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The Council on Foundations defines a community foundation as “a tax-exempt, nonprofit, autonomous, publicly supported, nonsectarian philanthropic institution with a long-term goal of building permanent, named component funds established by many separate donors to carry out their charitable interests, and for the broad-based charitable interest of and for the benefit of residents of a defined geographic area.”

Jesse Metcalf gave the Foundation its first gift of $10,000 for the general fund. The five-member distribution committee, which included one woman, consisted of community leaders selected by state officials, courts, and the trustee bank, Rhode Island Hospital Trust. They had their first meeting in 1916. The committee decided not to make any grants until 1922 so that interest could accumulate. The Foundation’s first grants included $25 to the American Red Cross for drought and flood relief and $10 to the Providence YMCA. From the beginning, the Foundation planned to be a proving ground for new ideas and social innovation, but also to make grants for immediate, short-term relief, i.e., victims of the 1938 hurricane. 

In the early years of the Foundation, the principal activity involved a small group of concerned citizens deciding on small charitable donations to a variety of causes from the pooled endowment. The first major gift was received in 1932 – $100,000 from the estate of the Marquise d’Andigne (the former Madeline Ives Goddard). She created a fund for the relief of incurables that was used for many years for treatment and care of victims of polio and tuberculosis. Later, this important endowment provided needed funding for AIDS and cancer care, as well as to hospice and other related programs. In 1945, the Foundation’s assets reached $1 million. 

The Tax Reform Act of 1969 made it more favorable for Rhode Islanders to establish funds at the Foundation than to create private foundations. One example was the Hope Charitable Foundation, which turned over $4.9 million in assets to the Rhode Island Foundation.
 

Foundation donors consisted largely of trust department clients of the bank. With more endowments to manage and a desire to provide professional oversight of the grantmaking effort, the Foundation hired its first executive director, John Marshall III, to review requests from community organizations and advise the five-member volunteer distribution committee. In 1978, Marshall went on to serve as the president of the Kresge Foundation in Michigan.
 

Through the 1970s, the Foundation began to take on a greater role in identifying and meeting emerging community needs. By 1977, although grants exceeded $1 million for the first time, requests were already outpacing available funding by a four to one ratio. A seven-member distribution committee was now responsible for grant decisions. Gifts totaling $713,000 were received, bringing the total assets of the Foundation to $20 million. Most gifts came in the form of bequests. 

In 1978, John Marshall was succeeded by Doug Jansson as the second executive director. The Foundation office was located in a small historic house on the corner of North Main Street and Rochambeau Avenue on the East Side of Providence. Over the next several years, Jansson added two program officers, a bookkeeper, and a secretary to the staff. Jansson and the staff spent time learning about the needs in the community and meeting with nonprofit leaders to better determine where the Foundation’s grants could be most helpful.  
 

During the 1980s, the Foundation began collaborating with other foundations. For example, when the energy crisis hit the state with full force, the Foundation collaborated with The Champlin Foundation to help over 100 nonprofit organizations conserve energy. During this time, the use of program consultants added to the staff capacity. One early example was a study commissioned by the Foundation to profile the needs of the newly arriving Southeast Asian immigrant community. Grantmaking budgets were slowly increasing. The Foundation’s annual report for 1980 describes $1.8 million in grants and assets totaling $27 million.
 

In order to enable donors to recommend grants outside of Rhode Island and to permit the Foundation to utilize investment managers other than Rhode Island Hospital Trust, in 1984 the parallel corporation, The Rhode Island Community Foundation, was created. The corporate form retained the same volunteer leaders but began calling that group a board of directors. For the first time, issues of governance and investment management were taken up for consideration. With the ability to add other investment managers, the Foundation invited each of the entities in Rhode Island that held trust powers to join in the endeavor. The new managers included Fleet, Citizens, Old Stone, Washington Trust, and Van Liew Trust. Clients of these firms were now able to create charitable endowments under the Foundation’s umbrella, with assets earmarked back to the referring institution for investment management purposes. This change set the stage for the first serious growth in the Foundation’s assets.  
 

