Two Universities Start Efforts to Provide Formal Training to Grant Makers

As grants manager at the Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust, in Indianapolis, Ind., David Hillman says that he learns a lot handling the daily challenges of his job. What he would like, though, is to learn more about his job before he has to face those tests.

Mr. Hillman is far from alone. Many program officers of charitable foundations lack formal training and have not had the chance to learn about techniques that work. Now, that’s starting to change.

In June, Mr. Hillman — along with 22 of his peers — completed the pilot course of the Grantmaking School at Grand Valley State University, in Grand Rapids, Mich. From its headquarters in the Dorothy A. Johnson Center for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Leadership, the Grantmaking School aims to help experienced foundation employees deal with the challenges of awarding grants that promote social change, and measuring the results of their giving.

Exchanging Good Ideas

The school is the brainchild of Joel J. Orosz, a Grand Valley State professor of philanthropic studies and a former program officer at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, in Battle Creek, Mich.

Mr. Orosz says he spotted a need to provide formal guidance and support for people who play a key role in deciding what nonprofit groups deserve support.

“Every program officer I knew had been trained to do something else,” says Mr. Orosz. “Most of these people are swamped with their regular duties and keeping proposals moving. There’s very little time for reflection. They have never had the opportunity to sit down with peers to compare notes and swap good ideas.”

A Growing Trend

The Grantmaking School is the latest effort aimed at developing formal training for foundation employees. For example, Indiana University-Purdue University, in Indianapolis, has for 11 years offered a master of arts degree in philanthropic studies and this year began enrolling students for the nation’s first doctoral program in the discipline.

Last spring, New York University started offering four advanced courses in foundation and corporate grant making.

The university’s George H. Heyman Jr. Center for Philanthropy and Fundraising first offered courses in the grant-making process in 2001, but the new advanced courses were developed at the request of grant makers seeking additional skills in specialized areas, says Naomi Levine, the center’s executive director.

“Every year, more and more charities call on corporations and foundations to support both innovative and continuing programs,” says Mrs. Levine.

“We see a real need to help grant makers maximize the effectiveness of their generosity,”she adds. “The grant-making program helps donors and recipients make the most of their philanthropic dollars.”

The university’s new courses, which are noncredit and require students to meet once a week for a month, are applicable toward a certificate in grant making and foundations.

Char Mollison, vice president of constituency services at the Council on Foundations, in Washington, says she has seen growing interest in programs and tools that provide grant makers with more information about how they can become more effective. She says that a 2002 survey of council members found the top reason for belonging to the organization is getting such information.

“I think there is an expressed desire for more-formal programming,” says Ms. Mollison, who also teaches a graduate seminar in nonprofit management at Georgetown University. “The performance bar is being raised and there is a desire to strive for excellence.”

Improving Relationships

The Grantmaking School’s pilot course, on analyzing grant proposals, was held in June. Another session will be held next week. During the session, participants will examine a wide spectrum of issues facing foundation officials, says Mr. Orosz.

“We expect grant makers to be social workers, business managers, project evaluators, and financial wizards,” he says. “The course is designed to help them beef up their skills in all those areas, discuss common dilemmas with peers, and put their skills to use for increased social impact.”

Particular focus is placed on improving working relationships with grant seekers. Simply put, Mr. Orosz stresses that grant applicants shouldn’t have to “jump through hoops” to have their proposals considered.

“As grant seekers, we’ve all been there,” Mr. Orosz says. “The entire process will be more efficient and more humane.”

He also advocates establishing procedures that allow for grant-making decisions to be made in a reasonable period of time. “We emphasize the necessity to make decisions quickly and humanely,” he says. “Don’t say maybe, maybe, maybe. If you can’t fund it now, the odds are pretty good you can’t do it six months from now.”

Making an Impact

For participants in the pilot project, the Grand Valley program offered a rare opportunity to share ideas with peers in the foundation world and talk about challenges they all face on the job.

“The most beneficial part is getting together with your classmates and talking and learning from their experiences,” says Mr. Hillman, of the Pulliam Charitable Trust. “It confirms that you’re not the only one dealing with particular issues.”

He says the program gave him a fresh perspective on charitable foundations’ relationships with grant seekers and the general public. His organization distributes $12-million annually to help support social services, protect animals, and promote the arts.

“The unfortunate fact is the need in the community is greater than any foundation can meet,” Mr. Hillman says. “You have to make sure you are as fair and equitable as possible. This gives you a guide in terms of what the expectations are, how you deal with the public, and what the best practices are. Then you try to apply them.”

Ultimately, Mr. Orosz hopes the move toward more-formal training will improve the effectiveness of charitable organizations. He notes that while only a small proportion of overall giving flows from foundations, those dollars have significant impact because they are usually distributed in significant amounts.

“If we can make sure that money gets distributed more quickly, efficiently, and ethically, then we are making an impact,” Mr. Orosz says. “You can’t change the way a couple million individuals give billions of dollars, but you can change the way a couple thousand foundations give billions of dollars. That is really the challenge before us.”

For more information on the Grantmaking School at Grand Valley State University, go to: http://www.grantmakingschool.org or call (616) 331-7589. Information about New York University’s classes for grant makers is available at http://www.scps.nyu.edu/philanthropy, or call (212) 998-6770.