Foundation Annual Reports

EDNA McCONNELL CLARK FOUNDATION
250 Park Avenue, Suite 900
New York, N.Y. 10177-0026
(212) 551-9100
http://www.emcf.org

Period covered: Year ending September 30, 2002.

Purpose and areas of support: The foundation was created in 1950 by Edna McConnell Clark, a daughter of the founder of the Avon Products cosmetics company, and her husband, Van Alan Clark. In 1969, the couple decided to transform the large but unstaffed foundation, doubling its endowment and delegating staffing and other foundation responsibilities to their sons, Hays, James, and Van Alan Jr.

For many years, the foundation concentrated its grant making in five areas: preventing child abuse and neglect, boosting student achievement at the middle-school level, restructuring state criminal-justice systems, rejuvenating low-income New York neighborhoods, and combating trachoma and other tropical diseases.

Over the past few years, the foundation has combined or phased out those programs, in some cases making large grants to enable other entities to continue the foundation’s work in a given field. For example, in 1998 the foundation worked with Pfizer to create the International Trachoma Initiative, an independent organization that conducts research aimed at eradicating blinding trachoma in developing countries.

Three long-standing foundation programs — children, New York neighborhoods, and student achievement — are focusing exclusively on completing projects already underway, and no new grant applications are being accepted for these programs.

The foundation currently focuses most of its grant making on efforts to strengthen selected youth-development organizations, with an emphasis on helping them provide larger numbers of disadvantaged young people with high-quality programs during nonschool hours. The geographic emphasis is on organizations located on the Eastern Seaboard.

For example, the foundation allocated $1.25-million to the BELL Foundation, in Dorchester, Mass., to implement a business plan that calls for tripling the number of youths the group serves in Boston, doubling the number of youths served in New York and Washington, strengthening the internal operations of its national and affiliate offices, and exploring the feasibility of starting up programs in eight additional cities.

Other grants included $200,000 to Asian American LEAD (Leadership Empowerment and Development) for Youth and Family, in Washington, to strengthen its management and operations, including technological infrastructure and staff training.

Application procedure: The foundation relies primarily on nominations by colleagues and advisers in the field of youth development to identify organizations that seem likely to meet its grant-making guidelines. Although it is not currently accepting unsolicited proposals, the foundation does encourage any interested youth-serving group to visit its Web site and to complete an online survey about the group’s activities and programs and the young people it serves. A staff member will contact the group if the foundation determines that there is a potential match between itself and the organization. In general, the foundation does not consider proposals for capital support, endowments, deficit operations, scholarships, or grants to individuals.

Key officials: Michael A. Bailin, president; Nancy Roob, vice president, youth development/institution and field building; David E.K. Hunter, director, office of evaluation and knowledge development; M. Hayes Mizell, director, program for student achievement; Bruce S. Trachtenberg, director, office of communications; Ralph Stefano, director, finance and administration; Jamie McAuliffe and Woodrow C. McCutchen, portfolio managers; James McConnell Clark Jr., chair of the Board of Trustees.

FOUNDATION FOR THE CAROLINAS

217 South Tryon Street
Charlotte, N.C. 28202
(704) 973-4500
http://www.fftc.org

Period covered: Year ending December 31, 2002.

Purpose and areas of support: This community foundation was created in 1958; it was originally called the United Community Foundation and made grants only for projects in Charlotte and surrounding Mecklenburg County, N.C. In 1984, the organization changed its name to the Foundation for the Carolinas, and now serves 13 counties in North and South Carolina. It manages approximately 1,500 constituent funds, including 85 funds established in 2002.

Through regional affiliate funds, the foundation serves the following areas in North Carolina: Cabarrus, Cleveland, Iredell, Lincoln, Mecklenburg, Richmond, Stanly, and Union Counties and the cities of Lexington and Salisbury. It reaches Cherokee, Lancaster, and York Counties in South Carolina. Collectively, the counties are clustered in southwestern North Carolina and in the adjacent northern part of South Carolina.

In 2002, the foundation distributed grants totaling $32,312,715 in the following program areas: education, which received $11,-454,491, or 35.4 percent of total dollars; religion, $6,163,429, or 19.1 percent; human services, $4,-985,075, or 15.4 percent; the environment and historic preservation, $3,694,586, or 11.4 percent; public and civic affairs, $2,108,-182, or 6.5 percent; health, $1,-763,899, or 5.5 percent; the arts, $1,542,453, or 4.8 percent; youths, $373,130, or 1.1 percent; and senior citizens, $227,470, or 0.8 percent.

Education-related grants included $62,940 to the Family Center, in Charlotte, for a 10-week course designed to strengthen family relationships and to increase parents’ involvement in their children’s preschool education.

Other grants included $50,000 to the Richmond County Hospice, in Rockingham, N.C., to construct a new residential hospice facility and an administrative center, and $2,380 to the Boys & Girls Clubs of Cherokee County, in Gaffney, S.C., to purchase a sound system and wireless microphones for its drama program.

