January 11, 2024 More Than a Check: Inside a Place-Based Funder Where Donors Offer Non-Monetary Support January 11, 2024/ Mike Scutari Chicago’s Springboard Foundation Fund’s Grantee Champions are donors that provide extensive non-financial support to nonprofits. Executive Director Sejal Shah-Myers walks us through its unique operational model.Read More
January 05, 2024 Rural Capacity Building: New Funding Gives This Appalachia-Based Ed Nonprofit Room to Grow January 05, 2024/ Martha Ramirez With backing from funders like the Ballmer Group and the T.L.L. Temple Foundation, Partners for Rural Impact is expanding the scope of its work in the underinvested field of rural education to new states.Read More
December 08, 2023 What’s the Plan for the Moody Foundation’s Texas-Sized Pledge to Lone Star State Students? December 08, 2023/ Connie Matthiessen The Texas-based family foundation, among the state’s largest, just stepped up for students with a $1 billion education pledge. It’s a worthy move, but also shines a light on the state’s failures when it comes to public funding for schools.Read More
November 28, 2023 With Two Big Supporters, a New Research Center Will Help Kids Thrive in a World Filled With Tech November 28, 2023/ Connie Matthiessen The Susan Crown Exchange and Pivotal Ventures are founding donors of the new Center for Digital Thriving, which centers youth experiences in an effort to understand positive and negative impacts of technology.Read More
November 01, 2023 Back to School in New Shoes: A Simple but Powerful Way to Support Kids Experiencing Homelessness November 01, 2023/ Connie Matthiessen For children in need, something as basic as a new pair of shoes can make a huge impact. With support from an array of funders, Soles4Souls distributes free footwear to start the school year off on the right foot.Read More
October 17, 2023 A Philanthropy Built on Chocolate Expands its Mission to Support Early Childhood October 17, 2023/ Connie Matthiessen Chocolate magnate Milton Hershey and his wife Catherine left behind a fortune to provide a K-12 education for low-income children. Now, the Hershey Trust is opening a fleet of new schools for younger students.Read More
October 11, 2023 Who Is Funding Efforts to Support the Nation’s 1 Million Homeless Students? October 11, 2023/ Laurie Udesky Attending school while experiencing homelessness poses a mountain of obstacles for young people and their families. A handful of funders are backing efforts to help, including a new collaborative effort. Read More
September 27, 2023 This Couple Just Won One of Conservative Philanthropy’s Top Prizes. What Are They Into? September 27, 2023/ Philip Rojc A passion for private education and entrepreneurship drives the giving of Laura and Jeff Sandefer, who won the 2023 Simon-DeVos Prize for Philanthropic Leadership. Here’s a look at what they back and what they’ve founded.Read More
September 05, 2023 Funders Get Behind a New Plan for School-Based "Health Hubs" in Detroit September 05, 2023/ Connie Matthiessen Located at school sites and offering free health care for students and other resources for families, the health hubs have secured philanthropic backing from the Kresge Foundation, the Ballmer Group and others. Read More
August 22, 2023 Recent Layoffs Raise Questions About the Future of Education Funding at CZI August 22, 2023/ Connie Matthiessen The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, a committed ed funder, just cut its education team by 30%. What do these layoffs mean for the philanthropy’s education support going forward?Read More
July 27, 2023 As Book Banning Campaigns Spread, this Funder is Defending the Right to Read July 27, 2023/ Connie Matthiessen Across the country, conservative groups are working to ban books. The American Library Association is standing up to these challenges, with a big boost from Solidarity Giving, founded by billionaires Brian and Tegan Acton.Read More
July 25, 2023 A Big K-12 Funding Push Seeks to Create More Pathways to Career Success July 25, 2023/ Connie Matthiessen A number of education funders have been backing workforce development and career readiness programs. The latest big commitment comes from CZI, and seeks to give kids purpose and agency in their educations.Read More
July 19, 2023 Five Things to Know about Walton Family Foundation’s New Executive Director July 19, 2023/ Michael Kavate The flagship foundation of the country’s richest family has a new leader, Stephanie Dodson Cornell. Here, we hit the broad strokes of her career, plus some lesser-known facts that shed more light on her opinions and interests.Read More
July 11, 2023 Susie Buffett Plays a Critical Role in the Family’s Giving. Who Is She, and What Does She Fund? July 11, 2023/ Mike Scutari If Warren Buffett ultimately channels more of his fortune to family philanthropies, we can expect his daughter Susie’s profile to grow. We take a closer look at this publicity-shy giver and her Sherwood Foundation.Read More
June 22, 2023 Here Are Seven Grantmakers Backing Rural Communities in the South June 22, 2023/ Martha Ramirez The rural South faces outsized needs, but receives limited funding that doesn’t always make it to the groups on the ground. We’ve rounded up some of local funders dedicated to supporting rural communities. Read More
June 21, 2023 “Ask Yourself Those Hard Questions.” How — and Why — a Regional Funder Plans to Sunset June 21, 2023/ Mike Scutari James B. McClatchy Foundation just published a plan to spend down by 2030. CEO Priscilla Enriquez explains how they came to this decision, challenges along the way, and why funders are so protective of their assets.Read More
June 13, 2023 Two Years in, The 1954 Project is Moving the Needle on Funding for Black Leaders in Education June 13, 2023/ Connie Matthiessen For Black-led education organizations, accessing philanthropic dollars is far tougher than for their white counterparts. This pooled funding effort is prying open doors — and philanthropic coffers.Read More
June 05, 2023 New Funder Survey Explores the State of Ed Philanthropy and Where It’s Headed June 05, 2023/ Connie Matthiessen Last week, Grantmakers for Education released the results of its first national survey of ed funders since the pandemic. We caught up with co-Interim Executive Director Ulcca Joshi Hansen to discuss the results.Read More
May 22, 2023 On the Ground with the Ballmer Group, One of LA's Leading Antipoverty Funders May 22, 2023/ Wendy Paris Over the past few years, Steve and Connie Ballmer have continued ramping up their commitments in Los Angeles. We took a deep dive into how a vast tech fortune is being put to use to scale up local economic mobility.Read More
May 11, 2023 An Audacious Effort to Transform the Foster Care System Gets a Big Funding Boost May 11, 2023/ Connie Matthiessen Think of Us has a bold mission: to transform the foster care system from the ground up. The organization’s approach, which elevates those with lived experience, landed a major haul from The Audacious Project and others. Read More