Billionaire philanthropist MacKenzie Scott launches open call for community-focused nonprofits
FILE -- In this March 4, 2018 file photo, MacKenzie Scott arrives at the Vanity Fair Oscar Party in Beverly Hills, Calif. Scott is launching a $250 million open call for community-focused nonprofits that the billionaire philanthropist can fund. Scott hopes to make unrestricted $1 million donations to 250 nonprofits that have been selected in the process through her organization Yield Giving, which she calls a new pathway to support organizations making positive change in their communities. Photo by Evan Agostini Invision AP, File Evan Agostini Invision AP MacKenzie Scott is launching a $250 million open call for community-focused nonprofits that the billionaire philanthropist can fund.
Through her organization, Yield Giving, Scott plans to make unrestricted $1 million donations to 250 nonprofits that are selected in the process, which she calls a new pathway to support organizations making positive change in their communities. The nonprofits must have an annual operating budget of more than $1 million, but less than $5 million for at least two of the past five years.
Scott said that teams on the front lines of challenges have insights no one else can offer. Community changemakers have a big role in funding decisions. The open call marks the first time nonprofits can reach out to Scott for potential funding. Scott and her team secretly contacted organizations they were interested in funding first, then offered them unrestricted donations after receiving information about the group's work and financials.
Scott has donated more than $14 billion in unrestricted funds to 1,600 nonprofit organizations since she pledged to donate most of her wealth in the past. According to Forbes, Scott is currently worth more than $26 billion.
In a statement, Scott said she is excited to partner with nonprofit Lever for Change, which will manage the open call process to find community-focused organizations that have met with discrimination and other systemic obstacles.
According to Cecilia Conrad, CEO of Lever for Change, an affiliate of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the open call is designed to empower and strengthen communities across the United States that are often overlooked. We are looking for organizations that make a meaningful difference in people's lives. The teams that demonstrate the potential to make progress toward reducing disparities in health, education, economic outcomes, and other critical issues will be recognized by the awards. The organizations need to register to apply before May 5 and complete their applications by June 12. The applications will be reviewed by peers who will select up to 1,000 finalists in the fall. Those finalists will be selected by a public panel that has been selected for their related experience. The 250 winners will be announced in early 2024.
Scott doesn't talk about the reasons behind her philanthropy, beyond essays on her website. Some experts believe that the open call process is a continuation of her desire to change philanthropy.
Phil Buchanan, the president of The Center for Effective Philanthropy, said when Scott announced her open call plans in December that her approach said we as donors can yield to those talented people in nonprofits working closest to communities who know best what is needed and how to do it. Associated Press coverage of philanthropy and nonprofits receives support through AP's collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.