THE PHILANTHROPIC LANDSCAPE: A REVIEW

THE PHILANTHROPIC LANDSCAPE: A REVIEW

New York Foundation Established in 1909, one of the countries oldest Heinscheimer brothers, $1 million gift Always had a particular concern for New York City Give out approximately $3.5 million a year Average grant size $40,000 Approximately 77 grantees Interest in start-up grants to untested programs that have few sources of support (helped fund the Health Insurance Plan of NY, Visiting Nurses Services, NAACP)

Number of foundations in the US 75, 187 Today 35, 765 1992 21,877 1975 23 between 1900-1909

Assets and giving Foundation assets Foundation giving 2.8% between 2007-8) 2007 $682 billion 2008 $45 billion (up Estimated decrease in assets from 2007 to 2008: 21.9 percent Gates Foundation Ford Foundation NY Community Trust $ 29B assets/$2.8b giving $ 10B assets/$474m giving $ 1.5B assets/$167m giving

Most of the philanthropic assets are held by a few foundations Less than 2/5 of all foundations held 98 percent of assets. Only 551 foundations awarded grants totally at least $ 10 million. Funders that give grants nationally or internationally are few in number (2,803), but seem so important, why? They account for 33 percent of all assets held and were responsible for 30 percent of giving.

The vast majority of the 75,000 foundations are very small 60 percent of all foundations have assets under $1 million 70,266 of 75,187 gave grants totaling $1 million or less

Local landscape In 2007, NY and California were almost tied for most grant money received Grants received NYC 13.5 percent of total Grants received CA 13.6 percent of total Though NYC had more than 8000 foundations, 2/3 of grant funds leave city Biggest Givers to NYC-groups 2008 Starr Foundation $169 million New York Community Trust $167 million Robin Hood Foundation $124 million Bloomberg Family Foundation $ 41 million Clark Foundation $24 million Altman Foundation $14 million Tiger Foundation $11 million Fox Samuels $9 million

Trends Growth in Family Foundations Increased number of intermediaries Expected transfer of wealth to next generation; more philanthropy in future Will priorities change given downturn? Have not changed in other downturns Most indicate focus on core work, not abandonment of core work Consistency is strength

How Non-Profits are faring in this climate

What we learned 65 percent had budgets under $500,000 64 percent had been in operation less than 10 years Together, groups employ about 500 people 32 staff members were laid off More than 60 percent lost foundation grants More than 20 percent lost government grants A little less than half experienced a decrease in donations from individuals 87 percent reported that demands for their programs had increased

How are grantees managing their work differently in this environment? Most have NOT eliminated programs Many have frozen salaries and reduced benefits Most have increased collaborations with other organizations 85 percent have increased reliance on volunteers 80 percent had created modified or contingency budgets More than 60 percent have seen board members more engaged in fundraising Half of the groups have increased the extent to which constituents and members are involved directly in fundraising

Other Studies Guidestar, June 2009 58 percent report increase demand for services 52 percent report decrease in contributions 37 percent reported smaller foundation grants Johns Hopkins University, June 2009 63 percent of smaller nonprofits (defined as under $500,000) reported loss of revenue (compared to 47 percent for larger organizations) Bridgespan, June 2009 Smaller nonprofits (defined in this report as less than $1 million in revenue) reported that finances worsened in the last six months. 41 percent reported cuts exceeding 20 percent of overall funding Nonprofit Finance Fund, April 2009 Most respondents non-profits less than $ 2 million operating expenses 93 percent saw increased demand for services 62 percent expect decrease of foundation funding

Proposal Writing Tips The how is more important than the why The scope of the problem has to match the solution proposed Tell a compelling story Establish your credibility Who gives you sanction to do this work? In community, with constituency In field With stakeholders What makes your program unique? Keep it simple / Be concise Avoid jargon and comments you cannot substantiate (ie: Immigrant children need to learn English. Or Its important for people to learn to use computers if they want to function in today s workforce. ) Give the reader hope!

Other Tips Show your proposal to an outsider your auto mechanic or thirteenyear-old. Remember your proposal has to appeal to a broad range of people with different areas of expertise. Not everyone will know what you re talking about. You are not the only group being considered. Your proposal is being read by program officers who: have worked in the field fund other groups that do similar work and care about the issues you care about. You re not functioning in a vacuum. Don t use the proposal to win an argument. Its more important to be clear and illustrative than to be persuasive. Program officers job is to assess how the proposal fits the foundation s guidelines and not whether or not the proposal addresses the most important problem. Good and clear program planning is more important than proposal writing.

What funders are saying about proposal writing Do your research Check website Read guidelines carefully. Look closely at grants list Kind of grant Size of grant Geographic area Contact them 85% of funder would prefer a phone call first 65% require a letter of inquiry

What funders are saying about proposal writing After rejection Send thank you Ask why turned down Don t argue After grant Send thank you Send required information Send reports on time Review the proposal and know what you are obligated to do

What funders are saying about proposal writing Proposal document - Include the basics History and purpose of organization Problem to be addressed Program description Evaluation Budget

What funders are saying about proposal writing Who else is funding the organization is important Avoid extra attachments What funders read first Cover letter Executive summary Budget What gets attention Project Who else funds it Sustainability

What funders are saying about proposal writing What to avoid No binders Error free Not sloppy To be competitive Understand grantmakers not homogeneous Build a relationship with grantmaker Think beyond the moment