Michael J. Fox’s charity aims to cure Parkinson’s disease In the five years since the actor Michael J. Fox became a charity leader, his organization has distributed ALSO SEE:Research Charities Weigh Benefits, Risks of Embryonic Stem-Cell Grants more than $50-million to fuel scientific study of the…
By BRENNEN JENSEN
Contributor
Museum to Receive New Guinea Art
The de Young Museum, in San Francisco, has announced that John and Marcia Friede plan to donate their collection of New Guinea art, estimated to be worth more than $100-million. The collection of nearly 3,000 pieces includes carved figures, masks, shields, and other objects dating from prehistoric…
By Caroline Preston
Contributor
Nevada University to Receive $25-Million; Other New Gifts
Three higher-education institutions have received big gifts: William S. Boyd has pledged $25-million to the law school at the University of Nevada at Las Vegas. Mr. Boyd, a former lawyer, is chairman of the Boyd Gaming Corporation, in Las Vegas. Brown University, in Providence, R.I., has received…
A New Type of Charity Gift: Social Security Checks
As President Bush pushes for changes in the Social Security system, some retired people are encouraging affluent elderly people to donate their benefit checks to charity. Jerry Conover, 71, a lawyer in Denver, decided to start donating his own Social Security checks to charity in 2002 and is now…
By M.J. Prest
Senior Editor, Solutions
Lawsuit Against Northwest Area Fund Proceeds
A U.S. appeals court in Seattle reinstated a $1.25-million lawsuit against the Northwest Area Foundation last month, saying residents of a county in eastern Washington State can pursue one part of their case against the grant maker, which is located in St. Paul. The residents sued the foundation in…
By Ian Wilhelm
Contributor
How The Chronicle’s Survey of Foundation Assets and Giving Was Compiled
The Chronicle’s annual survey of the nation’s largest private foundations is based on financial information provided by 147 grant makers. Among the 142 foundations that provided ALSO SEE:DATABASE: Giving trends at big foundationsARTICLE: Foundations Inch Up GivingARTICLE: Tobacco Road Block: The…
By Cassie J. Moore
Contributor
Big Foundations Spent 16 Cents on Overhead for Every Dollar Given Away
While most foundations in The Chronicle’s survey reported a growth in assets, many of them plan to keep their ALSO SEE:DATABASE: Giving Trends at Big FoundationsARTICLE: Foundations Inch Up GivingARTICLE: Tobacco Road Block: The Impact of a Grant to Stop Kids From Smoking administrative costs trim…
By Cassie J. Moore and Ian Wilhelm
Size of Median Grants at Big Foundations
2004 2003 Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation (San Francisco) $1,318,890 $505,000 Robert W. Woodruff Foundation (Atlanta) 1,000,000 1,000,000 Broad Foundation (Los Angeles) 846,000 n/a Edna McConnell Clark Foundation (New York) 1 750,000 980,000 J. Bulow Campbell Foundation (Atlanta) 500,000 n/a…
Assets grew last year, but grants won’t increase significantly(The original version of this article, as published in the March 17 issue, contained incorrect numbers for the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. This article has been revised to reflect the new data, which shows that the foundation’s assets…
By Ian Wilhelm
Contributor
Assets grew last year, but grants won’t increase significantlyAs the stock market grew steadily for the second consecutive year in 2004, the assets of many of the nation’s wealthiest private foundations increased modestly, a new Chronicle survey has found. But ALSO SEE: DATABASE: Giving Trends at…
By Ian Wilhelm
Contributor
Dallas Art Museum Receives $245-Million From 3 Couples
A group of longtime contributors to the Dallas Museum of Art have pledged their private collections to the ALSO SEE:The Giving Spree institution, a windfall that includes more than 800 works by modern and contemporary masters such as Marcel Duchamp, Willem de Kooning, Mark Rothko, and Cy Twombly.…
By Caroline Preston
Contributor
$25-Million Pledged to Alfred University in New York; Other New Gifts
Six institutions have received big gifts: Marlin Miller Jr. and his wife, Regina, have pledged $25-million to Alfred University, in New York, for its endowment. The money is earmarked for the university’s visual- and performing-arts programs, and will be used to establish up to six professorships,…
Popularity of ‘Giving Circles’ Continues to Grow, Report Says
Since 1990, $44-million has been raised by groups of people around the country who pool contributions and collectively figure out how best to give them away, according to a new report. Researchers identified 220 “giving circles” in 39 states and the District of Columbia and received responses to…
By nicole lewis
Contributor