HERE’S WHAT ELSE YOU NEED TO KNOW
The Carnegie Corporation of New York has chosen the head of Oxford University as its new president.
Louise Richardson, an expert in international terrorism and a decade-long trustee of the philanthropy, will succeed Vartan Gregorian, who died unexpectedly last April.
Richardson is the first woman to lead the foundation but otherwise is a conventional choice who plans to keep the focus of the $4.7 billion philanthropy on education and peace, reports Alex Daniels.
Nevertheless, she will energize the institution and bring a “new spark,” New York University scholar Ellen Condliffe Lagemann told Alex.
“Every change is an inflection point for an institution,” Richardson told Alex. “And the arrival of a new person, of course, injects some dynamism into an organization. It’s an opportunity for the organization to re-examine itself.”
Community foundations are bickering over a bill that would move money more quickly from grant makers and donor-advised funds to working charities.
Currently, people who give to donor-advised funds can take an immediate tax deduction with no required timetable to move the money to a working charity.
The Accelerating Charitable Efforts Act, a bipartisan proposal, would require that money be granted within 15 years for the donor to get the full tax deduction and would impose other restrictions. But it also includes exceptions for community foundations, intended to win their support, writes Dan Parks.
It has nonetheless rattled some community-foundation leaders, who say it would hamper their ability to attract donors and help their communities and would create a divide between different kinds of donor-advised fund sponsors. Others say opponents are using “scare tactics” and spreading misinformation.
The next decade could herald sweeping changes in philanthropy.
That’s one scenario that emerged from a project in which Deloitte consultants asked more than 200 philanthropy leaders, donors, and others what they thought the next decade holds.
Some conversations conjured a future with more innovation and agility, sharing power and endowments with marginalized communities, and shedding “advisory councils” in favor of “accountability councils,” wrote Deloitte’s Gabriel Kasper, Justin Marcoux, and Jennifer Holk in an opinion essay.
But other leaders doubted much would change, citing massive wealth and permanent endowments that keep grant makers insulated from adversity. The authors don’t expect big changes right away but have hope. “There’s value in commitment and consistency amid dynamism,” they wrote. “But many of the big shifts now buffeting the world will be hard to ignore, even for philanthropy.”
Basic-needs charities that have lost some of the big supporters they had during the worst of the pandemic can get them back.
Clear communications and straight talk about a nonprofit’s needs still resonate — even with donors who feel exhausted by crises and overwhelmed by solicitations, successful fundraisers and others told Maria Di Mento.
“What they want to hear now is how you are effectively going out and making a difference for people in the community,” said Amy Basore Murphy, who works with affluent donor-advised fund holders at the St. Louis Community Foundation. “The [nonprofits] that can figure out that message and how to convey it are the ones that are continuing to receive funding from their biggest donors.”
If you don’t have a lot of time this weekend, we recommend two articles that will give you just the uplift you need as you cook, travel, or otherwise prepare for the Thanksgiving break.
Nicole Wallace reported that officials from the Bush and Obama administrations have created a new organization, Welcome.US, which aims to make it easier for people and businesses to plug into efforts to welcome Afghan refugees to the United States. Meanwhile, Glenn Gamboa, one of our partners at the Associated Press, reports on how DoorDash is donating its delivery technology to help food banks become more efficient.
We’ll take a hiatus from this newsletter next Saturday because of the holiday but we have one more recommendation: Sign up now for a powerful session on leadership we’re holding on December 8.
Nancy Koehn, a Harvard business professor who studies what makes leaders great, will talk with Phil Buchanan, president of the Center for Effective Philanthropy, and Stacy Palmer. This free conversation will provide you with insights on how to stay energized after more than 18 months of crisis leadership – and how to continue to lead with courage and conviction.
We hope you get a chance to take a few days off ahead of the busy year-end giving and grant-making season. We’ll be back in your inbox on December 4.
All our good wishes,
— Marilyn Dickey and Stacy Palmer