Donations Grow 4% to $373 Billion, Says ‘Giving USA’
International and education organizations fared particularly well, according to the annual report on philanthropy in America. But are there signs of slowing growth ahead?
By Timothy Sandoval
Contributor
Gifts Roundup: Old Dominion U. Gets $35 Million for New Art Museum
Plus, Oprah Winfrey donates $1 million to a Washington charity for homeless women and Craigslist founder Craig Newmark gives $1 million to support Wikipedia.
By Maria Di Mento
Senior Editor
Oprah Stuns D.C. Charity With Impromptu $1 Million Gift
The media mogul made the donation to N Street Village, which serves homeless and low-income women in Washington, while speaking at a benefit luncheon for the group Thursday, The Washington Post writes.
MacArthur’s $100 Million Contest a New Twist on ‘Big Bets’
NPR looks at the growing trend of big philanthropies putting their weight behind large-scale projects, focusing on the MacArthur Foundation’s just-launched $100 million competition seeking a solution to a major global problem.
Pittsburgh Developer Hands Over Prime Real Estate for Huge Park
Charles Betters is turning over 660 acres that was once slated to host a racetrack and casino to Pittsburgh officials, who aim to create the city’s largest swath of green space, reports the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
How an Advocacy Group Takes an All-Hands-on-Deck Approach to Big Donors
More than 60 staff members, trustees, and volunteers at Jewish Voice for Peace manage about 600 major-donor relationships in addition to other roles they play at the organization.
By Eden Stiffman
Senior Editor
MacArthur’s $100 Million Competition Won’t Be a One-Off
The foundation plans to restage the 100&Change contest — an open-ended call for proposals to solve a critical global problem — every three years, according to a Fast Company article that looks inside the grant maker’s plan.
Old Dominion University Gets $35 Million Gift for Art Museum
The museum at the Norfolk, Va., campus will house works from the collection of the donors, retired media executive Richard Barry and his wife, Carolyn, reports The Virginian-Pilot.
Gifts Roundup: $10 Million for University of La Verne, $9 Million for Rose-Hulman Institute
Other notable donations included $5 million to Temple University and a $2.9-million bequest to the Detroit Symphony Orchestra.
By Maria Di Mento
Senior Editor
Scandal Wracks Fla. Private School Funded by Koch Brother
Mining and energy magnate William Koch has fired the top official at the Florida academy he launched in 2011 amid allegations of sexual harassment, kickbacks, excessive spending, and grade-changing, The New York Times writes.
MacArthur to Give $100 Million to 1 Group to Solve 1 Big Problem
The foundation will award the grant to a nonprofit or business that offers the best idea for tackling a big problem “affecting people, places, or the planet.”
By Rebecca Koenig
Contributor
Donor-Advised Funds at Fidelity Kept Growing in 2015
The number of funds grew 11%, bringing $500 million more in giving, says Fidelity Charitable’s latest report.
By Timothy Sandoval
Contributor
Airbnb Founders Sign Giving Pledge Along With 14 Others
The new signers include a member of the Saudi royal family and the first person from mainland China to join the effort.
By Maria Di Mento
Senior Editor
Opinion: MacArthur Should Support Chicago’s Black-Led Nonprofits
The Chicago-based grant maker is failing when it comes to supporting black-led nonprofits, according to an opinion piece published by Crain’s Business Journal.
Women Primed to Give Big — if Nonprofits Are Willing to Change
Women have the wealth and ambition to be a major force in philanthropy, but charities have to recognize and respond to big changes in the demographics of donors.
By Megan O’Neil
Contributor
Here are some of the philanthropists putting their wealth, names, and smarts to work for good.
By Maria Di Mento
Senior Editor