tool Links the Arts to Measurable Social Impacts

"Changing Attitudes." A New Tool Links the Arts to Measurable Social Impacts

Fundraisers have stepped up efforts to show how the arts can drive meaningful social impacts in an effort to engage key groups of donors. A new tool backed by the Mellon Foundation and the Doris Duke Charitable Trust provides compelling evidence to help them make the case.

Read More

From a Tech Billionaire Couple, Millions to Find the Best Solutions to Homelessness

From a Tech Billionaire Couple, Millions to Find the Best Solutions to Homelessness

Putting $30 million into homelessness research won’t get people housed immediately. But with California poised for bolder action on this crisis, Marc and Lynne Benioff are looking to ensure that resources go to evidence-based solutions that will work.

Read More

Giving by Women’s Funds Has Soared. And They’re Getting More Savvy and Strategic

Giving by Women’s Funds Has Soared. And They’re Getting More Savvy and Strategic

A new study of more than 200 U.S. women’s foundations and funds shows this ecosystem hasn’t just been growing, it’s also becoming more inclusive and getting better at collaborating and using research to drive grantmaking.

Read More

Arnold Makes Jails a New Front in Battle Against Opioid Addiction

Arnold Makes Jails a New Front in Battle Against Opioid Addiction

Half of state and federal prisoners have substance abuse disorders, including opioid addiction, but standard treatment options are almost never available in jails. A leading funder is partnering with the U.S. Justice Department to change that.

Read More

“Awestruck.” Behind a Regional Funder's Historic Gift to a Public University's Engineering School

“Awestruck.” Behind a Regional Funder's Historic Gift to a Public University's Engineering School

Even as critics charge that the STEM skills gap is exaggerated, big gifts keep flowing to schools to bolster their STEM programs. Who are the funders behind this endless gusher of cash? And what’s motivating them to make such large donations?

Read More

Breaking Barriers, a Fundraiser Rises to the Top of Her Game

Breaking Barriers, a Fundraiser Rises to the Top of Her Game

June Bradham fell into fundraising by accident, back when it was still a male-dominated field, but she went on to chart a stellar career that has included pioneering new research and building a successful consulting practice. How did she do it?

Read More

Close to Home: A Bank with Local Ties Zeroes in on a Distressed Neighborhood

Close to Home: A Bank with Local Ties Zeroes in on a Distressed Neighborhood

Atlanta has the highest level of income inequality of any city in America, with nearly half of residents in its Westside area living in poverty. The SunTrust Foundation is part of a new collaboration that’s coming together to try to turn things around.

Read More

Beyond the Newsroom: A Digital Media Company’s Grants to Cultivate a Diverse Journalism Workforce

Beyond the Newsroom: A Digital Media Company’s Grants to Cultivate a Diverse Journalism Workforce

As funders continue efforts to boost diversity in journalism, traditional news organizations are struggling to survive amid waves of layoffs. Here’s how one corporate grantmaker working to promote diversity in media is navigating this changing landscape.

Read More

A Prominent Jewish Humanitarian Prize Goes to a Criminal Justice Reformer

A Prominent Jewish Humanitarian Prize Goes to a Criminal Justice Reformer

Amy Bach’s nonprofit, Measures for Justice, has drawn support from a range of top funders that share her view that better data is a key to driving reform. Now, as the latest winner of the Charles Bronfman Prize, Bach has yet another powerful ally.

Read More

With Funding in Scant Supply, a Grantmaker Steps up Big Time for Gun Violence Research

With Funding in Scant Supply, a Grantmaker Steps up Big Time for Gun Violence Research

Despite claiming nearly 40,000 U.S. lives a year, gun violence is woefully under-researched. Arnold Ventures wants to change that—and so do many scholars. A new collaborative at RAND that Arnold seeded with $20 million has been deluged with proposals.

Read More

How a Small Progressive Funder Innovates and Organizes to Make a Bigger Impact

How a Small Progressive Funder Innovates and Organizes to Make a Bigger Impact

To make the best of its modest resources, the Solidago Foundation has been looking to go beyond grantmaking into organizing other funders, and experimenting with new ways to move wealth and build power. We get an inside view of how that’s working out.

Read More

In the Nation’s “Suicide Belt,” a Major Initiative Emerges to Improve Mental Health

In the Nation’s “Suicide Belt,” a Major Initiative Emerges to Improve Mental Health

The growing suicide epidemic across rural America and its mountain states is finally attracting more philanthropic attention. In Vail, Colorado a new $60 million commitment launched by a nonprofit seeks to transform behavioral health services.

Read More

“Create Momentum for Change.” A Soros-Backed Arts Fellowship Focuses on Migration

“Create Momentum for Change.” A Soros-Backed Arts Fellowship Focuses on Migration

The Open Society Foundations launched its Soros Arts Fellowships last year to support the work of artists in repressive regimes. This year’s fellowship builds on this approach by focusing on an issue that’s deeply personal for OSF’s founder.

Read More

Who’s Helping Push the Idea of a Basic Income into the Political Mainstream?

Who’s Helping Push the Idea of a Basic Income into the Political Mainstream?

In under three years, the Economic Security Project has galvanized a surprising level of buy-in for the idea of giving people cash without conditions. We discuss strategy and funding with the organization’s leaders, including Facebook co-founder Chris Hughes.

Read More

This Health Funder Has Big Plans to Reduce Unintended Pregnancies Among Low-Income Women

This Health Funder Has Big Plans to Reduce Unintended Pregnancies Among Low-Income Women

Foundations have scored some notable successes in expanding access to contraception and reducing unwanted pregnancies. The latest such effort taking flight is focused on Missouri, where a local health funder is backing a $20 million initiative.

Read More