Articles on Chicago & Great Lakes Area
Nine Ways the W. Clement & Jessie V. Stone Foundation Supports Chicago
Since 1958, the W. Clement & Jessie V. Stone Foundation has sought to honor its founders' vision for making the world a better place. W. Clement Stone grew up on Chicago's South Side, where he began selling newspapers at the age of six and … [Read more...] about Nine Ways the W. Clement & Jessie V. Stone Foundation Supports Chicago
How the Field Foundation of Illinois Supports Community Power-Building Throughout Chicago
In 2023, the MacArthur Foundation and the Chicago-based Field Foundation of Illinois, which distributes more than $10 million annually and works to address systemic issues in historically marginalized areas of Chicago, launched a new grantmaking … [Read more...] about How the Field Foundation of Illinois Supports Community Power-Building Throughout Chicago
How This Accessible Chicago-Based Funder Targets Entrepreneurship, Health and Disabilities
We periodically publish quick overviews of grantmakers on our radar, looking at recent developments and key details about how they operate. Today, we’re taking a look at the Coleman Foundation, which supports organizations in the Chicago metropolitan … [Read more...] about How This Accessible Chicago-Based Funder Targets Entrepreneurship, Health and Disabilities
A Family Foundation’s Refreshingly Accessible Approach to Funding Research and Education
At the risk of overgeneralizing, a lot of family foundations tend to be fairly opaque, without much in the way of a public-facing profile. Many do not have websites, post their grants online, publish annual reports and founder’s statements, or accept … [Read more...] about A Family Foundation’s Refreshingly Accessible Approach to Funding Research and Education
What Does the Skender Foundation Support in Chicago?
Skender is a Chicago-based company engaged in the local construction, manufacturing and design industries. The company’s team is comprised of over 300 people, and it has recently won awards for being among the most innovative companies in the world … [Read more...] about What Does the Skender Foundation Support in Chicago?
A Glimpse Inside Brian and Julie Simmons’ Chicago Grantmaking
Just because a foundation has no significant public presence, that doesn’t mean it isn’t accessible to local grantseekers. A good example of this is the Brian and Julie Simmons Foundation, which does not have a website but may be open to receiving … [Read more...] about A Glimpse Inside Brian and Julie Simmons’ Chicago Grantmaking
Big Change Requires Bold Funding: Why We’re Upping Our Annual Grantee Payout to 11%
“It is our duty to fight for our freedom. It is our duty to win. We must love each other and support each other. We have nothing to lose but our chains.” — Assata Shakur, “Assata: An Autobiography”In June last year, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned … [Read more...] about Big Change Requires Bold Funding: Why We’re Upping Our Annual Grantee Payout to 11%
Six Questions for Michelle Morales, President of Woods Fund Chicago
Born in Yonkers, New York, Michelle Morales was a self-described “military brat,” spending her childhood moving around the country before settling in Chicago in 1993 to attend DePaul University. For most of her professional career, Morales worked in … [Read more...] about Six Questions for Michelle Morales, President of Woods Fund Chicago
A Look at the Sacks Family Foundation’s Chicago-Area Giving
With deep roots in the financial industry and in the Chicago area, Michael and Cari Sacks are philanthropists based in the Chicago suburb of Highland Park. In 2001, the couple created the Sacks Family Foundation to conduct grantmaking and fund local … [Read more...] about A Look at the Sacks Family Foundation’s Chicago-Area Giving
This Illinois-Based Tech Billionaire Is Moving Big Sums With a Unique Faith-Based Approach
My colleague Sue-Lynn Moses and I recently took a deep dive into how major donors carry out their giving through their private foundations. Our analysis of Candid data from 2017 to 2019 confirmed what we had long suspected — that wealthy donors often … [Read more...] about This Illinois-Based Tech Billionaire Is Moving Big Sums With a Unique Faith-Based Approach
Getting to Know Chicago Philanthropists Patrick and Shirley Ryan
Among Chicago’s prominent philanthropic power couples are Patrick and Shirley Ryan, who gained substantial wealth through the insurance industry and made the single largest gift in Northwestern University’s history. The Ryans launched their … [Read more...] about Getting to Know Chicago Philanthropists Patrick and Shirley Ryan
Funding for Fathers: A Chicago-based Family Foundation Shines a Light on Fatherhood
The Joseph and Bessie Feinberg Foundation recently gave a three-year, $300,000 donation to The Dovetail Project, a Chicago-based nonprofit that educates and supports Black and Hispanic fathers aged 17 to 24. This is a rare gift for a father-focused … [Read more...] about Funding for Fathers: A Chicago-based Family Foundation Shines a Light on Fatherhood
Getting to Know the J. Christopher and Anne N. Reyes Foundation’s Philanthropy in Chicago
Although the J. Christopher and Anne N. Reyes Foundation is headquartered in West Palm Beach, Florida, this funder focuses a significant part of its grantmaking on the city of Chicago. That’s because the Reyes family has deep roots in the Chicago … [Read more...] about Getting to Know the J. Christopher and Anne N. Reyes Foundation’s Philanthropy in Chicago
Is Tutoring the Answer to COVID Learning Loss? These Funders Want to Find Out
Kevin Huffman understood early on that the pandemic would have a devastating impact on American students — and that some would be hurt far more than others. In March 2020, as schools were shuttered and classrooms went virtual, the former Tennessee … [Read more...] about Is Tutoring the Answer to COVID Learning Loss? These Funders Want to Find Out
Backed by a Billionaire Couple, a Chicago Nonprofit Takes a Community-Led Approach to Youth Equity
Philanthropy isn’t moving as fast as its most forward-thinking leaders might hope — Marguerite Casey Foundation CEO Carmen Rojas once told me she envisions a world where foundations no longer need to exist. But a section of philanthropy is … [Read more...] about Backed by a Billionaire Couple, a Chicago Nonprofit Takes a Community-Led Approach to Youth Equity
To Advance Health Equity, a Big Hospital Gift Targets the Earliest Childhood Experiences
As research on child development has progressed, funders supporting education and the wellbeing of children have shifted their work further upstream, into the earliest months and years of life. Sometimes, that means tackling health inequities … [Read more...] about To Advance Health Equity, a Big Hospital Gift Targets the Earliest Childhood Experiences
A Conversation with Jeffreen Hayes, Executive Director of Chicago-Based Arts Funder Threewalls
Dr. Jeffreen Hayes is the executive director of Threewalls, a Chicago-based organization that “fosters contemporary art practices that respond to lived experiences, encouraging connections beyond art.” Founded in 2003 as a brick-and-mortar gallery, … [Read more...] about A Conversation with Jeffreen Hayes, Executive Director of Chicago-Based Arts Funder Threewalls
The Obama Foundation Is Picking up Steam. Who’s on Board and Where Is Funding Headed So Far?
