In this article, the author features the George Lucas Education Foundation (GLEF) and its Edutopia initiatives. The George Lucas Educational Foundation, the 19-year-old organization that runs Edutopia, has given itself a mission to "spread the word about ideal, interactive learning environments and enable others to adapt these successes locally."…

In the last year, advocacy groups have churned out reports on how all kinds of students--those who work, are minorities, attend less-selective colleges, or come from low-income families--struggle in higher education. They have talked about the needs of the modern workforce, and how the United States is falling behind. All coalesced around the same…

Education programs are increasingly appealing to all types of funders and should not be overlooked in a museum's fundraising efforts. The economy and the rise of private family and corporate foundations make funders more and more interested in the enhanced and lasting impact museums can make in their communities. (Contains 4 notes.)

After Dr. Larry Earvin became Huston-Tillotson University president, he crafted an annual black-tie gala to raise scholarship funds. Despite the country's economic doldrums, Earvin's event this year netted proceeds pushing the cumulative total since 2004 to more than $1 million. When Beverly Hogan became Tougaloo College president, she urged…

Tuition fees and the use of student loans to complement government's allocations have become unavoidable because of increasing competing new priorities for funding. This article addresses the funding sources of public higher education through tuition and loans. We explore the effects of shifts from first-stream income (government appropriations)…

The society is engaged in an exploration with The Getty Grant Foundation regarding a partnership to, among other things, create useful and accessible resources and tools to encourage the preservation of heritage buildings, sites, and landscapes. SCUP charter member and prolific author, Richard P. ("Dick") Dober, is one of those advising SCUP as it…

Although support for K-12 education has long been a priority for philanthropic organizations, foundations are increasingly choosing to play a leading role in fostering the development and implementation of new policies designed to reform K-12 education. This article is an effort to understand the strategies and tactics employed by foundations…

School districts face numerous obstacles when writing grant applications. One may consider starting his own grant writing guide as a way to increase his chances of success with any funding agency. In this article, the author lists steps and provides sample writing tips on how to create a grant writing guide that will help an application stand out.…

Chicago has become a hotbed of "venture philanthropy" in education, as two local foundations contribute not only money, but also the hands-on work of some of the city's wealthiest and most influential residents, to help improve the schools in the nation's third-largest district. These two venture-philanthropy funds consist of the…

This article reports that the recession tearing into the U.S. economy is not only straining the public coffers that support K-12 schooling, it's also taking a toll on education philanthropy. From family foundations to corporate philanthropies, charitable giving to K-12 education appears to be facing a downturn. Although no national figures are…

For more than a decade, the Evelyn and Walter Haas, Jr. Fund has seeded many San Francisco Bay Area youth organizing and advocacy programs. Now that the field is maturing, argues the fund's vice president of programs, foundations have a critical programmatic and capacity-building role to play. The author offers analysis and strategies for…

The psychology behind getting the big gift and making "the ask" for it was a major topic at Fund Raising Day in New York 2008, which drew representatives from across the nonprofit world, including charities, hospitals, colleges, and museums. Laura Fredricks, who was vice president for philanthropy at Pace University from 2002 until earlier this…

In 2005, the school choice movement lost one of its leading champions when John T. Walton, an heir to the Wal-Mart retailing fortune, died in a plane crash at age 58. Advocates of expanded educational options say Mr. Walton, more than anyone else, was the driving force behind the Walton Family Foundation's education work, and its focus on…

Soon after Jamie P. Merisotis took over the Lumina Foundation for Education last year, he began talking about a "big goal." America must increase the proportion of its population with degrees or credentials to 60% by 2025, in order to remain globally competitive and meet the nation's growing demand for college-educated workers, he said.…

Grant programs that had been relatively open-ended were now tightly drawn, grounded in the foundations' own carefully articulated take on issues and receptive only to proposals that responded appropriately. Initiative and creativity had shifted heavily from prospective grantee to grantor. As foundations embraced this funding-by-agenda, it burdened…