At the end of the 1980s, the Foundation had outgrown its small space on North Main Street and moved to rented office space on the third floor at 70 Elm Street in the Jewelry District. 

In the 1990s, community foundations grew exponentially across the nation. The concept of a permanent endowment for a specific geographic community, whether defined as a town, state, or region, and created and led by members of that community, had proved to be an idea whose time had come. 

The Rhode Island Foundation’s growth continued throughout the 1990s. Ronald Gallo took the helm as the Foundation’s third chief executive (the title was changed to president and CEO) after Doug Jansson left the organization to become president of the Milwaukee Foundation. Ron had previously served as the president of a family foundation (Jesse Ball DuPont), but brought great enthusiasm for the potential for growth and impact for a community foundation. Under Ron’s leadership, the Foundation experienced significant growth. In the mid-1990s, the staff grew to 21, two additional directors brought the board size to nine, assets grew to $200 million, and grants in excess of $8.5 million were awarded.
 

After a 33-year career on the board, including 13 years as chairman, Robert Goddard stepped down and Mel Alperin became the new chair in 1994. With Mel’s support, the Foundation established its first development effort and became comfortable with the idea that marketing and promotion in order to attract new donors and raise the visibility of the organization was an appropriate next step. Carol Golden was named the first vice president for development and soon brought on a small staff to assist with donor service and communications functions. A major emphasis in the early years of the development effort was outreach to professional advisors who might refer philanthropically inclined clients to the Foundation.
 

In 1994, the board engaged The Philanthropic Initiative (TPI), a Boston-based consulting firm, to assist in restructuring its discretionary grantmaking program. It was decided to focus on three key areas: children and families, economic and community development, and education. Grants were targeted for projects that focused on systemic change, and applications were accepted for each focus area at a different time of the year. Also in 1994, the Foundation launched RI KIDS Count, a national project devised and funded by the Annie E. Casey Foundation to conduct research and advocate on behalf of the state’s most at-risk children. KIDS Count operated out of the Foundation for a number of years and later spun out as an independent 501(c)3 organization, an early example of the Foundation’s ability to “incubate” important new efforts for the state.  
 

In that same year, the board formed a standing investment committee in order to provide focused and expert oversight of the investment management of our assets. At approximately the same time, the Foundation engaged Prime Buchholz and Associates of Portsmouth, New Hampshire, to assist with monitoring the investment managers and provide advice to the committee and board on the selection of new managers to maximize the investment returns.
 

By 1997, the Foundation’s assets exceeded $260 million, making it one of the 15 largest community foundations in the country. More than $8.5 million in new gifts were received and the Foundation’s first website was developed. Investments continued to be diversified, and the Foundation convened all of the state’s private grantmakers for the first time to share experience and discuss possible collaboration.  
 

Feeling flush due to outstanding growth of our investments, and to commemorate the Foundation’s 80th anniversary, we presented a $5 million “gift to Rhode Island.” Named the “Teachers and Technology” initiative, this largest-ever project in our history provided laptop computers and training to a significant percentage of all public school teachers in the state. Also in connection with the anniversary, the Foundation launched a lecture series tied to our three programmatic areas: children and families, economic and community development, and education. Speakers included Marian Wright Edelman, founder of the Children’s Defense Fund; Henry Louis Gates, Jr., W.E. B. Dubois, Professor of the Humanities at Harvard; and Theodore Sizer, educator and founder of the Coalition of Essential Schools. Major funding initiatives in each area were announced at each of the three lectures.
 

In 1999, the Foundation’s board, under the leadership of Sandy McCulloch, our new chair, made a bold step by choosing a permanent home with the purchase of One Union Station. This somewhat controversial move placed the Foundation in the capital city’s hub of government and business, sending a signal that philanthropy was an integral ingredient of our community. Concern from donors about the “extravagance” of the new headquarters was tempered by the cost effectiveness of the move due to the revenue from our tenants, and the open door policy that invited a diverse group of nonprofit organizations to utilize the building’s many meeting rooms.

