Foundation Grants
Community Vital Signs
About Us
Two Years On, Foundations Stand By Issuing Bonds In Pandemic
Foundation: Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, MacArthur Foundation, Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors, Bush Foundation, California Endowment, Ford Foundation, Rockefeller Foundation, Kellogg Foundation, Lilly Endowment
When the Ford Foundation took the unprecedented step in June 2020 of issuing $1 billion in debt to help stabilize other nonprofits, it delighted investors and inspired several other large foundations to follow suit.
Two years later, the foundations all stand by their decisions to take on long term debt, allowing several to essentially double the amount of their grantmaking, the AP reports.
But they also caution they are unlikely to repeat the move any time soon.
The foundations mostly issued social bonds ranging from $100 million to Ford's $1 billion.
The unusual move allowed them to increase their donations and take advantage of favorable market conditions, instead of dipping into their endowments.
As of June this year, the Ford Foundation has spent more than 90% of the funds it raised in its only bond offering, with 70% of the grants so far going to organizations led by people of color and 87% going to general support, meaning the funds could be spent any way the organizations wanted.
"It just let us put on steroids something that we wanted to do anyway," says Hilary Pennington, an executive vice president of the Ford Foundation.
Greg Ratliff, senior vice president at Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors, says issuing bonds was an innovative use of the foundation's assets.
Read the Entire Article
Selected Foundation News
A customized collection of news from foundations from around the Web.
Foundation: Rhode Island Foundation
Love is in the air, at least when it comes to the research projects funded by the Rhode Island Foundation. The nonprofit has awarded more than $360,000 in seed funding to 15 medical research...more
Foundation: Jack Kent Cooke Foundation
Four Miami Dade College students were surprised with "life-changing news" this week: They'd been named recipients of the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation's Cooke Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship, which...more
"To be able to invest a further ? 1 million in the North East at a time of such economic challenge for many is a privilege for the Foundation trustees, and we're thrilled to see the difference it...more
"We are quickly running out of time at the PODSthey are not in good condition as they were never designed for long-term use, and we are not able to truly help people who stay there." That's...more
Madison, Wis., could soon have a women's soccer team to call its stadium home. The Wisconsin city's Board of Park Commissioners has approved a $4 million grant proposal that would see the...more
"We just looked at these things happening again and again, and we said we could do something, we could be proactive rather than reactive," Rob Huberty, chief operating officer for ZeroEyes, tells...more
"They've invested quite a few dollars into helping mitigate the issues that keep students from being able to be at their best and successful in their academics," a California school district's...more
The city of High Spring, Fla., is spending $347,000 in state grant money to buy a historic theater that was almost torn down in 2022, the Ledger reports. According to WCJB, commissioners voted...more
If you're looking for a safe place to park your money during the stock market's roller coaster ride this year, there's a mutual fund that's got you covered. The MarketWatch blog rounds up the 10...more
"Every child in every school, everywhere in the country, should have the glasses they need to succeed in school and in life," says Austin Beutner, founder of a nonprofit that provides free eye exams...more
Social Entrepreneurship
Spotlight
Finding a Place in Mainstream Social Enterprise
Nell Derick Debevoise, Founder and CEO of Inspiring Capita, shares what she thinks are the three main ingredients in finding your place in social enterprise.