Foundation Annual Reports

ROBERT WOOD JOHNSON FOUNDATION
Route One and College Road East
P.O. Box 2316
Princeton, N.J. 08543-2316
(609) 452-8701
http://www.rwjf.org

Period covered: Year ending December 31, 1998.

Purpose and areas of support:

The foundation was established in 1936 and became national in scope in 1972; it supports programs and research to improve health and health care in the United States.

In 1998, the fund made 944 grants and 55 contracts totaling $357.9-million in these areas: $143.4-million, or 40 per cent, went for programs to insure that all Americans have access to basic health-care services at a reasonable cost; $103.1-million, or 29 per cent, for programs to improve services available to people with chronic health conditions; $76.4-million, or 21 per cent, for programs that promote health and reduce the various health, social, and economic problems associated with tobacco, alcohol, and illicit drugs; and $35.0-million, or 10 per cent, for various other programs, principally in the New Brunswick, N.J., area, where the foundation began operations.

In the area of health-care access, the foundation authorized a further $34-million for “Covering Kids: A National Health Access Initiative for Low-Income, Uninsured Children,” which works to identify and enroll eligible children in public and private coverage plans and to insure the continued enrollment of Medicaid-eligible children whose coverage may be disrupted by changes in welfare laws.

Other grant awards included $411,974 over two years to the Hospital for Sick Children, in Washington, to establish the National Resource Center on Sociocultural Barriers to Care.

In the area of chronic health conditions, the foundation approved a $25-million grant to establish “Improving Chronic Illness Care,” which will help up to 120 health systems nationwide design, adopt, and evaluate disease-management activities that focus on asthma, depression, and other specific conditions.

The foundation committed an additional $7.5-million for projects to improve the ability of health-care professionals and institutions to care for terminally ill and dying individuals and to increase public awareness about end-of-life issues.

In the area of substance abuse, the foundation inaugurated two new programs: “Innovators Combating Substance Abuse,” a six-year, $7-million effort to support novel approaches in the field, and “Developing Leadership in Reducing Substance Abuse,” a six-year, $6-million effort to pair newcomers and established leaders in the field.

In October 1998, Sidney F. Wentz announced his intention to resign as chairman of the board at the end of June 1999. He will be succeeded by Robert E. Campbell.

Application procedure: The foundation awards grants in two ways: through competitive national programs, in which it issues a call for proposals or other invitational announcements, and through grants made throughout the year for unsolicited projects. Institutions wishing to apply for funds for unsolicited projects are advised to submit a preliminary letter of inquiry, rather than a fully developed proposal. The letter should be written on the organization’s letterhead, should not exceed five typewritten pages, and should include an executive summary; a brief description of the problem to be tackled, including evidence of its importance; a description of the proposed project, including its principal objectives and expected outcomes, its components or methodology, its timetable, how its results will be distributed, and its risks and limitations; a budget or an estimate of what the project would cost; and the qualifications of the institution and the project’s principal personnel to implement the project. If a full proposal is requested, the foundation will provide specific instructions on how to draft it and what information should be included. In general, the foundation gives preference to applicants that are public agencies or tax-exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, and not private foundations as defined under Section 509(a). Letters of inquiry should be addressed to Richard Toth, Director, Office of Proposal Management. For a copy of the foundation’s complete Guidelines for Grant Applicants, write to the address above, contact the fund by e-mail at publications@rwjf.org, or visit its Web site at http://www.rwjf.org.

Key officials: Steven A. Schroeder, president; Lewis G. Sandy, executive vice-president; Ruby P. Hearn, senior vice-president; J. Warren Wood III, vice-president, general counsel, and secretary; Peter Goodwin, vice-president and treasurer; Frank Karel, vice-president for communications; James R. Knickman, vice-president for evaluation and research; Gregory Pogue, vice-president of administration; Robert G. Hughes, Paul S. Jellinek, Nancy J. Kaufman, and Doriane C. Miller, vice-presidents; John D. Gilliam, chief investment officer; Sidney F. Wentz, chairman of the Board of Trustees.

Senior program officers: Nancy L. Barrand, David C. Colby, Pamela S. Dickson, Seth Emont, Rosemary Gibson, Susan B. Hassmiller, Jane Isaacs Lowe, C. Tracy Orleans, Constance M. Pechura, Michael Rothman, Rush L. Russell, and Judith Y. Whang.

LILLY ENDOWMENT

P.O. Box 88068
Indianapolis 46208-0068
(317) 924-5471

Period covered: Year ending December 31, 1998.

Purpose and areas of support:

This foundation was endowed in 1937 by three members of the Lilly family through gifts of stock in their pharmaceutical business, Eli Lilly and Company. Although it is a wholly separate entity, stock in the company remains the most significant component of the endowment’s financial portfolio; the endowment is currently the nation’s wealthiest private foundation.

