A Quick Introduction to Philanthropy in Minnesota

May 9, 2013
MCF President Bill King on Comcast Newsmakers

MCF President Bill King on Comcast Newsmakers

If you work in philanthropy, you know it can be difficult to succinctly summarize the various foundation types, the range of corporate giving initiatives, how grantmakers determine which nonprofits to support, how individual contributions fit into the giving picture and what role MCF plays in any or all of it.

Recently, MCF’s president Bill King did this in a 4-minute Comcast Newsmakers segment.

If you know a foundation staff person who could use some information on how MCF can help them connect with other Minnesota grantmakers or someone who just wants an introduction to philanthropy in Minnesota, have them watch.

Watch the video on the Comcast Newsmakers website.

Newsmakers also airs at :24 and :54 minutes after the hour on CNN Headline News, middays Monday to Friday, and weekends during morning and early afternoon hours.

If you’re a Comcast digital cable customer, Newsmakers is also a regular feature of Comcast’s Twin Cities-based Local On Demand content. (From Comcast’s On Demand homepage, choose the Get Local tab, then the Newsmakers tab.)

Did you learn anything when you watched? Let us know what surprised you about giving in Minnesota!

- Susan Stehling, MCF communications associate

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Celebrate National Philanthropy Day on Friday

November 12, 2012

This Friday, Nov. 16, AFP Minnesota, in partnership with GiveMN, will honor five local individuals and organizations as part of National Philanthropy Day. Tickets are still available for the awards luncheon, set for 11 a.m. Friday at the Minneapolis Marriott City Center.

In addition to four major awardees, GiveMN will announce the winner of two $10,000 Supersized Golden Tickets and announce the winner of a new fundraising award as part of Give to the Max Day 2012, which is Thursday, Nov. 15.

Each of these honorees has demonstrated exceptional leadership and generosity of time and resources to encourage and advance philanthropy in our community:

For more information, contact AFP Minnesota: 952.928.4645 or info@afpminnesota.org. Or visit: afpminnesota.org/philanthropyday.

Cathy Wurzer, Minnesota Public Radio host, will emcee the awards luncheon. This year’s event is generously sponsored by Abbott Northwestern Hospital Foundation Penny George Institute for Health and Healing, Marriott Minneapolis City Center, Breck School, University of Minnesota Center for Spirituality & Healing, Hansen Henley Yoder & Lamb, Minnesota Philanthropy Partners and StoryTeller Media & Communications.

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Minnesota’s Thriving Community Spirit

November 7, 2012

When you pick up the Star Tribune in print or visit it online today, don’t miss the special Giving Back feature. It includes an article by MCF’s Susan Stehling that focuses on the many contributions community foundations make to Minnesota’s quality of life.

Minnesota is home to 88 community and public foundations, all with different missions, but “their essence is fostering philanthropy to improve quality of life.” Among them:

  • The Minneapolis Foundation, highlighted in the article for its community impact strategy of transforming Minneapolis’s education landscape to close persistent achievement gaps.
  • The country’s first statewide women’s foundation, the Women’s Foundation of Minnesota, which provides resources for women and girls to break down local barriers to equality.
  • The six Minnesota Initiative Foundations, created by The McKnight Foundation in 1986 to strengthen communities and economies across Minnesota. In that time they’ve granted $120.4 million to community nonprofits and made $174.5 million in business loans.

As these and other community foundations remind us, philanthropy isn’t just for the very rich, it’s about neighbors helping neighbors and members of a community banding together for the greater good of all.

After you’re done reading about Minnesota’s philanthropic community spirit, have a look at the other Giving Back stories, including pieces on the surging popularity of online donations and profiles of four individuals making a difference in their own unique ways. And head over to MCF’s Giving in Minnesota page for our latest research on how community foundations and others are contributing to the state.

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Congrats to These Ideal Employers — All MCF Members!

May 25, 2012

Target, Mayo Clinic, General Mills, Best Buy, 3M, Ecolab and Cargill are among the nation’s “ideal employers,” according to a survey of college students looking to join the U.S. work force.

At the Minnesota Council on Foundations, we don’t think it’s a coincidence that these seven companies are also all MCF members. Employees value employers that care about the communities where they live and work.

The ranking—compiled by global research and consulting firm Universum Communications—is based on input from nearly 60,000 students at 318 U.S. colleges. The survey was conducted between November 2011 and March 2012, and the rankings are broken down based by students’ primary areas of study.

Minneapolis-based Target Corporation ranked 18th among humanities and liberal arts students, 28th among business students, 37th among natural sciences students and 70th among IT students.

