August 8, 2002 | Read Time: 4 minutes
By Nicole Lewis
The percentage of women and minorities on foundation boards has grown significantly in the past
two decades, but white males still account for nearly two-thirds of all board members, according to a survey by the Council on Foundations.
From 1982 to 2000, the percentage of women on foundation boards increased from 22.6 percent to 34.4 percent, while the share of minority-group members has grown from 4.3 percent to 10.5 percent, the council estimates. According to the 2000 U.S. Census, women make up slightly more than half of the country’s population, and minorities make up about a quarter of the population.
While women and minorities are getting more board seats, the sample size of the foundation’s survey has grown over the years so the figures aren’t directly comparable. In 1982, the council examined the sex and race of 3,710 board members at 417 organizations; in 2000, it examined 8,035 at 720 foundations.
Dorothy S. Ridings, chief executive officer of the Council on Foundations, says one reason the percentage of women and minorities on boards is not greater is because board turnover takes a long time, as many board members serve multiple-year terms.
“We are all kind of impatient in terms of proportional representation of demographic groups,” she says. “We are not thrilled with them, nor are we disappointed, because they continue to move in the right direction. If they weren’t, then I would be concerned.”
The latest data on the sex and race of foundation boards are reported in Volume II of the 10th edition of the council’s “Foundation Management Series,” a three-part report that covers finances, governance, and staffing. The volume on governing boards also includes information on the structure and size of foundation boards. The report is based on a July 2000 survey of community, family, independent, and public foundations.
Private foundations made up 58.1 percent of the respondents. Community foundations, which typically raise and distribute money in a specific geographic area, represented 32.8 percent of respondents. About 9 percent of those surveyed were public foundations, which, like community foundations, receive support from many people but tend to support a variety of activities in a broad geographic area.
The foundations that participated in the survey had total assets of $130.7-billion in 1999 and made $5.6-billion in grants that year.
The Council on Foundations’ study found the presence of women on boards was highest among family foundations, at 43.3 percent, and lowest among independent foundations, at 25.6 percent. White males accounted for 59.8 percent of foundation governing boards, and white females made up 29.7 percent. Blacks constituted 6.3 percent and Hispanics 2.5 percent. The latter two figures represent a slight increase of 0.2 percent from 1997, the last time the council did the study.
In total, members of minority groups made up 10.5 percent of foundation boards, compared with 10.1 percent in 1997.
Nine percent of grant makers said they had a disabled person on their boards.
Among the survey’s other findings:
Compensation. More than one-quarter of foundations compensate board members for their service. Median annual fees for board chairs range from $9,500 to $12,750, depending on the type of foundation they head. (The median is the level at which half the numbers are higher and half are lower.) Those median fees have increased more than 50 percent since 1986, according to the study.
Among those foundations that compensate board members, more than two-thirds pay a fee per board meeting. One-third of independent foundations pay a fee per committee meeting, while nearly a quarter of family foundations do so. Independent foundations were most likely to provide compensation, while less than 1 percent of community foundations did so. In addition, nearly 40 percent reimbursed expenses related to attending board meetings.
Board size. Foundations reported an average of 11.5 board members, about the same number as in 1997. Family foundations had the lowest median size of board members, at 6, while community funds had the most, at 17.
Meetings and selection. Foundation boards met a median number of four times a year, with meetings lasting two and a half hours, the survey found. Family-foundation boards met the least often, while community-foundation boards met the most often. The survey also found that the larger the foundation’s assets, the higher the rate of board members’ attendance at meetings.
More than one-third of foundations have specific appointment criteria for an opening on the board. In general, larger foundations also have a formal selection process, which often includes the participation of a nominating committee. In addition, nearly a quarter of foundations reserve board seats for certain people, such as government officials or people who work for nonprofit organizations.
Copies of the Foundation Management Series, 10th Edition, Volume II: Governing Boards, are available from the Publications Department, Council on Foundations, P.O. Box 98293, Washington, D.C. 20090; (888) 239-5221. The price for council members is $50; the price for nonmembers is $100. Postage and handling is $7.50.
The report can also be ordered through the Council on Foundations’ Web site, http://www.cof.org.
