‘Town & Country’: Women and Their Philanthropy

As women control a larger and larger share of the nation’s wealth, they are becoming more independent of the fathers, husbands, and male trustees who previously made key decisions about philanthropic giving, says Town & Country magazine (December).

To look at the different styles of female donors, the magazine offered several examples:

• Sheila C. Johnson, who co-founded Black Entertainment Television, is a former music teacher who focuses her contributions on the arts and education. Last year, she gave $7-million to the Parsons School of Design, in New York. Ms. Johnson recommends getting outside advice about the effectiveness of grant applicants and “insists that her accountant review the financial statements of every organization she considers,” says the magazine.
• Nancy Bagley, an heir to the R.J. Reynolds tobacco fortune, works full time as vice president of the Arca Foundation, a grant maker dedicated to social equity and justice that her grandmother founded. Ms. Bagley says that she gives at least 10 percent of her income to charity each year.
• Rona Jaffe and Sara Paretsky, both best-selling novelists, make grants to other writers who are women. Ms. Jaffe’s foundation also pays for publicity efforts for the writers and helps them meet literary agents and book publishers. Ms. Paretsky also gives to Chicago groups that support women in the arts, sports, and sciences.