Following the wishes of its founders, the endowment allocates grants in three major programs: community development, education, and religion. In 1998, the endowment authorized grants totaling $496.3-million to 927 grantees, as follows: the education program received $217.5-million, or 43.8 per cent; community development, $177.3-million, or 35.7 per cent; and religion, $101.5-million, or 20.5 per cent.

As in previous years, a majority of grants allocated — 64.3 per cent — went to non-profit groups in Marion County, Ind., and elsewhere in the state.

Grant making for education and youth development received a tremendous boost over the previous year, rising from $64.6-million to $217.5-million. The endowment awarded $41,711,774 to the United Negro College Fund, in Fairfax, Va., to strengthen capital and faculty support and student scholarships at historically black colleges and universities. In addition, a $25-million grant went to the National Urban League, in New York, for its Campaign for African-American Achievement and its Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Program.

Twenty-seven grants totaling $90,658,713 were made to private higher-education institutions in Indiana for capital-improvement projects. For example, $5-million went to the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, in Terre Haute, to construct a dormitory.

Among the new community-development grants was the single largest grant ever made by the endowment: $50-million to the United Way of Central Indiana, in Indianapolis, to endow fund-raising and administrative costs, so that more contributions can go directly to community services.

Through the third phase of the endowment’s Community Foundation GIFT Initiative, it provided a $1-million grant to each of 89 county-based community funds in Indiana. The funds were given the option to use the money for their own purposes, for community projects, or for a combination thereof.

In the area of religion, the endowment announced two new major grant competitions, both of which are open to all 202 accredited seminaries of the Association of Theological Schools. Through the first program, $53.4-million was distributed to 45 seminaries to strengthen their ability to recruit and educate strong candidates for congregational ministry. Through the second, $2.1-million was divided among 22 theological schools to introduce teen-agers to theology and the ministry as career choices.

Application procedure: If a charitable organization believes that its request falls within the foundation’s program guidelines, it may send a preliminary letter of no more than two pages that details the organization, proposed project, and amount of support requested. The endowment responds in writing to all preliminary inquiries. In cases that warrant further consideration, the endowment may ask for a full proposal. The grant-review process takes three to six months. All grant applicants receive written notification of the endowment’s decisions.

Key officials: N. Clay Robbins, president; Craig Dykstra, vice-president for religion; William M. Goodwin, vice-president for community development; Ralph E. Lundgren, vice-president for education; David D. Biber, secretary and treasurer; Thomas M. Lofton, chairman of the Board of Directors; Thomas H. Lake, honorary chairman.

CORPORATIONS

FANNIE MAE FOUNDATION
4000 Wisconsin Avenue, N.W.
North Tower, Suite One
Washington 20016-2804
(202) 274-8000
http://www.fanniemaefoundation.org

Period covered: Year ending December 31, 1997.

Purposes and areas of support:

Established in 1979, the foundation is a corporate-giving arm of the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae). It works to augment housing and homeownership opportunities for low-income and underserved families and to improve living conditions and community services in communities nationwide, with a special emphasis on Washington, D.C., where its headquarters are located. It maintains regional offices in Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Philadelphia, and Pasadena, Cal.

In 1995, Fannie Mae made a $350-million contribution to the foundation in the form of Fannie Mae common stock. This enabled the foundation to expand its work on low-cost housing to encompass public-service activities, including consumer and home-buying information; to conduct housing and public-policy research; and to increase the amount of grants and program-related investments it makes.

In 1997, grants totaling $26,104,649 were paid in these areas: housing and community development received $15,833,534; quality of life, $9,061,426; and community involvement, $1,209,689.

The foundation created the $4-million Sustained Excellence Awards Program, which will honor 10 community-based organizations for their outstanding work to create low-cost housing and foster community development.

National grants included $40,000 to AIDS Housing of Washington, in Seattle, to develop and distribute information related to housing for people with AIDS.

Grants for housing and social-services projects in Washington, D.C., included $75,000 to the Gospel Mission to create transitional housing for homeless, drug-addicted women, and $15,000 to One Ministries to provide after-school and summer-employment opportunities for young people in the Shaw neighborhood.

The foundation joined with the Brookings Institution and the Enterprise Foundation to convene the first James W. Rouse Forum on the American City.

Application procedure: Contact the foundation at (202) 274-8078 for a copy of its program and application guidelines; information and grant-application forms are also available on its World-Wide Web site or via e-mail at grantapp@fanniemaefoundation.org.

Key officials: Ann Marie Wheelock, president and chief executive officer; James H. Carr, senior vice-president for innovation, research, and technology; Andrew Plepler, general counsel and senior vice-president; Diane Tomb, senior vice-president for communications; Dennis M. Corrigan, vice-president of operations; Peter Beard, vice-president for national philanthropy; Kevin Smith, vice-president for finance and operations; Anthony Tansimore, vice-president for regional and community initiatives; Lisa Williams, vice-president for Capital City initiatives; James A. Johnson, chairman of the Board of Directors.