A question came up on the ISM Advancement listserv about foundation support as a source to secure funding for a school. There’s money out there that corporations and foundations just want to give away, right?
Well, not so much.
“Most of the gifts received by private-independent schools come from individuals or family foundations and donor-advised funds controlled by individuals. Few foundations support private-independent schools,” advised Michael Christopher, Assistant Headmaster-School Advancement, Lausanne Collegiate School (TN) and ISM Adjunct Development Consultant in our e-letter back in 2009.
He cited the 2009 Report of Voluntary Support of Education conducted by the Council for Aid to Education. He noted: “among the schools that completed their survey, only 24.2 % of their total gifts came from foundations. When you consider how much of that total was given by family foundations directed by individuals with close ties to their schools, the percentage is even lower. The same conclusion can be applied to gifts from corporations where the percentage was at a very low 4.2%.”
Barbara Barron, Advancement Consultant at Drew School (CA) echoes this. “I’ve been in this business for 12 years and can count on the fingers of one hand the number of grants I’ve secured for the private schools for whom I have worked as Director of Development. Unless there is a personal connection, very few foundations support independent schools at all anymore (and they didn’t do much of it before the economic downturn),” she said.
Personal connection is critical when it comes to family foundation support. “We have received some funding, but they are from local foundations with a particular connection to our school. Unfortunately, I haven’t had luck from anyone on the outside,” said Suzanne Wolfrom, Director of Finance & Development at All Saints Episcopal School (TX).
Barron suggests that the Edward E. Ford Foundation offers a glimmer, as its mission is to support independent school secondary education. But, “their process is quite thorough and a big investment of time… but if you can get into their cycle, it can be worthwhile,” she said.
The upshot is that grant writing can be a small part of your effort. But, it is not the best use of your time. If you want to mine foundations with a local connection, “pull the trustee lists from foundations in your area and run the names by your development committee or board. They may know someone and then can help make introduction,” Barron said.
Your time is best spent cultivating your supporters on a personal level and making those connections. Nameless, faceless entities are not your prospects. People are.
Additional ISM Resources of Interest:
ISM recorded Webinar 21st Century Schools: ISM's Advancement Model
ISM's Monthly Update for Heads, Vol. 9 No. 3 The Head’s Role in Landing—and Keeping—Major Donors
ISM's Monthly Update for Development Officers, Vol. 10 No. 1 Taking Care of Your Supporters in a Bad Economy
ISM Resources for Consortium Members:
To The Point Vol. 11 No. 10 Setting Up the 'Ideal' Development Office