Rochester-based Mayo Clinic was the only health care provider to make the cut. It ranked second among natural science students, 19th among humanities and liberal arts students, 44th among engineering students, and 70th among business students.

Golden Valley-based General Mills came in 52nd among natural sciences students, 66th among engineering students, 75th among business students, and 88th among humanities and liberal arts students.

Richfield-based Best Buy Company was ranked 43rd by IT students, 69th by humanities and liberal arts students, 85th by natural sciences students, and 87th by business students.

Maplewood-based 3M Company came in 35th on the engineering students list, 75th on the IT students list, and 92nd on the business students list.

St. Paul-based Ecolab ranked 23rd among natural science students and 88th among engineering students.

And Wayzata-based Cargill was ranked 83rd by natural science students.

View Universum Communications’ complete Ideal Employers lists for each area of study.

- Susan Stehling, MCF communications associate

Photo cc Herkie

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Evaluation — Check-up or Final Exam?

April 3, 2012

For some time, pressure has been building for philanthropists to prove their money helps society. The call for accountability has inevitably led to increased calls for evaluation. According to an article in today’s Chronicle of Philanthropy (subscription required), approaches to evaluation and its results range radically.

Evaluation best-case scenario: Positive findings after a rigorous evaluation lead to program duplication and more people benefit.

Evaluation worst-case scenario: Evaluation busywork burdens charities and produces research that ends up collecting dust.

According to several evaluation experts quoted in the article, here are three ideas to get you thinking and moving toward evaluation excellence.

  • Survey people with expertise in a specific cause — before a program is adopted – to predict program success.
  • Combine quantitative analysis with qualitative feedback. Talk to recipients of services. What do they think?
  • View evaluation as a check-up, rather than a final exam, and use the results to make course corrections.

This last point may be the most important. Ideally, evaluation provides data and information to help organizations learn and improve. If presented that way — rather than as a test to pass or fail — there will likely be more willing participants in the process.

To learn much more, grantmakers can register for MCF’s program Determining Impact with Evaluative Thinking, part of MCF’s Effective Grantmaking Series. The program will address how grantmakers can begin to adopt an evaluative culture, with built-in assessment of their work and that of their grantees.

What types of evaluation do you use? What works? Share your thoughts here.

- Susan Stehling, MCF communications associate

Photo CC prettydaisies

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Yes, We DO Know: Minnesotans Are Generous!

November 16, 2011

Give to the Max Day seems like the perfect time for the Star Tribune’s Guide to Giving Back to hit the streets. This special feature includes MCF research on where Minnesota’s charitable giving comes from. It also features highlights from our donor toolkit on ways to give, whether that means giving directly, through the workplace, through a community foundation, or though planned giving.

And don’t miss the What Gives, Minnesota? feature, reflecting on why Minnesotans rank near the top of national charts on giving their time and money. Reporter Jean Hopfensperger reflects that a reputation for giving goes back to some of the early pioneering Minnesotans, like William McKnight, an early leader of 3M who went on to found The McKnight Foundation, and George Dayton, who founded what would become Target Corporation and the Target Foundation. The McKnight Foundation and Target Foundation, both MCF members, are now two of the largest foundations in the state.

Be sure to look for the section on giving in today’s edition of the Star Tribune! You can also find all of the articles on their website.

-Chris Oien, web communications associate

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OneMinneapolis Report Shines a Light on Inequities

October 5, 2011

A new OneMinneapolis report commissioned by MCF member The Minneapolis Foundation contains a lot of new information on racial and ethnic disparities within the city of Minneapolis. Through the use of Community Indicators, the report highlights areas of highest risk as well as some bright spots.

Among the report’s top notes of concern:

  • Only 29% of children who speak Spanish at home were ready for kindergarten, compared to 70% of students overall.
  • Hispanic, multiracial, and Black low-income households in Minneapolis are the least likely to have affordable
    housing, with fewer than 2 in 10 paying housing costs considered reasonable.
  • More than half of all the American Indian, Asian, and Black children living in Minneapolis are in
    poverty.
  • Minority groups make up 40% of Minneapolis’s population but only 17% of its workforce.

While we reflect on these large disparities and how to address them, it is also worth noting the more positive indicators. Some good news:

  • 76% of children speaking Somali at home were ready for kindergarten, above the city average.
  • Hispanic and African students in Minneapolis Public Schools are most likely to report that their teachers make them want to learn.
  • Parent satisfaction with their children’s schools was high across all racial and ethnic groups, ranging from 71% of American Indian parents to 84% of Hispanic parents.

The full report is available on The Minneapolis Foundation website. It has also been picked up by Minnesota Public Radio and the Star Tribune.

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