In our new report, Philanthropy and HBCUs: Foundation Funding to Historically Black Colleges and Universities, we partnered with Candid to investigate funding to historically Black college and universities (HBCUs). Here are a few of the key findings.

1. The average Ivy League university got 178 times more funding than the average HBCU.  

2. HBCUs got 2/3 of the funding that institutions with similar attributes received.

3. From 2002 to 2019, funding for HBCUs decreased by 30%.

4. There was a sizable increase in funding in 2020. But after decades of underinvestment, questions linger about whether new levels of funding will be sustained.

Historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) have played a critical role in educating Black people, developing Black leaders, and addressing inequality. And yet, there has been little research into the gaps in private philanthropic support for these schools.

If you haven't had a chance to read the full report yet, please click the button below and share with others in your network.

The ABFE Corporate Community of Practice (ABFE-CCOP) is designed to support

Corporate Philanthropic Professionals as they advocate for Black communities within

the context of their roles and positions of influence.

During Harambee, ABFE hosted a corporate pre-conference reception where attendees engaged with one another and re-imagined corporate philanthropy from a racial equity and racial justice framework. Our goal is to launch an exclusive Corporate Community of Practice for Black philanthropy colleagues that supports ongoing peer-learning, builds competency around sector issues and equity frameworks, and supports institutional outcomes. 

ABFE would like to engage our Black corporate philanthropy colleagues for this opportunity. Please use this survey to quickly note your interest in moving forward with this network and share the contact information of other Black corporate philanthropy colleagues that may find this offering of benefit to them and their work. 

Please note, this offering is exclusive to corporate funders who do grantmaking. 

ABFE is pleased to announce that we will be hosting a session at this year’s Hispanics in Philanthropy Conference. The session, titled Understanding Afrolatinidad and Funding Afro-Latino Organizations Building Black and Brown Coalition, will take place in person on Tuesday, June 6th, 2023, at 11 am Pacific Time in San Francisco, CA.

Through interactive media, academic research, and panel discussion the session will explore the history and origins of the term “AfroLatinidad”, colorism, “hybrid” Identity, Census race and ethnicity question challenges, and ways philanthropy can support existing Afro-Latino organizations and constituencies to build social, economic and political power.

Speakers/moderators:

• Susan Taylor Batten - President & CEO of ABFE
• Juanita Palacios Sims – Founder & President of the International Society of Black Latinos
• Mary Skelton Roberts – Former HIP Board chair and Philanthropic Strategist
• Josue Perea – Executive Director of the AfroLatino Forum
• Genny Castillo – Regional Engagement Director, Roosevelt Institute
• Kimberly Roberts – PAS Trainer/Advisor of ABFE (moderator)
• Lina Cardona - Membership Manager of ABFE (moderator)

ABFE Board Member and former 50th Anniversary Campaign Chair, Isaiah M. Oliver has been selected as The Community Foundation for Northeast Florida new president, effective July 31,2023.

A proven community leader and a bright star in the field of place-based philanthropy, Oliver will continue the Foundation’s focus on donor stewardship and strategic philanthropy that improves the lives of everyone in the six-county Northeast Florida region. Oliver will serve as the third president of The Community Foundation, stepping into the role after more than nine years at the Community Foundation of Greater Flint, where he currently serves as President and CEO.

ABFE has partnered with the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation to support community foundation efforts to become more deliberate in their work to advance racial equity in their communities. Participating community foundations will receive focused racial equity trainings for community foundation staff, senior leadership, and trustees equipping them with the shared knowledge, skills, and tools to better understand the foundations of race, racism, and racial equity.

Click the button below to apply! The application deadline is June 6th | Q&A sessions on May 24 and 25 | Cohort sessions will run from August-October, 2023.

In 2010, we crafted one of philanthropy’s first racial equity frameworks that specifically addresses the role of the sector in supporting and advancing strategic investments in Black communities. The Responsive Philanthropy in Black Communities framework includes workshops and tools designed to increase investments of grant making entities, develop collective giving models, and support donors in doing their work more equitably.

Become a client of our work using the link below:

ABFE remains committed to supporting Black-led nonprofits. Through a partnership with Catchafire, a skills-based virtual platform that builds connections between professional volunteers and non-profits, we are offering a year-long opportunity for our Black-led nonprofit members to build program, fundraising, and communications capacity that can further impact in the communities they serve.

ABFE’s Black-led non-profit members will have access to Catchafire’s online services, including unlimited access to professional nonprofit advisors, one-on-one instruction, and training throughout the year. This is a $1,000 value that we are offering our members for FREE!

Check out what our participating members are saying about their experience so far!

If you have any questions or are interested in becoming an ABFE member to receive benefits like this one, please contact Evelyn Rivera, Director of Membership, ABFE at erivera@abfe.org.

ABFE Members are committed to:

• Learning how to align their foundations & organizations to eradicate Anti-Black Racism

• Empowering Black-led organizations through significant investments, key partnerships, and opportunities

• Participating in leadership development opportunities that make transformational change

ABFE is growing! We are hiring new staff that will be critical to advancing our mission to promote effective and responsive philanthropy in Black communities.

Find the full job postings on our site.

CHANGE Philanthropy’s Unity Summit is set to return later this year in Los Angeles, CA as an hybrid conference! Mark your calendars for October 16-19, 2023. 

The Unity Summit is one of

the largest convenings in philanthropy. Over 1000 participants from a wide variety of communities come together to expand their individual and institutional practice in order to advance equity with an intersectional lens, with community at the center of CHANGE’s efforts.

Registration opens May; early bird rates will be extended through June.

The Rogers Scholars Program in Finance provides career resources and funded internship opportunities for students interested in financial services careers and seeks to promote diversity within the field. The program is open to all students, and students engaged in Black, African American, and Hispanic/Latinx communities are highly encouraged to participate.

Your organization can hire a fully

subsidized summer intern and discover a

dynamic new talent pool by partnering

with UChicago’s Rogers Scholars

Program in Finance.

Welcome New Members!

Institutional

• Women’s Foundation of Genesee Valley
• Just Love Collaborative Inc.
• Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, Inc.

Individuals 

• Gregory Gallop – Community Foundation for a Greater Richmond
• Morgan Reams – Title Nine
• Nedra Jones – CDC Foundation
• Wendy Abel – Texas Methodist Foundation
• Michelle Roseborough – Rotary International

Thank You Renewed Members!

Institutional

• The Boston Foundation
• William and Flora Hewlett Foundation
• Wallace Foundation
• Forman S Action Foundation
• Susan Hairston Consulting
• Citi Foundation

Individuals

• Stephanie Peterson – Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation
• Kendra Fox-Davis – Rosenberg Foundation
• Alisha Brown – The Foundation for Sustainable Urban Communities
• Kelvin Turner II – Obici Healthcare Foundation
• Deborah Aubert Thomas – Philanthropy Ohio

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