MacArthur Foundation: Chicago Grants
OVERVIEW: The MacArthur Foundation's enormous amount of assets has enabled it to balance local Chicago causes with over-arching national issues from coast to coast. In Chicago, MacArthur has invested over $200 million to support community, economic, and youth violence causes, as well as $10 million to more than 300 arts & culture groups annually.
FUNDING AREAS: Arts & culture, community & economic development, digital media & learning, housing, juvenile justice
IP TAKE: If you run a non-profit in Chicago, try to not get overwhelmed with the inner-workings of the MacArthur Foundation. It's a huge national and international nonprofit charitable foundation, but you mostly need to concern yourself with the housing, digital medial, and arts programs. Arts organizations fare the best in the city, receiving over $10 million in grants annually.
PROFILE: Wealthy real estate and insurance businessman, John D. MacArthur, developed the MacArthur Foundation, which is the largest of its kind in Chicago. MacArthur makes grants and loans through over a dozen rograms including MacArthur Fellows Program. The Fellows program is a five-year award to individuals of all ages who exhibit exceptional promise for creative work in the United States. Fellows grants have been referred to as "no strings genius grants," in the amount of $625,000 each. Unfortunately, this isn't a program that you can apply for or nominate someone for.
MacArthur holds approximately $6.32 billion in assets (December 2013) and authorized $228.4 million in grants that year. In 2013, international programs got $76.6 million of the total budget, whiel U.S. programs got $79.1 million. The bulk of U.S. grants have been going to digital media and learning, followed by juvenile justice and community & economic development.
With a national and international staff of well over 100 professionals, MacArthur is well equipped to research and maintain grants for program areas for arts & culture, juvenile justice, digital media & learning, and housing. One recent local MacArthur grant went to the League of Chicago Theatres for $500,000 to aid small theaters in improving the safety conditions and become licensed under the City of Chicago’s Performing Arts Venue regulations.
Unlike some Chicago foundations, MacArthur doesn’t limit its giving to the Chicagoland area. The foundation works in about 50 countries and has offices in Russia, Mexico, Nigeria, and India. However, it does have a soft spot in its heart for the “windy city.” It separates national and international programs so you'll be facing less competition than it appears on the surface. Keep in mind that MacArthur's grant budget is split relatively evenly between U.S. and international programs though.
Even though MacArthur spreads its love to other cities and countries, plenty of large grants stay right here at home. Although MacArthur awards grants for international artistic exchanges, these grants are only open to current grantees. MacArthur supports more than 300 arts and culture organizations in the Chicago area.
For Chicago nonprofits, your grant opportunities lie in arts & culture, community & economic development, digital media & learning, housing, and juvenile justice. Housing, digital media, and the arts proposals typically fare best with MacArthur. Make sure that your housing proposal provides affordable rental residences and your digital media proposal supports innovative learning in Chicago's schools. If you’re non-profit organization fits into one of these program areas, MacArthur breaks it down into three steps for you: learn about its funding, understand the guidelines and funding cycles, and submit a letter of inquiry.
It should be noted that the foundation looks at education on both a local and a global scale, as part of the Digital Media and learning program. MacArthur provides a fair amount of support for community and economic development work in the city of Chicago, which aims to revitalize 16 Chicago neighborhoods. Here's what the community and economic development portfolio focuses on:
- Gun violence
- Employment
- Housing market stabilization
- Economic development
- Building capacity for civic technology
Review the Guidelines and Funding Cycles page for a list of programs that MacArthur is currently accepting proposals and inquiries for. Check the foundation website for updates about deadlines for submitting letters of inquiry in a particular program area. Then you can send an email to the foundation staff at 4answers@macfound.org. Although the foundation has offices and staff in India and Mexico, you can reach the Chicago office directly with questions at 312-726-8000.
PEOPLE:
- Julia M. Stasch, President
- Valerie Chang, Interim Managing Director, U.S. Programs
- Craig Howard, Director of Community & Economic Development
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Laurie R. Garduque, Director, Justice Reform
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Constance M. Yowell, Director of Education
- Patrick Griffin, Juvenile Justice Program Officer
- Alaina Harkness, Program Officer
- Jennifer Humke, Program Officer
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