That same year, with the consent of the trustee bank, now BankBoston, the Foundation obtained a court order to terminate the original trust and operate solely in corporate form as The Rhode Island Community Foundation, d/b/a The Rhode Island Foundation. This major shift to corporate form allowed the Foundation maximum control in investment vehicles and managers as well as all governance matters.
 

By the year 2000, the assets of the Foundation had grown to $384 million, ranking it as the 22nd largest of more than 600 community foundations in the U.S. Gifts exceeded $10 million. In 2000, the Foundation encouraged the revival of Providence’s downtown with our first program-related investment, a $9 million revolving loan fund intended to boost both the commercial and residential viability of the Downcity neighborhood. We also attracted the attention and resources of the Bill and Melinda Gates and Robert Wood Johnson Foundations, among other national foundations, allowing us to leverage our limited dollars for significant investments in both public education and health care.  
 

Already considering itself a “Center for Philanthropy,” the Foundation developed several new programs to strengthen the nonprofit sector including the Fellows Program in which nonprofit executive directors could “recharge their batteries, learn something new, and advance their creativity.” Awards of $12,500 were made to 20 individuals to fulfill a self-designed plan of professional development.
 

After completing a consultant-led development audit and board retreat, 2001 was also the year that the Foundation established the Women’s Fund, seeding this endowment with $2.5 million. The impetus was the passion of its founder and first donor, Simone Joyaux, who was committed to leveling the economic, educational, and political playing field for women and girls in Rhode Island. The Women’s Fund commissioned research on the status of women in our state, which laid the groundwork for the fund’s future focus – economic autonomy and political participation. Five years later in 2006, the Women’s Fund split off as a separate nonprofit organization while its endowment continues to be invested with the Rhode Island Foundation.
 

Recommendations from the community foundation-focused consultant mentioned above included expanding our reach by creating entry points for new donors who identified with specific geographic or topical interests. In that vein, in 2002, the Foundation established the Newport County Fund with a $2.5 million endowment, recruiting a locally based group of community leaders to serve on an advisory committee. Our staff had grown to 38 members with assets at the end of 2001 standing at $366 million. The next year, a volunteer advisory group was formed to create the Equity Action Fund in response to a challenge grant by Funders for Lesbian and Gay Issues (a national grantmaker). The Equity Action Fund, a field of interest fund focusing on the gay and lesbian community, was established in 2003, and the Rhode Island Foundation was the first grant recipient in the nation to raise $200,000, receiving the Funders matching grant of $100,000.
 

By 2004, an active development team facilitated nearly $27 million in new gifts with the creation of a record 68 new endowment funds. Grants in excess of $22 million were distributed, and for the first time we hosted a national meeting of Hispanics in Philanthropy, reinforcing our strong connection to the Latino community in Rhode Island. We convened a large group of interested community leaders in an effort that would grow into the statewide Housing Works RI campaign in 2005. The Foundation also initiated a campaign to grow the Equity Action Fund, offering a $500,000 match toward every dollar raised.
 

In 2006, the Foundation embarked on a strategic planning process that ultimately led to the adoption of a new strategic vision, built around three themes: strengthening the nonprofit sector, increasing and aligning informed philanthropy, and focusing on and measuring the impact of institutional investments. The Initiative for Nonprofit Excellence, launched in 2008 after an extensive planning phase, was a direct outgrowth of that process, as was the setting of specific discretionary funding priorities within the topical sectors in which we work.
 

Marking another important milestone, in 2006 the Foundation surpassed the half billion-dollar mark in assets. We led the Vote Yes on 9 Campaign along with our partners Rhode Island Housing and United Way of Rhode Island, resulting in the passage of a $50 million bond issue for affordable housing.
 

