Blacks in the money: foundation heads manage billions - Foundation - includes list of executives

Ebony, August, 2002

For generations, African-Americans were confined to the lower rungs of philanthropic foundations and were perceived, in general, as receivers rather than givers of major gifts and grants. But since Franklin A. Thomas was named head of the Ford Foundation in 1979, there have been significant changes at all levels of the philanthropic world, and Black men and women now head some of the largest and oldest foundations and collectively manage billions of dollars in assets and grants.

These money men and women are trained executives with vision and passion. They are leading the charge in all types of foundations, whether they are community, corporate or private.

The key figures in philanthropy come from diverse backgrounds. Many of the African-Americans at the top in foundations with total assets of $80 million or more have a background in social service and higher education. One is an investment banker, one is a lawyer and three are former college presidents.

One foundation leader has been in his position for nearly two decades. Steven A. Minter, president and executive director of the Cleveland Foundation, is a pioneer in the field, and has been leading the organization since 1984.

While the general sentiment is that the field is getting more diverse at the programming level, many of the presidents, CEOs and executive directors believe there is room for more at the top.

"My sense is that there are many more minority programming staff members than when I started," says Minter, who joined the foundation in 1975. "My guess is that there are a few more CEOs ... It's growing slowly. I believe there is greater receptivity today, but there's still a big hill to climb."

One family has not one, but two top foundation executives. Donald M. Stewart, former president of Spelman College, is president and CEO of the Chicago Community Trust. His wife, Isabel Carter Stewart, is executive director of the Chicago Foundation for Women.

"Isabel and I have--throughout our professional lives--been in non-profit service, and we believe in giving," says Stewart, who is the first African-American to head the Chicago Community Trust. "We believe that we lift as we climb and that without philanthropy, without the help of the non-profit world, many organizations and people will not have their needs met."

The Stewarts are based in Chicago, which leads the nation in the number of foundations headed by Blacks. In addition to the Stewarts, there are four other top executives: Paula A. Banks, president of the BP Foundation (who splits her time between Chicago and London where BP is based); Ricardo A. Millett, president of the Woods Fund of Chicago; Handy L. Lindsey Jr., president and CEO of the Field Foundation of Illinois; and Cleo F. Wilson, executive director of the Playboy Foundation.

An increasing number of African-American women are being tapped to head corporate foundations.

"There are more opportunities for women and minority women, particularly in corporate foundations" says Blenda J. Wilson, president and CEO of the Nellie Mae Education Foundation and the top-ranked female in this survey.

Gabriella E. Morris exemplifies that trend. She was named president of the Prudential Foundation in New Jersey in 1994, roughly nine years after joining Prudential as an associate general counsel in 1985. Morris says her law experience serves her well in her position and that philanthropy has been a lifelong passion.

"My actual background is from a family where community service was important," says Morris, a native of Houston. "Charitable organizations have always been my avocation, and this was an opportunity to meld the two."

Morris and others interviewed for this article say that the world of philanthropy is changing and that there are new opportunities for men and women of vision and experience. If foundations are to succeed, Morris says, leadership must find out how to be most effective in the community they serve, and foundations must give a thorough accounting of how those resources are being used. "We have to listen to what our communities are saying to us."

$1.6 BILLION

STEVEN A. MINTER is the president and executive director of the Cleveland Foundation, the oldest and second largest community foundation in America. Minter, who has been with the foundation for 27 years (he was named president in 1984), managed $1.6 billion in assets and $57 million in grants in 2000. Prior to his work at the foundation, Minter spent more than 20 years in governmental positions.

$1.3 BILLION

DONALD M. STEWART, president and CEO of the Chicago Community Trust, manages more than $1.3 billion in assets and $41.2 million in grants, according to 2000 figures. Before joining the trust in 2000, Stewart was president and CEO of the College Board. A former president of Spelman College, he earned a doctor of public administration degree from Harvard University, and is married to Isabel Carter Stewart, the executive director of the Chicago Foundation for Women.

$548 MILLION

WILLIAM E. TRUEHEART was named president and CEO of the Pittsburgh Foundation last year. The organization had assets of $548 million and awarded grants totaling $22 million in 2000. Before joining the foundation, Trueheart, who holds a doctorate in education, served as president and CEO of Reading Is Fundamental, Inc. He and his wife, Carol Ward, have established a fund at the Pittsburgh Foundation.