The foundation directly manages 22 scholarship programs and oversees the administration of 53 others. In 2002, the programs cumulatively allocated $1.3-million to support 673 students.

The foundation also provides administrative services to five supporting foundations: the Foundation for the Arts & Sciences, the Foundation for the Charlotte Jewish Community, the Antonio and Zaydee Lopez-Ibanez Foundation, the Turner Family Foundation, and the United Way Legacy Foundation.

The newest, the Foundation for the Arts & Sciences, was created in 2002 by the Arts & Science Council of Charlotte-Mecklenburg. It will support the council’s 28 members, which include arts, history, and science organizations.

Application procedure: The foundation offers various competitive-grants programs to which nonprofit groups may apply. Detailed application and deadline information is available at the foundation’s Web site.

Key officials: Michael Marsicano, chief executive officer and president; Laura L. Meyer, executive vice president; McCray V. Benson and Donald K. Jonas, senior vice presidents, community philanthropy; Jenene H. Seymour, senior vice president, scholarships; C. Barton Landess, senior vice president, development and planned giving; Judy L. Kerns, senior vice president, finance; Charity L. Perkins, vice president, communications; Holly K. Welch, vice president, client services; Peter B. Ridder, chair of the Board of Directors.

McCORMICK TRIBUNE FOUNDATION

435 North Michigan Avenue, Suite 770
Chicago, Ill. 60611
(312) 222-3512
http://www.rrmtf.org

Period covered: Year ending December 31, 2002.

Purpose and areas of support: The foundation was established as a charitable trust in 1955 upon the death of Col. Robert R. McCormick. He served for many years as editor and publisher of the Chicago Tribune, and developed the Tribune Company from a single newspaper into a major media organization comprising newspapers, radio and television stations, and other entities.

The foundation makes grants in four major program areas: citizenship, communities, education, and journalism.

In 2002, it paid out grants totaling $98,635,246. Of that, the communities program received the majority, making grants totaling $58,526,401. The communities program seeks to spur charitable giving and social and economic improvement in 29 U.S. cities by matching funds raised by 44 designated partners in those cities, including newspapers, radio and television stations, sports teams, and other local organizations. Those partners in turn make grants to support local services, including those related to at-risk children and youths, education, elderly people, health, hunger, literacy, sports and recreation, and violence prevention.

Almost half of program dollars went for community activities in Chicago and Denver, which respectively received $12,973,522 and $12,274,662. Awards included $110,000 through Cubs Care to the Chicago Park District for a rookie baseball league, and $25,-000 through the Denver Broncos Charities Fund to Adams Community Mental Health Center for an early-intervention mental-illness program for uninsured young children and their families.

The citizenship program seeks to engage young people in civic activities, strengthen nonprofit organizations, honor patriotism and military service, and facilitate discussions of key issues affecting the nation’s future. With respect to the latter activity, seven conferences were held as part of the Cantigny Conference Series. The conferences — which covered such topics as election reform, globalization, and international security — are held at Cantigny, Col. McCormick’s former estate in suburban Chicago.

The education program focuses on improving opportunities for infants and young children who live in impoverished Chicago neighborhoods. Grant making emphasizes increasing the number of accredited preschool programs serving those neighborhoods, enhancing the professional skills of preschool program directors and teachers, expanding public awareness of the importance of high-quality early education, and improving public policy related to these issues.

Awards included $1,220,000 to the Chicago-based Big Shoulders Fund as part of a five-year effort to accredit 30 preschools in inner-city Chicago and to reaccredit 62 additional facilities.

The journalism program promotes effective leadership at news organizations, increased diversity in journalism, freedom of expression, and well-informed coverage of national-security issues.

For example, the International Women’s Media Foundation, in Washington, received $75,000 for leadership-development seminars.

The Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University, in Evanston, Ill., received $1.6-million as part of a multiyear $14.1-million grant made in 1998 to construct, renovate, and equip its facilities.

Application procedure: The foundation’s communities program makes grants only through its designated community partners. Applicants should contact their local participating broadcast, newspaper, or sports group; a list of these groups is available on the foundation’s Web site. Prospective applicants for grants from the citizenship, education, or journalism programs should send the foundation a letter of inquiry of two pages or less describing the name, purpose, and costs of the proposed project. The letter should also outline the need for the project and the organization’s qualifications for completing it. Foundation staff members will respond to the letter of inquiry and help the organization determine whether to submit a full proposal. The foundation’s Web site provides details and examples of current grant-making priorities.

Key officials: Richard A. Behrenhausen, president and chief executive officer; David L. Grange, executive vice president and chief operating officer; Nicholas Goodban, senior vice president, philanthropy; Louis J. Marsico Jr., vice president, finance and administration; David Anderson, director of development; Holly Simpson, communications manager; John W. Madigan, chairman of the Board of Directors.

Program directors: Catherine Brown (communities), Wanda Newell (education), John Sirek (citizenship), Vivian Vahlberg (journalism).