In 2008, the Foundation launched publicly a million dollar campaign for the Black Philanthropy Initiative (BPI), an endowment that had been in the planning stages for several years. A settlement between Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Rhode Island and the U.S. Attorney’s Office resulted in a $20 million gift to the Foundation that is now the Fund for a Healthy Rhode Island, established with a focus on increasing access to and affordability of primary care for all Rhode Islanders. This vote of confidence by the U.S. Attorney marked a new level of recognition for the Foundation and confirmed a reputation of being above reproach regarding our professional role as grantmaker and careful steward of charitable assets that will forever benefit the state of Rhode Island. 

With the departure of Ron Gallo at the end of 2007, the Foundation’s chairman, George Graboys, stepped into the role of acting president, allowing the board to conduct a national search for a new chief executive officer. In May of 2008, Neil D. Steinberg was selected as the new president and CEO, bringing with him the skills and talents of a distinguished career in banking and higher education fundraising, and considerable involvement and leadership in the community over three decades.

Coincident with his arrival, Neil led the Foundation through one of the worst economic downturns in the history of the organization, against a backdrop of national economic decline. In response to the state’s dire economic conditions, in 2008 the Foundation distributed $500,000 in an emergency community grant to three organizations: the Rhode Island Community Food Bank, the Salvation Army’s Good Neighbor Energy Fund, and Crossroads Rhode Island. The Foundation’s assets, in line with most other community foundation endowments, declined by 27% by the end of 2008 resulting in an expected reduction in both grantmaking dollars and operating revenue.
 

In light of the new leadership and changing environment, in 2009 the Foundation took a close look at our processes, practices, and structure, and we surveyed the state’s top business, government, and community leaders to gain insight into how to more effectively accomplish our mission for Rhode Island. This work resulted in an evolved mission statement, describing the Foundation as a proactive community and philanthropic leader dedicated to meeting the needs of the people of Rhode Island.   

In 2016, the Foundation turned 100. The theme of our centennial was: What makes a community? We wanted to celebrate the people, places, and traditions that make Rhode Island special. The anniversary provided us with an opportunity to celebrate our past and look to the future. Our goals for the centennial were to:  

• Commemorate the Foundation’s proud history  
• Celebrate and inspire philanthropy
• Make a gift that will benefit the people of Rhode Island and future generations
• Engage an expanded base of partners
• Raise visibility and heighten perceptions of our work among stakeholders and the general public

We commemorated the occasion with a series of centennial activities, including a signature project and fundraising campaign for Roger Williams Park, a community concert with the Rhode Island Philharmonic Orchestra, $500,000 of community-making grants, and publication of "100 Stories" about our history and partners. 

In the time since our centennial, the Foundation continued to identify and respond to the evolving needs of Rhode Islanders. In response to critical issues surfaced regarding access to affordable health care in Rhode Island, in 2018, the Foundation convened a Long Term Health Planning committee, including leaders of hospital systems and health insurance companies, providers of medical and behavioral healthcare, academics, advocates, public health experts, government officials, and more to formulate a long-term approach, with a foundational focus on health equity, for improving the health of Rhode Islanders. In January 2020, the Committee published "Health in Rhode Island, A Long Term Vision." In June of 2020, then Governor Raimondo signed an executive order endorsing an unprecedented statewide plan to improve access to healthcare and delivery.

Concurrently, in response to heavily lagging student assessment results, and amidst a jarring report on the negative state of the Providence Public School district, the Foundation convened and led a group of educators and education stakeholders, academics, labor leaders, community and business leaders, philanthropic funders, state leaders, advocates for children and families, and more to begin a candid, overdue dialogue about long-term planning for PK-12th grade education in Rhode Island. The resulting Long Term Education Planning Committee, in 2020, published "Chart a Course, Stay the Course-Rhode Island’s Path to a World Class Public Education System." Both the Rhode Island House of Representatives and Senate subsequently adopted resolutions (H. 7949 and S. 2886) acknowledging the work of the Committee and the plan developed.
 

