Foundations Urged to Help Beneficiaries Hurt by Government Cuts
not replace public dollars, which
is a message that legislators
needed to hear as they slashed
education and public-service
budgets here in the state,” she
says. “However, in this instance,
all the players were eager to
have someone coordinate their
work.”
Continued from Page 33
Rockefeller Foundation, also
says grant makers should consider supporting charities’ operating reserves as a way to shore
up a nonprofit’s financial health
during tough times.
And, he suggests, instead of
paying for new programs, they
should help charities extend existing ones.
Luz Vega-Marquis, head of
the Marguerite Casey Foundation, says her colleagues need to
focus not so much on the question of how to replace government but on serving as an alternative.
“What foundations can do
that governments can’t is take
risks,” says Ms. Vega-Marquis.
“We can fund innovative, un-
tested programs to improve
service, activism and advoca-
cy, and organizations working
toward long-term, systematic
change to improve the economic
well-being of their communi-
ties.”
Even so, supporting such pro-
grams means foundations must
be able to plan their grant bud-
gets, and with a rocky economy,
that is often challenging.
Her foundation gave $25.4-
million in 2011 and plans to give
the same this year, but its assets dropped by about $485,000
from 2010 to 2011.
“The volatility of the mar-
ket has been a killer,” she says.
“When I think we are going to
make it and we inch forward a
little bit, then we inch back.”
[endowment] without regard to
any other factors.”
Mr. Dorfman says founda-
tions need to decide first what
they are trying to accomplish
before they make any decision
about how much of their assets
to give in times of economic un-
certainty.
SEEKING FOUNDATION GRANTS: TIPS FROM EXPERTS
n Don’t rely too heavily on traditional supporters. Solicit many
grant makers.
n Articulate clearly why the nonprofit’s work matters and be
prepared to give concrete examples of its impact.
n Stay focused on the charity’s mission.
Filling Gaps
While Piper’s support of a
government position is rare in
the foundation world, Antony
Bugg-Levine, chief executive of
the Nonprofit Finance Fund,
n Demonstrate how a foundation grant can help secure long-term fiscal health.
n Consider collaborating with other charities so that expenses
are shared and grant money can go further.
“What foundations
can do that
governments can’t
is take
risks.”
Foundations That Expanded
Their Grant Budgets in 2011
said he has noticed that several
foundations have been stepping
in either to support a portion of
what a charity lost after government cuts or to tide a charity
over as government payments
are increasingly delayed.
Yet foundation support is
no panacea, he says, because
grant makers don’t have nearly enough money to make up for
the sums state and federal governments are withdrawing.
Instead, he says, grant makers need to devise creative ways
to help nonprofits that face a
cash crunch.
“There are some very inter-
esting options for private phi-
lanthropy to step in by provid-
ing lines of credit to nonprofits
and supporting their ability to
function while awaiting govern-
ment payments,” he says, “rath-
er than just thinking the only
obligation they have is to step in
and replace government fund-
ing entirely.”
Mr. Bugg-Levine, who was
previously a top official at the
New Sources of Support
For grant seekers, one thing
is quite certain: Foundation giving is unlikely to rebound anytime soon.
“We’re not expecting giving by
foundations to get back to pre-
recession levels for another few
years,” said Mr. Dorfman. “We’ll
see individual giving rebound
quicker than we’ll see founda-
tion giving rebound. Foundation
giving is behind individual giv-
ing by 12 to 36 months in terms
of rebounding.”
The most important steps
charities seeking foundation
money can take right now, grant
makers say, is to be able to ar-
ticulate to program officers and
others exactly why their work
matters—and not to rely too
“We’re not expecting
giving by foundations to get back to
pre-recession levels
for a few years.”
Arcus Foundation
S.D. Bechtel Jr. Foundation
Otto Bremer Foundation
Amon G. Carter Foundation
Edna McConnell Clark Foundation
Wallace H. Coulter Foundation
Duke Endowment
Ford Family Foundation
Ford Foundation
Heinz Endowments
William and Flora Hewlett
Foundation
James Irvine Foundation
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
W.K. Kellogg Foundation
F.M. Kirby Foundation
Kresge Foundation
Maclellan Foundation
McCune Foundation
James S. McDonnell Foundation
M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust
Northwest Area Foundation
Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust
Stuart Foundation
A Slow Rebound
Foundation leaders and other experts caution that while a
foundation’s assets are obviously important, in tough times,
the size of its assets shouldn’t
be the sole focus.
Aaron Dorfman, executive di-
rector of the National Commit-
tee for Responsive Philanthro-
py, says that too often founda-
tions take a “default position of
needing to protect or grow the
heavily on the same old sources
of money.
Foundations Created Since 2000:
a Sample
Marisa López-Rivera and Peter Bolton contributed to this article.
Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation
Bloomberg Family Foundation*
Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies
Marguerite Casey Foundation
Craig H. Neilsen Foundation*
Freeman Foundation
Arcus Foundation*
Kendeda Fund*
Adelson Family Foundation* †
2011 Assets
$5,000,000,000
2,234,800,686
3,000,000,000
594,000,000
414,512,897
287,581,367
179,187,817
15,462,934
20,827
*Figure is for 2010.
† The organization spends the majority of its assets every year.
NEW MONEY
MARGUERITE CASEY FOUNDATION
What it supports:
Low-income families advocating for change
New grant making:
The foundation has stepped up giving to groups that encourage low-income people and minorities to vote and take other steps to influence policy. The effort,
says Luz Vega-Marquis, the head of the Seattle Foundation, is designed to make
nonprofits recognize that voting is a first step for getting people involved in local
politics. “What happens in a lot of communities is, groups come in, they register
folks to vote, and then they leave.”
Total commitment:
The foundation has allocated about $3-million toward the effort over the next
three years.
Outlook for 2012:
The foundation, which gave a total of $25.4-million in 2011, plans to award the
same amount this year. —Maria Di Mento
BOB BLACK
In an election year, the Marguerite Casey Foundation has expanded
its efforts to get poor people and minorities involved in civic life.
