Our Work

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The Public Welfare Foundation supports efforts to ensure fundamental rights and opportunities for people in need. We look for carefully defined points where our funds can make a difference in bringing about systemic changes that can improve the lives of countless people.    

In its 60 year history, the Foundation has distributed more than $400 million in grants to more than 4200 organizations.  We are proud of the achievements of our grantees in a broad spectrum of worthy endeavors. Time and again, when an issue has appeared no larger than a dot on the horizon, Public Welfare Foundation grantees have been there, from educational television to environmental activism and advocacy against weapons proliferation.

As a mid-size foundation, we are keenly aware that we must target our finite resources at points where we believe, with some degree of confidence, that an infusion of energy, expertise and funds can make a decisive impact and lead to far-ranging reforms.

To that end, we now focus our grantmaking on three areas where we believe the Foundation’s grantmaking can serve as a catalyst for reforms that can make dramatic differences in the lives of countless Americans.  These areas are:

Criminal and Juvenile Justice
Health Reform
Workers’ Rights

To bolster our grantees’ staying power and concentrate their energies on their work, the Foundation considers multi-year grants and grants of varying amounts.  

We make a small number of grants under our Special Opportunities category in order to field-test new ideas for helping disadvantaged people, for one-time or emergency needs such as disaster relief, to support cross-program initiatives or when unusual opportunities arise to advance the Foundation’s strategic goals.

The Foundation does not fund individuals, scholarships, direct services, international projects or endowment campaigns.

A number of grantees who have done extraordinary work under programs that are phasing out of our active agenda have received or will receive last-time grants.  Their experiences have generated invaluable insights, which we will continue to study and share with others engaged in these fields of endeavor. For  a list of these programs, click here.

The President's Discretionary Fund offers grants of up to $25,000 to advance the Foundation's priorities. The application process is streamlined, and the grants are typically given for needs that occur between Board meetings. There is a high demand for such grants, and relatively few are given.

To view these grants, click here.