Building better foundations

The McKinsey Quarterly: Building better foundations
An update on some current issues in philanthropy, especially as they apply to foundations.

This may require registration (free), so if you want a PDF copy send me an e-mail.

Big donations up

New charity laws proposed; regulators warns donors.

* The 60 biggest donors in the U.S. made donations and pledges totaling $5.9 billion in 2003, up from $4.6 billion in 2002, the Chronicle of Philanthropy reported in its Feb. 19 issue. Bequests by those donors grew 50 percent to $2.7 billion in 2003, while pledges fell by more than half to $959.6 million.

Etc.

Philanthropic relativity

Influences on giving, volunteering vary by region.

Depending on where Americans live in the U.S., different factors influence the rate at which they give and volunteer, says a new study.

Direct to recipient grant funding

Interesting funding concept. A Web site called DonorsChoose.org was set up originally to allow New York teachers to make small proposals for projects and materials and to facilitate direct contributions from the public to fund those projects. The idea is spreading to other states and to cover operating expenses of schools.

DonorsChoose works like a marketplace, with teachers posting their needs, and donors making online contributions to meet those needs.

Residents of 48 states have used the site to fund more than 2,100 teacher proposals, providing nearly $1 million worth of resources to 736 New York City classrooms, more than 90 percent of them in poor schools.

I suppose this appeals to people who want to bypass the bureaucracy and overhead costs of traditional funding organizations and school administrations.

“This is an amazing concept that basically democratizes philanthropy,” Brader-Araje says. “No longer is philanthropy the exclusive domain of wealthy philanthropists or foundations. DonorsChoose puts that power in the hands of ordinary citizens and empowers teachers to focus on the things that are important in their classrooms because nobody knows their kids better than they do.”

What a subversive idea!