During this time, the Foundation, and indeed the world, was faced with an international public health emergency when the COVID-19 pandemic struck. The speed at which the pandemic shut the country and the world down in 2020 was breathtaking. In response, the Rhode Island Foundation, in collaboration with United Way of Rhode Island, launched the COVID-19 Response Fund to provide resources to local nonprofits on the front lines of pandemic response. Just ten days after the Fund was established, over $1M in grants were distributed to critical community organizations. By the end of 2020, the Foundation had raised nearly $8M—with almost all of that funding circulating through the community, assisting hundreds of organizations in their critical work. Indeed, in 2020, the Foundation raised $21M for COVID-19 related response and relief, including $7.6M for the COVID-19 Response Fund, $5.3M for the COVID-19 Behavioral Health Fund, $5M in CARES Act funding through our partnership with the State of Rhode Island, $2.8M for the weR1 Rhode Island Fund, and $475K for the Rhode Island Public Education Fund Virtual Learning Challenge. In total, 1,400 generous donors had stepped forward to contribute to these COVID-19 response-related funds.
 

Always working to do more good, the Foundation also turned a very focused eye on the subject of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion - both externally and internally. A broad and thoughtful review highlighted that equity lies at the nexus of every Foundation effort - across our strategic priorities; in how we pursue development, steward investments, and grant funds to the community; and in how we interact and collaborate as colleagues. This critical exercise is ongoing and ever-evolving, but is now and will remain a foundational cornerstone at the Rhode Island Foundation.

In 2023, President and CEO Neil D. Steinberg retired after fifteen years. In preparation for his retirement, the Foundation conducted a nation-wide search for his successor and, on June 1, 2023, the Foundation enthusiastically welcomed former Congressman David N. Cicilline as the new President and CEO.
 

During Neil D. Steinberg’s tenure, the Foundation raised more than $600 million, awarded more than $700 million in grants, grew its endowment threefold to $1.3 billion, and increased its commitment to civic leadership and diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Since assuming the role of President and CEO, Mr. Cicilline has not only ably shepherded the long-standing good work of the Foundation, but has also overseen a comprehensive review of the Foundation’s areas of focus - garnering input from staff, donors, grantees, Board members, the broader Rhode Island community, and fellow community foundation colleagues across the nation - to identify strengths and surface opportunities for growth, cultivate new ideas, and to challenge the boundaries and assess new ways to impact the issues that matter most to Rhode Islanders. Through thoughtful introspection and inquisitive dialogue with a broad array of external partners, the Foundation’s Board voted to approve an updated mission and strategic direction. 
 

The Foundation's evolved Five-Year Action Plan focuses on Civic and Cultural Life; Climate Action and Sustainability; Education and Student Success; Healthy and Strong Communities; and Housing and Economic Mobility; guided by inclusiveness, accessibility, compassion, mutual respect and humility. The Five-Year Action Plan acknowledges the intricate web of challenges that Rhode Islanders face and creates space for sourcing and supporting solutions. To address these community priorities, the Foundation developed a new approach to funding local organizations and institutions. By updating the design of its grant programs, the Foundation aims to make the process more accessible and better equipped to meet the complex needs of the nonprofits and community leaders driving this work. The Five-Year Action Plan reflects an evolution rather than a revolution of the Foundation's work, and heralds that, separately, we can have impact, but “Only Together,” through strong partnerships and building on work that’s come before, can we build the future we all hope for as Rhode Islanders; and make progress that lasts.

In 2024, the Foundation raised $59 million in gifts, and nearly $87 million in grants were awarded to more than 2,500 nonprofit organizations. At the end of 2024, total assets stood at roughly $1.5 billion. Approximately 75 percent of the grants were directed by the Foundation’s generous donors; only about a quarter of the grants could be made at the sole discretion of the Foundation.  Almost half of the nearly $87 million went to organizations that received both donor-directed and Foundation-directed grants, illustrating an alignment of shared priorities.