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| The Foundation does not accept applications or grant interviews. The foundation relies on anonymous nominators, who submit recommendations to a small selection committee of about a dozen people. The committee then reviews every applicant and passes along their recommendations to the President and the board of directors. The entire process is anonymous and confidential. The first time that a new MacArthur Fellow learns that he or she was even being considered is upon receiving a phone call telling him or her the news of the award. | The Foundation does not accept applications or grant interviews. The foundation relies on anonymous nominators, who submit recommendations to a small selection committee of about a dozen people. The committee then reviews every applicant and passes along their recommendations to the President and the board of directors. The entire process is anonymous and confidential. The first time that a new MacArthur Fellow learns that he or she was even being considered is upon receiving a phone call telling him or her the news of the award. | ||
| ] of ] is credited with conceiving of the idea for the MacArthur Fellow program.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Morse Wooster|first1=Martin|title=The MacArthur Mistake|url=https://www.commentarymagazine.com/article/the-macarthur-mistake/|accessdate=12 June 2015|publisher=Commentary|date=December 1, 2010}}</ref> | |||
| ], a founding member of the board of directors and Chairman of the Board until his death, suggested that the MacArthur Foundation create the Fellows Program. He credited his doctor, ] of ], for bringing this idea to his attention. | |||
| ==See also== | ==See also== | ||
Revision as of 19:23, 12 June 2015
 | |
| Founded | 1978 |
|---|---|
| Focus | Public policy, media, the arts |
| Location | |
| Key people | John D. MacArthur (co-founder) Catherine T. MacArthur (co-founder) |
| Endowment | $6.32 billion (2013) |
| Website | www |
The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation is the 10th largest private foundation in the United States. Its grant-making primarily supports politically liberal causes. Based in Chicago, the Foundation supports non-profit organizations in approximately 50 countries. MacArthur has awarded more than US$5.5 billion since its inception in 1978. With an endowment of $6.32 billion, the foundation provides approximately $225 million annually in grants.
In addition to selecting the MacArthur Fellows, also known as "genius grants," the foundation awards grants in funding areas including arts and culture, community and economic development, digital media and learning, housing, and juvenile justice.
History
John D. MacArthur owned Bankers Life and Casualty and other businesses, as well as considerable property in Florida and New York. His wife, Catherine T. MacArthur, held positions in many of these companies. The MacArthurs' attorney, William T. Kirby, along with Paul Doolen, the MacArthurs' CFO, suggested that the family create a foundation to be endowed by their vast fortune.
When John died on January 6, 1978, he was worth in excess of $1 billion and was reportedly one of the three richest men in the United States. MacArthur left 92 percent of his estate to begin the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. The composition of the Foundation’s first Board of Directors, per MacArthur’s will, also included Catherine, J. Roderick MacArthur (a son from John's first marriage), two other officers of Bankers Life and Casualty, and radio commentator Paul Harvey.
John MacArthur was a conservative and capitalist. The Foundation’s original 1970 deed said that one purpose of the foundation was to support “ways to discover and promulgate avoidance of waste in government expenditures.” However, MacArthur did not spell out specific parameters for how his money was to be spent after he died. Between 1979 and 1981, John's son J. Roderick MacArthur, a political liberal, waged a legal battle against the Foundation, wresting control of the board of directors away from conservative members. The Foundation became and remains one of the pillars of the liberal philanthropic establishment.
Doolen was the first board chair of the Foundation, serving from 1979-1984. John Corbally was the first president of the Foundation, who served from 1979-1989. Adele Simmons was the second president of the Foundation, serving from 1989 to 1999. Jonathan F. Fanton, formerly President of the New School for Social Research, served as MacArthur's president from 1999 to 2009. Robert L. Gallucci, formerly dean of Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service, served as the Foundation's fourth president from 2009 to 2014. The Foundation's current president is Julia Stasch, who formerly served as Vice President for U.S. Programs.
In addition to their headquarters in Chicago, they also maintain offices in Mexico, India, Nigeria, and Russia.
MacArthur Fellowship
Main article: MacArthur Fellows ProgramThe MacArthur Fellowship is an award issued by the MacArthur Foundation each year, to typically 20 to 25 citizens or residents of the United States, of any age and working in any field, who "show exceptional merit and promise for continued and enhanced creative work." According to the Foundation website, "the fellowship is not a reward for past accomplishment, but rather an investment in a person's originality, insight, and potential."
The Foundation does not accept applications or grant interviews. The foundation relies on anonymous nominators, who submit recommendations to a small selection committee of about a dozen people. The committee then reviews every applicant and passes along their recommendations to the President and the board of directors. The entire process is anonymous and confidential. The first time that a new MacArthur Fellow learns that he or she was even being considered is upon receiving a phone call telling him or her the news of the award.
Dr. George Burch of Tulane University is credited with conceiving of the idea for the MacArthur Fellow program.
See also
- Rockefeller Brothers Fund
- Rockefeller Foundation
- Carnegie Corporation
- List of wealthiest charitable foundations
References
- Holcombe, Randall. Writing Off Ideas: Taxation, Foundations, and Philanthropy in America. Transaction Publishers. p. 41. ISBN 9781412841863.
{{cite book}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help) - "Top 100 U.S. Foundations by Asset Size". Foundation Center. Retrieved 3 June 2015.
- Goodman, Walter (December 5, 1993). "Making the Case for PBS (And It's Not So Easy)". New York Times. Retrieved 3 June 2015.
- Piereson, James (May 27, 2005). "Investing in the Right Ideas". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 3 June 2015.
- Calfas, Jennifer (June 9, 2015). "Americans pessimistic about ability for economic mobility, study finds". USA Today. Retrieved 12 June 2015.
- ^ "MacArthur Foundation: Chicago Grants". Inside Philanthropy. Retrieved 3 June 2015.
- Morse Wooster, Martin (Summer 2008). "The Inscrutable Billionaire". Philanthropy Magazine. Philanthropy Roundtable. Retrieved 12 June 2015.
- John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. (2008). 30 Years of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation http://www.macfound.org/atf/cf/%7Bb0386ce3-8b29-4162-8098-e466fb856794%7D/MacArthur_30years.pdf
- Spector, Mike (10 March 2009). "Former Diplomat to Lead MacArthur Foundation". The Wall Street Journal. p. A2. Retrieved March 10, 2009.
- MacArthur Foundation
- Morse Wooster, Martin (December 1, 2010). "The MacArthur Mistake". Commentary. Retrieved 12 June 2015.