Philanthropy Front and Center-Atlanta

New Research Advisory Gives Long-Term View of Foundation Giving

In September 2009, the Foundation Center conducted a follow-up to its January 2009 giving forecast survey to determine foundation expectations for giving beyond 2009. The survey responses from over 600 grantmakers have been analyzed and indicate that giving from foundations is expected to decline by more than 10 percent in 2009, and continued reductions are expected in 2010. "Foundations will be giving less than they expected at the beginning of the year," said Bradford K. Smith, president of the Foundation Center. "But many are rethinking their grantmaking so that fewer dollars will not necessarily mean less impact."

Foundations' Year-end Outlook for Giving and the Sector is the latest in the Center's research advisory series that explores the impact of the economic downturn on the nonprofit sector. The advisories and the online chart "In Their Own Words: 2009 Foundation Giving Forecast" are available at the Center's Focus on the Economic Crisis web page.

The report can be downloaded at no charge from the Gain Knowledge area of the Center's web site.

Financing Your Education

People all over the country are dusting off their book bags in preparation for their return to school. Others have already re-enrolled and are matriculating through programs. Whether you are a new college student or returning student, the Foundation Center has resources to help you find funding for your education:

• Use the Foundation Center’s online database, Foundation Grants to Individuals Online, for free at any of our library/learning centers to find information on foundations and other grantmakers that award grants directly to individuals. To access the database from the comfort of your own home or office, low monthly, quarterly, and annual subscription rates apply.

• Take advantage of the free online course offered through the Foundation Center’s web site that guides you through the process of seeking financial support from foundations to pursue your studies.

• Visit the Frequently Asked Questions section of our web site to get answers to common questions about scholarships, fellowships, and more.

• Enroll in our free in-person class, Finding Foundation Support for Your Education. Be sure to check the the Foundation Center-Atlanta’s online calendar for the next class offering.

• If you can't make the in-person class, then take the Finding Foundation Support for Your Education webinar. Better yet, watch a free recording of the class on demand.

The Foundation Center offers a plethora of opportunities to learn about individual grantseeking. Now it is up to you to put forth the time and effort to complete and submit your applications. The ball is in your court!

Asia Hadley, Training Coordinator, Foundation Center-Atlanta

Live from Challenges and Opportunities of the Economic Crisis - October 13

Download or view the slides from this presentation (PDF).

Bradford K. Smith, president of the Foundation Center, will provide his perspective on the impact of the economic crisis on the philanthropic sector – both foundations and service providers – and the challenges and opportunities these turbulent times present for the future.

This 60-minute program will be at the Foundation Center-Atlanta on Tuesday, Oct. 13, starting at 2:30 p.m. To read Mr. Smith's biography or sign up to attend, please see our Events Calendar.

Can't get to this event in person? Attend the program virtually via the window below, either during the program or after it's happened. This program also will be taped and posted to our web site later this month.

New Video: Meet the Foundation Center-Atlanta

Hurricane Katrina: Where Did the Money Go?

Despite my aching legs and feet from all of the walking, my husband and I had a blast celebrating our fifth anniversary in New Orleans. I thought four years would be enough time to rebuild homes and fix the damaged ones. Instead, I found myself wondering, “Where did the money go?” 
 

The Foundation Center attempts to answer this question in its newly released report: Giving in the Aftermath of the 2005 Gulf Coast Hurricanes (2007-2009). According to the report, economic and community development has now “captured the largest share of ongoing foundation support dollars (24 percent) and the second largest share of grants (18 percent).” This represents a shift in the focus of service providers and grantmakers from immediate relief to recovery and rebuilding.  You can find this report and a wealth of other information at the Focus on Gulf Coast Hurricane Relief area of our web site.

I’m glad this shift is taking place. When I toured the Ninth Ward, I saw a sea of abandoned homes, empty home lots, battered FEMA trailers, and makeshift signs of remembrance and pleas for help. I was sorely disappointed and hurt to see what little had been done to rebuild the area, so I am glad to see that grantmakers are now more aggressively directing funds to rebuilding those communities.

Although rehabilitation will take years, I saw evidence of glaring success initiated by celebrities. The tour guide showed us Brad Pitt’s housing development from his Make It Right Foundation New Orleans. We also saw the Musician’s Village, a powerful partnership between Branford Marsalis, Harry Connick, Jr., and Habitat for Humanity. It was refreshing to see these new communities being reconstructed.
 
Now that I have seen parts of the aftermath with my own eyes, I realize that I probably wouldn’t have been near the Ninth Ward had I traveled to New Orleans prior to Katrina, unless I was visiting someone.
 
You would never know the devastation that wrecked the city if you stay downtown or in the Quarter. When you don’t have to look at the devastation daily, it’s easy to ignore the fact that more help is needed in less affluent areas. Even though billions have been donated, affected parts of the city still have a long way to go to rebuild.
 
