News

The Pierce Family Foundation’s Chief Technologist, David Krumlauf, was a panelist for a recent training offered by Idealware: “How to Get Your Technology Funded: Tips from Grantmakers.” David was one of four panelists whose foundations make grants for IT projects. David answered questions from nonprofits such as: We know that technology is a key part of …

Two years ago, a group of Chicago funders—including the Pierce Family Foundation—wanted to understand the landscape of nonprofit capacity building in the Chicago area, and how it might be improved. To begin, this steering committee of funders commissioned a landscape scan of current capacity building needs and services. That study has been released and is available here. …

Pierce Family Foundation was one of several funders highlighted in the new publication from Grantmakers for Effective Organizations (GEO), Strengthening Nonprofit Capacity. “Capacity building enables nonprofit leaders and organizations to develop the skills and resources they need to improve their work,” says GEO. “Since each situation is unique and circumstances are always changing, effective capacity-building support is …

2016 has been a big year for the Chicago Youth Storage Initiative! Locker programs were launched at the following facilities, for a total of 175 lockers now available for youth experiencing homelessness: Virtual storage was explored by facilitating two Google Apps trainings for homelessness providers and young people. Participating organizations including The Night Ministry, Care2Prevent, Broadway Youth Center, Center on …

The Peer Skill Share program made an appearance at the 2016 Grantmakers for Effective Organizations (GEO) National Conference in Minneapolis-Saint Paul. Pierce Family Foundation Executive Director Marianne Philbin and Program Director Heather Parish led a breakout session titled “Supporting Capacity Building Through Crowdsourcing.” Attended by approximately 40 foundation staff members from across the country, the session …

Lara Brooks, director Chicago Youth Storage Initiative, a PFF-backed project, was a moderator at the recent Tiny Homes Summit in Chicago. Lara facilitated a panel of youth homeless service providers, who discussed the realities of how young people might experience life in a tiny home community, and what the considerations should be for this population. As moderator, Lara …

Executive Director Marianne Philbin was interviewed for a recent article in the New York Times, “The Art of Saying No as a Philanthropist.” Marianne emphasized that clear communications are key in respecting a nonprofit’s time. “The earlier you can make a decline for legitimate reasons, the less painful it is for everybody,” Philbin said. “The …

The Chicago Youth Storage Initiative, supported and co-created by PFF, has been featured in multiple local media outlets:

“Who is Supporting Nonprofit Financial Sustainability? Pierce Family Foundation” can be downloaded from GEO’s Resources section.

In “The Matchmaker,” Crain’s Chicago Business profiled PFF’s Peer Skill Share program, noting that only one other foundation in the country is known to sponsor such a peer-to-peer learning program. The article features Doug Kenshol of Mercy Housing Lakefront and Shannon Stewart of Inspiration Corporation, who meet for a skill sharing session last year.