Excellence in Philanthropy
New U.
It is remarkable that, in survey after survey, at least 10 of the world’s 20 best universities bear the names of private American citizens who have used their wealth to create world-class institutions of higher learning. Private, voluntary support has long been a source of great strength for American higher education. In our Spring 2012 cover story, managing editor Evan Sparks highlights three donors and the universities they recently created: the F. W. Olin College of Engineering, Ave Maria University, and Harrisburg University of Science and Technology.
William E. Simon Prize for Philanthropic Leadership
The William E. Simon Prize for Philanthropic Leadership honors living philanthropists who have shown exemplary leadership through their charitable giving. Read more about the Simon prize and past winners here.
Summa Cum Philanthropy
Giving to universities can be tricky. They are complicated entities, with a range of (often conflicting) missions. Donor advisor Fred Fransen offers 11 tips for how to give intelligently to higher education.
Educating a Nation
Juan Williams of Fox News reviews a new book on the historic collaboration between Julius Rosenwald and Booker T. Washington. Together, the two men—one the leader of Sears Roebuck; the other, a former slave—built more than 5,000 schools for African Americans throughout the segregated South. Read Williams’ review of “You Need a Schoolhouse” by Stephanie Deutsch.
Spartan Donors
Great military leaders. That’s not the only thing that donors to West Point, Annapolis, and Colorado Springs get for their money. Karl Zinsmeister asks philanthropists what they hope to encourage by sending private support to these public institutions.
Back to the Drawing Board
Jeff Sandefer is on a mission to reinvent the MBA. A decade ago, he co-founded the Acton School of Business, which offers a crash-course MBA in entrepreneurship. After its first year, the Princeton Review ranked Acton as one of the nation’s top three business schools in terms of student quality, teacher quality, and overall experience. Ten years later, Sandefer is thinking about the next revolution: how to take the Acton experience and deliver it online.
Philanthropy on Campus
Private support for higher education is one of the great achievements of American philanthropy. Check out the Spring 2012 issue of Philanthropy magazine dedicated to donors advancing higher education through their giving and browse this special collection of higher education features from our archives.
Stopping the Slaughter
Meet the philanthropist who is protecting Africans from Joseph Kony. Our exclusive story describes how Houston investor John Montgomery is pursuing an audacious goal for private philanthropy: Ending genocide.
Lending a Hand
Dale Dawson is helping rebuild Rwanda, one small loan at a time. It all started a decade ago when a Rwandan Anglican bishop challenged Dawson: “You’re a businessman. You’ve built businesses. Why don’t you build businesses in Rwanda?” Since then, Dawson has dedicated his life to helping impoverished Rwandans save money and pursue entrepreneurship.
Resolved:
Robert Rosenkranz was frustrated by the echo chambers he found among people on both right and left. His idea: elevated, erudite debates between two evenly matched sides. The result: Intelligence Squared, a high-quality debate series in which the two sides try to persuade the audience—not grandstand for those who already agree with them.
Symposium on Giving to Arts and Culture
What are the secrets of excellent giving to the arts? America’s top arts donors—including Adrienne Arsht, David Bohnett, Jay Kislak, David Koch, and Laurie Tisch—reveal what donors don’t know about giving to the arts, their favorite hidden gems, and how to make a really smart grant to the arts.
Market-Based Man
Our cover story is a profile of Charles G. Koch, winner of the 2011 William E. Simon Prize for Philanthropic Leadership. There is an essential unity to Mr. Koch's life, work, and philanthropy. All three are born of his trademarked business philosophy, Market-Based Management, which harnesses the forces that allow free markets to flourish and applies them to individual groups. Those principles have helped make Koch Industries the second-largest privately held corporation in America—and led to the creation of (among others) the Institute for Humane Studies, the Cato Institute, the Mercatus Center, Youth Entrepreneurs, the Bill of Rights Institute, and the Koch Associate Program. Read James K. Glassman's article on Mr. Koch here.
Racing for the Cure
Nancy Brinker spoke with Philanthropy magazine last fall about her urgent mission to end breast cancer. Driven by a promise made to her sister, Susan G. Komen, Amb. Brinker launched a worldwide movement to fight breast cancer through research, education, screening, and prevention. Read more about her mission and her race against the clock.
Seven Myths about the Great Philanthropists
Andrew Carnegie, John D. Rockefeller, and their contemporaries are among the greatest and most misunderstood philanthropists of modern times. Far from being robber barons, they inaugurated a golden age of American philanthropy at the turn of the 20th century. The achievements of these great business leaders are often unfairly maligned. It is time to set the record straight.
