Author: Nielsen, Waldemar A.

Publication Year: 1971

Media Type: Book

Summary:

The writing of this book is primarily the result of a desire to produce some plain honest talk about foundations and their problems. Any one who has had the unfortunate task - or the curious taste - to read most of the material which has been available about foundations, knows that it is divided roughly into two equally tiresome parts: the self-congratulatory output of foundations themselves; and the ill-informed screeds of the Old Right on the one extreme; the New Left on the other, and the neo-Know-nothings like George Wallace in between.

Abstract:

The writing of this book is primarily the result of a desire to produce some plain honest talk about foundations and their problems. Any one who has had the unfortunate task - or the curious taste - to read most of the material which has been available about foundations, knows that it is divided roughly into two equally tiresome parts: the self-congratulatory output of foundations themselves; and the ill-informed screeds of the Old Right on the one extreme; the New Left on the other, and the neo-Know-nothings like George Wallace in between. The reality of the institution as perceived by anyone who has worked in it or who has been closely associated in it, is virtually impossible to discern in such writings. To get at this reality, however, is not easy. The reluctance - even the fear - of individuals in the tight little world of philanthropy to talk about the inner workings and problems of foundations is suggested by the number of respondents listed in the bibliography to this volume who were willing to provide data only on condition that they remain unidentified.

The second purpose has been to attempt to achieve some understanding of the nature and role of foundations in the larger context of the institutional structure of American life. In this regard, I have become increasingly impressed by the fact that important as they are in themselves, foundations are equally important for what they make it possible for us to understand about such problems as institutional relevance and adaptation; the changing relationship between government and the private sector, including profit and non-profit organizations; and the prospects for pluralism in the era of the advanced Welfare State. They also provide an unusually clear optic through which to view the values and behavior patterns of our reigning elite, namely the leaders of the business and financial community, who happen also to be the dominant forces in the governance of foundations. The picture that emerges is not necessarily pretty, but it is an important one with enormous implications for the American future.

My third objective in preparing this volume has been a highly practical one: to try, by holding a mirror up to the leading foundations, to show their trustees and officers the urgent need to initiate procedures for self-reform and self-renewal. I believe that this hope is not as vain today as it seemed two years ago when my research began. The dramatic events in Washington in connection with the passage of the 1969 Tax Reform Act have so shaken the complacency of foundation leaders that they may be finally in a mood to look candidly at themselves, and to do something about what they see.

CONTENTS
Foreword.
Preface.

Part 1. Setting and scope.

  1. Philanthropy under fire.
  2. The apex of American philanthropy.

Part 2. A gallery of portraits.

  3. Carnegie: Emergence from elitism.
  4. The formidable Rockefeller fleet.
  5. Coming of age in the Ford Foundation.
  6. Danforth and Kellogg: Fine but flawed.
  7. Surdna, Bush, Pew and Irvine: Underachievers and delinquents.
  8. The ducal DuPonts.
  9. Texas: Rich land, poor land - Moody, Houston, Richardson, and Brown.
10. Lilly, Hartford and Duke: Birds in gilded cages.
11. Sloan, Kettering, and Mott: GM's Philanthropic offspring.
12. The middling Mellons.
13. Astor, Woodruff, Kresge, Waterman and Kaiser: Philanthropy family style.
14. Fleishmann and Commonwealth: Two intriguing aberrations.
      Land: A gleam of hope.

Part 3. Patterns, processes and performance.

15. A profile of big philanthropy.
16. Public reporting: The enclave mentality.
17. The determinant internal forces: Donors, trustees, and staff.
18. Big philanthropy and the race question: a case study of performance.
19. Government and foundations: The tightening embrace of regulation.
20. Government and foundation programs: The endless, ambiguous interface.
21. Summation and assessment.
22. Epilogue: A note on the prospects for self-reform and self-renewal.

Appendix: A note on foundation investment performance.
Notes [bibliography].
Index.

Arts & Intersections:

Categories: Private Sector