Here is how you can help.

Asia M. Hadley, Training Coordinator, Foundation Center-Atlanta

Foundation Center Launches National Education Stimulus Initiative

The Foundation Center announced the launch of "Foundations for Education Excellence," a national initiative to engage philanthropic institutions and education leaders across the country in a unified, strategic drive to improve public education.

foundationcenter.org/educationexcellence, the web portal developed by the Foundation Center with a grant from the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, was launched in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Education. It connects foundation funders in education to information and tools that will help them support ARRA's education reform goals.

"There is a unique window of opportunity in the coming weeks and months for private philanthropy to leverage its investment in education," said Bradford K. Smith, the Center's president. "Funders need fast-track tools to target areas of need and collaborate in new ways to improve educational opportunities across the country. The Foundation Center is ideally positioned to provide foundations with the knowledge platform needed to advance this process."

Read the full press release for details on the contents and uses of the portal.

Foundation Center 2008 Annual Report

We invite you to view our 2008 Annual Report, now available on our web site in PDF format. Read about how we are reconnecting organizations to the resources that matter, helping you refocus your efforts to weather the economic crisis and inform your decision-making. Active web links throughout direct you to the resources you care most about.

Missed one of our programs?

Look for it in our Events Archive!

Our online Events Archive provides free access to recorded Foundation Center programs, classes, and other events. View videos and webcasts, listen to or download audio recordings, and read transcripts of selected events at our web site.

While we have long offered a wide array of special programs at our five library/learning centers, now many of these events are being captured and made accessible online, enabling audiences anywhere to take advantage of free educational opportunities otherwise not available to them.

You can view or listen to these programs now:
• Uncharitable: How Restraints on Nonprofits Undermine Their Potential
Author Dan Pallotta reviews restrictions imposed on nonprofits and argues that they should be allowed to use standard business tools to create robust and healthy charities. Filmed in Atlanta, May 29, 2009.

• Turning Crisis Into Opportunity: A Conversation With Two Nonprofit Sector Leaders  
Foundation Center president Bradford K. Smith and GuideStar president and CEO Robert G. Ottenhoff discuss how nonprofits are weathering the economic storm, how foundations are responding to support the sector, and the challenges, strategies, and opportunities for both going forward. Recorded in New York, July 22, 2009.

Check in often—we are continually adding new recordings to the Archive as they become available.

Kayron Bearden, Reference Librarian, Foundation Center-Atlanta

Connect with the Foundation Center on Twitter, Facebook, and More

Earlier this Spring, we decided to join the many nonprofits already using Twitter to connect with donors, clients, and the general public. We have been actively tweeting from our FCAtlanta account (twitter.com/FCAtlanta) for more than two months now, and we have been very pleased with the response.

You may not be aware, however, that there are more than a half dozen other Foundation Center Twitter feeds you can follow:

• fdncenter - Main Foundation Center feed
• FC_econcrisis - Updates from our Focus on the Economic Crisis
• pndblog - Current news items from Philanthropy News Digest
• FCCleveland - News & updates from the Foundation Center-Cleveland
• FCNewYork - News & updates from the Foundation Center-New York
• FCSanFrancisco - News & updates from the Foundation Center-San Francisco
• FCWashington - News & updates from the Foundation Center-Washington (DC)

You can also follow the Foundation Center on Facebook, MySpace, and other social networks:

 Facebook:

• Foundation Center fan page
• Foundation Center group profile (requires login)
• Foundation Directory Online fan page

  MySpace:

• Foundation Center profile

  Idealist:

• Foundation Center organization profile

Have your own account on Twitter, Facebook, or Myspace? Be sure to connect with the Foundation Center to receive updates on research, publications, classes and events, special offers, and more.

Stephen Sherman, Reference Librarian, Foundation Center-Atlanta

New Funding Guide for Preserving Historical, Cultural Collections

Working in collaboration, the Foundation Center and the Library of Congress have just released the second edition of Foundation Grants for Preservation in Libraries, Archives, and Museums. This publication, issued as a PDF file, includes over 1,900 grants awarded by close to 500 foundations to public, academic, research, school, and special libraries, as well as to archives and museums, for work in conservation and preservation.

Deanna Marcum, associate librarian of Library Services at the Library of Congress said, “We are currently developing new initiatives to help libraries, archives, and museums care for our country's vulnerable cultural patrimony, including modern media during challenging times. We are delighted to partner on this Guide, which will lead people to funding sources that can support their preservation efforts."

Foundation Grants for Preservation in Libraries, Archives, and Museums is available for free download at the Library of Congress web site, http://www.loc.gov/preserv/foundtn-grants.html.