Posted on February 2, 2007

Kresge Foundation Announces New Grantmaking Approach, Fourth-Quarter Grants

The Kresge Foundation in Troy, Michigan, has announced fourth-quarter grants totaling more than $39 million as well as a new emphasis in its approach to grantmaking.

In a letter from its president posted on its Web site, the foundation, which is known for the challenge grants it makes to organizations at the midpoint of a capital campaign, has announced that it will begin to pay more attention to an organization's mission, the community impact of its proposed project, and the broader trends at work within a field.

According to Kresge president and CEO Rip Rapson, the foundation is looking to inject values considerations directly and systematically into its deliberations. To that end, many of the grants it awarded in the fourth quarter seek to expand low-income people's access to critical services, help revitalize communities in need of investment, and encourage institutions to reach a higher level of effectiveness through innovation, collaboration, and/or risk-taking.

"We are...exploring how best to supplement our bricks and mortar emphasis to best contribute to nonprofit capacity," Rapson said. "A number of our special funding initiatives — historically black colleges and universities, green buildings, and Detroit — have suggested very powerfully that nonprofits may value other forms of support even more than capital support and that even our capital support might be more helpful if offered earlier in the campaign process, in slightly different forms, or with a reduced emphasis on predetermined rules and guidelines."

For a complete list of the foundation's fourth-quarter recipients, visit its Web site.