Kresge Foundation

Kresge Foundation, fund established (1924) by retail chain store owner Sebastian S. Kresge (1867-1966) as a broad-purpose philanthropic institution. The foundation describes its policy as "to favor grants providing for the maintenance, expansion, or perpetuation of existing organizations over grants which look to the establishment or initiating of new organizations or experimental projects." Prior to the middle 1960s the foundation gave most of its support to colleges and universities, hospitals, religious institutions, and child welfare agencies in Michigan and the Northeast. Since then, however, there has been a wider geographic distribution of grants and a decrease in support to religious programs. Most assistance goes to the construction and maintenance of buildings or other major capital equipment. Given an initial endowment of $1.3 million, in 1998 the foundation had assets totaling $2.1 billion.

The Kresge Foundation is a U.S. philanthropic private foundation dedicated to building stronger nonprofit organizations. It was established in 1924 by the founder of Kmart, Sebastian Kresge.

The Foundation is a $3.5 billion national foundation that builds stronger nonprofit organizations—catalyzing their growth, helping them connect with their stakeholders, and challenging them with grants that leverage greater support. The Foundation concentrates its programming on capital campaigns as a key opportunity for nonprofit growth. In 2005, the Foundation awarded 216 grants totaling $131,770,027 to organizations in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, South Africa, and Mexico.

Their second main program, the Green Building Initiative which was launched in 2003, is intended to increase the awareness of sustainable or green building practices among nonprofits and encourage them to consider building green. Upfront planning and an integrated design process are necessary to achieve the full benefits of a green building. The Initiative offers educational resources and special grants to help nonprofits during this planning phase.

In June 2006 the foundation announced the retirement of its Executive Director and CEO, John Marshall III. Marshall has been replaced by Rip Rapson, formerly of the McKnight Foundation.

See also

• List of wealthiest foundations

External links

• Official website