For the better part of two decades, Adam Meyerson has been a powerful advocate for conservative donors, arguing for philanthropists’ right to give as they choose and the importance of honoring donor intent. At the end of May, he will step down as president of the Philanthropy Roundtable, a national membership organization for foundations, individual philanthropists, corporate giving programs, and others.
When Meyerson joined the Philanthropy Roundtable in October 2001, one month after 9/11, the organization was much smaller than it is today. He was the third president in the nonprofit’s 29-year history and is its longest-serving leader so far. Previously, he served as vice president for education affairs at the Heritage Foundation. He also worked as an editorial writer at the Wall Street Journal from 1979 to 1983 and as managing editor of American Spectator in the 1970s.
During his nearly 19-year tenure leading the Roundtable, the organization’s revenue grew from $1.8 million to $9 million, and the staff expanded from six to 30. Meyerson plans to stay on for six months to help his successor, Elise Westhoff, with the transition.
Meyerson talked to the Chronicle about what he is most proud of accomplishing during his time leading the Roundtable and where he sees philanthropy heading in the coming years.
Why is now the right time to step down, and what went into your decision?
I think of it as part of my professional obligation to do this while the organization is strong. Because we’re in a strong position and have a great reputation for our conferences — hopefully we can do conferences again — and for our publications, our services to donors, our great work on philanthropic freedom, I thought we were poised for another period of growth, and so it was good to have somebody new come in.
My departure is part of a succession-planning process. In fact, the board and I started talking about this in the fall of 2018. It was kind of a joint decision. I told them I’d work with them to try to make this succession work, and they’ve got a great successor. We have very ambitious plans for the future, and I think our best days are yet to come.
Of which programs and efforts during your tenure are you the most proud?
We’ve made an important difference in protecting philanthropic freedom: the freedom to decide how and where to give away one’s charitable gifts. Our Alliance for Charitable Reform has successfully protected philanthropic freedom against multiple legislators and regulatory threats coming from political leaders in both parties in the federal government and in a number of states.
We’ve worked to protect the freedom to support an unpopular cause or to develop an untested and unconventional hypothesis, to participate in the political debate without fear of IRS harassment, to create a family foundation that will exist in perpetuity or to spend down, to choose your grantees, including in this time of “America First” the freedom to give overseas. We’ve advanced one’s First Amendment right to give anonymously and to protect the independence and action of donors and foundations.
I think we were a key coalition partner, along with our sister organizations in philanthropy, in protecting the charitable deduction, and we still want to make that universal because charitable giving is not just for rich people; it’s for everybody. The charitable deduction is crucial to philanthropic freedom because it tells the political leaders that when you give your money to charity, that money belongs to civil society, it doesn’t belong to the government.
We’ve also had a big impact in encouraging individual givers to pay more attention to the concept of donor intent, and we played a key role in [education]. Thanks to charter schools, school choice, and other reforms made possible by philanthropy, we know that children of all races and income levels can achieve high performance when they have great teachers and when parents can select the best learning environment for their kids. There are now dozens and dozens of high-performing charter-school networks and some private-school networks for low-income children, and nobody thought that was possible before.
What about the future of philanthropy excites you?
One of the most exciting developments is the explosion of services for donors and foundations. Donors today have more choices, more information, and more analytical tools for making philanthropic decisions. There are some very high-powered organizations actively serving philanthropists. We’ve now got Arabella Advisors, Bridgespan, Goldman Sachs, Fidelity Charitable, Charter School Growth Fund. It’s making it a much more entrepreneurial, data-driven field.
The growth of donor-advised funds is just phenomenal. They simplify and democratize giving, making it much easier for smaller donors to enjoy the benefits of organized philanthropy; they’re not just for the very biggest donors.
I’m also totally fascinated by the competition among foundations now to seek outside investments. There’s always been an effort to find co-funders, but now you’ve got Blue Meridian Partners and the different aggregation funds and Pew Charitable Trusts going from a foundation to a grant-making public charity. Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors opened up its work to advising hundreds of others, and you’ve got the Koch Foundation now raising lots of money through its Stand Together Foundation for social-service organizations.
This in many ways is changing the character of philanthropy because it’s often been said that philanthropy and foundations are accountable to no one except their own boards and their own expectations. But if you’re going out trying to raise money from other funders, that gives you a kind of accountability. You have to win funders’ confidence; you have to show them the results. If you want repeat investments, you’ve got to show them what you did.
Where does philanthropy need to go in the coming years?
Philanthropy has some big opportunities over the next 10 years. One is a huge opportunity to preserve the American dream and advance upward mobility. This includes support for schools where low-income children can excel, community colleges, apprenticeships, and other programs that connect people with mid-skilled jobs, programs that help people start new businesses, especially in low-income communities, and programs that strengthen marriage and the family, which have always been connected to upward mobility.
Given the crisis that we’re in right now, philanthropy also has a crucial role in helping us prepare for future pandemics. This includes major investments in research on vaccines and therapeutic testing and the underlying science and support for our doctors, nurses, and first responders who are risking their lives and health to protect us. And also just making sure we have more capacity in the health system.
Do you have any concerns about philanthropy’s future?
I’m worried about the alarming decline in household giving to charity, even before the tax reform of 2017. That probably made it worse, but it was going on before then, and this is going to be devastating to America if it isn’t reversed. Charitable giving is essential to our character as a people, and it’s essential to our greatness as a country. It’s never been just the province of the rich, but now we’re seeing that it’s becoming more dominated by the rich. That’s a problem for our country, and it’s a problem for foundations.
At the Roundtable, we’ve grounded the defense of foundations as part of the larger culture of charitable giving, and we’ve always wanted to have the charities speak for foundations. If we’re starting to see domination by the wealthy in charitable giving, that will be unhealthy. The culture of voluntary giving has been so central to our country, and it’s very important for communities. I’m worried about what will happen in many communities across the country that have depended on giving by ordinary people.
What’s next for you?
I’m not entirely sure yet. My goal is to continue serving philanthropists, helping them strengthen their communities and expand opportunities for people of all racial and ethnic backgrounds. I don’t know what form that will take yet, but I’m not retiring. I intend to stay active in this field.