The roots of the presidential library system can be traced to 1939, when President Franklin Roosevelt donated his personal and presidential papers to the federal government. Roosevelt also pledged a portion of his estate at Hyde Park, and friends … [Read more...] about The Obama Foundation Is Picking up Steam. Who’s on Board and Where Is Funding Headed So Far?
“Downright Dangerous.” How a Donor Couple is Tackling the Thorny Issue of Wealth Inequality
Why is wealth inequality such a prominent feature of the American economy? What are the economic, social and political implications of the wealth gap? What can be done about it?Philanthropist James Stone would like to find answers to questions like … [Read more...] about “Downright Dangerous.” How a Donor Couple is Tackling the Thorny Issue of Wealth Inequality
How the Pritzker Pucker Family Foundation Gives in the Chicago Area
Here at IP, we have covered lots of Pritzker philanthropies over the years — which is understandable, considering this is one of the wealthiest families in America. Although organizations all over the world receive Pritzker money, the family’s home … [Read more...] about How the Pritzker Pucker Family Foundation Gives in the Chicago Area
The Logan Legacy: Three Brothers Carry on the Philanthropic Work Their Parents Started
At a time when billionaire donors are looming ever larger in philanthropy, it can be easy to overlook the accomplishments of more modest foundations whose founders rarely draw media attention. If anybody had been watching six years ago, when two … [Read more...] about The Logan Legacy: Three Brothers Carry on the Philanthropic Work Their Parents Started
A Major Funder Is Overhauling How it Backs Local Arts Groups. What Will That Mean for Grantees?
Back in February, MacArthur Foundation Senior Program Officer Geoffrey Banks made an announcement that made leaders at Chicago’s arts and cultural organizations with budgets of $2 million or less a bit uneasy. The foundation and its two regranting … [Read more...] about A Major Funder Is Overhauling How it Backs Local Arts Groups. What Will That Mean for Grantees?
How the Frank E. Payne and Seba B. Payne Foundation Supports Chicago
Although many Chicago-area nonprofits may not have heard of the Frank E. Payne and Seba B. Payne Foundation, this funder has been on the local philanthropy scene since 1962. This is a low-key foundation with very little public information available … [Read more...] about How the Frank E. Payne and Seba B. Payne Foundation Supports Chicago
How the Osa Foundation Backs Education in Chicago
Education has consistently been a top issue for philanthropists in Chicago (and elsewhere), and Robin and Jack Lavin are no exception. The Lavins created the Osa Foundation in 2005, and they exclusively focus on local education in their grantmaking. … [Read more...] about How the Osa Foundation Backs Education in Chicago
A Look at the Giving Circles and Councils of the Chicago Foundation for Women
In a recent year, the Chicago Foundation for Women (CFW) worked with almost 3,000 donors and partners to fund over 160 projects and serve more than 70,000 women, girls, transgender people and gender non-binary people in the Chicago area. It does this … [Read more...] about A Look at the Giving Circles and Councils of the Chicago Foundation for Women
A Quick Look at an Anti-Poverty Funder Focused on Chicago
The New Coast Foundation is one of the newer philanthropic organizations in Chicago, and has only been operating for a few years. Following his success with a venture capital fund called New Coast Ventures, Alex Ross created the foundation in 2016 … [Read more...] about A Quick Look at an Anti-Poverty Funder Focused on Chicago
This Chicago Journalism Merger Is a Breakthrough for Local News—and Funders Are Taking Note
In his 1954 autobiography, the great Chicago newspaperman-turned-screenwriter Ben Hecht wrote, “I have lived in other cities but been inside only one. I once wore all the windows of Chicago and all its doorways on a key ring. Saloons, mansions, … [Read more...] about This Chicago Journalism Merger Is a Breakthrough for Local News—and Funders Are Taking Note
A Funder’s COVID-Era Effort to Support Black Principals Finds a Permanent Home, New Leader
The pandemic was tough on kids, teachers and families, but it was school principals who often stood in the direct line of fire. Principals had to oversee it all: school closures, the shift to online learning, locating students who went missing, … [Read more...] about A Funder’s COVID-Era Effort to Support Black Principals Finds a Permanent Home, New Leader
For Fundraisers in STEM Education, Both New and Familiar Challenges
Education in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields is a key interest for many philanthropic funders, including corporations, foundations and public sources such as the National Science Foundation. Nevertheless, a number of … [Read more...] about For Fundraisers in STEM Education, Both New and Familiar Challenges
