The Gannett F Introduction

The Gannett F Introduction he Gannett Foundation, located in Roch- ester, New York, was created in 1935 by the T late Frank E. Gannett, an Upstate New York newspaperman who founded what would become one of the largest communications businesses in the United States- Gannett Co. , Inc. His personal gifts created the Foundation- 1,500 shares of Gannett Co., Inc. stock valued at $5,000 in 1935 and a second gift two years later of 28,500 shares worth $102,000. These gifts, along with other investments, have grown enormously since that time, making the Gannett Foundation one of the nation's largest independent foundations. In its first 50 years, the Gannett Foundation made more than 13,000 grants totaling approxi- mately $125 million to a wide variety of edu- cational institutions and local charities. Today the Gannett Foundation supports community projects in areas served by Gannett Co., Inc. media operations, national programs to improve journalism education and professionalism, and programs to advance philanthropy and promote volunteerism. It also operates the Gannett Center for Media Studies: A Gannett Foundation Program at Columbia University, the nation's first institute for the advanced study of mass communication and technological change. About This Brochure Our Interests I\==- he purpose of this brochure is to describe ocal Grants the programmatic interests of the Gannett In its local grant program, the Gannett T Foundation and explain how to apply for L Foundation funds a wide range of commu- a grant. nity-based projects designed to address many In the following pages, we outline our funding needs. The local grants support a broad array of interests, the information we need to act on a efforts to help all kinds of people-from troubled request, the ways in which we decide on grant youth to the frail elderly-live healthier, safer and proposals and the timetables we use. more productive and fulfilling lives. In recent years, more than 1, 700 regular grants annually have been made in some 120 communities served by Gannett Co., Inc. newspapers, radio and television stations, outdoor advertising and other media. Traditionally, most of these grants are rela- tively small, averaging less than $4,000 each. The Gannett Foundation makes local grants only in communities served by Gannett Co., Inc. sub- sidiaries; those communities and properties are listed on a card at the back of this brochure. If a local nonprofit organization is located in one of these areas and wishes to apply for a grant, it should contact any Gannett Co., Inc. chief executive officer in the community. Names and ad- dresses of local Gannett Co., Inc. chief executives may be obtained from local sources or from the Foundation. While there is a great diversity in purpose among these local grants, the Foundation requires that at least one-third of each area's local grants address key community problems identified as part of each area's Community Priorities Program ascertainment process. Community Priorities Program grants are generally larger in amount and normally The Community Priorities Program (CPP), estab- represent unusual, one-time funding opportunities lished in 1981 , is the Foundation's single largest related to the Foundation's historic or current in- competitive grant program. It is designed to iden- terests. Occasionally the Foundation starts a pro- tify a community's most pressing problems and gram and seeks a grantee or grantees to operate it; propose projects to address them. These priorities less frequently the proposal comes unsolicited to vary from community to community, and from the Foundation. 1 J year to year, and are determined by a community- The nature of these special projects varies from based ascertainment process or needs assessment. year to year. Information about them can be found On occasion, the Foundation will limit proposals to in the Foundation's annual reports. a special topic, such as the 1985 CPP category of Journalism Education & Professionalism "People and Their Work." Programs to improve journalism education and to Each individual ascertainment process, conduc- strengthen the journalism profession have long ted under guidelines developed by the Foundation, been a national interest of the Gannett Foundation. draws upon the expertise and input of cornillunity Each ·year, more than $2 million is allocated for representatives from all walks of life who know grants in this area. their community and its key needs. Grants in support of journalism education and About half of the proposals submitted receive professionalism are made in seven categories to funding in any one year. CPP awards range in journalism organizations, and schools of journal- amount from about $20,000 to a maximum of ism or mass communication that are accredited by $150,000; in recent years these grants totaled more the Accrediting Council on Education in Journal- than $2 million annually. ism and Mass Communications (ACEJMC) . Areas Decisions to compete in CPP, the types of of interest include: projects submitted, and the organization(s) chosen • Support and defense of the First Amendment to carry them out are the individual responsibilities (freedom of the press). of Gannett Co., Inc. local CEOs. Individual orga- • Opportunities for minorities in the media. nizations, therefore, cannot apply directly to the • Upward mobility for women in media manage- Foundation for CPP awards. ment. Special Grants • Continuing education and development of jour- The Gannett Foundation periodically supports a nalists. number of special projects. These grants differ • Strengthening journalism education. from the Foundation's local grant programs in • Advancement of professionalism with a special several ways . Often they reflect programmatic emphasis on ethics. interests that are more national in scope, or at least • Research with direct application to journalism. extend to programs operating in a number of Gannett Co., Inc.-served communities. These Requests for funding research must come from universities; grants are not made to individual fac- What We Do Not Fund ulty members. Priority is given to one-time requests as opposed to continuing funding , and ap- proval is rarely given for projects of more than one year's duration. ike most foundations , the Gannett Founda- tion has limited resources and cannot sup- Lport all of the worthy proposals it receives. Therefore, it must set priorities and frequently has to turn down requests. As a general rule, grants are not made to: • Individuals, or organizations not determined by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service to be nonprofit and tax exempt. • Local organizations not located in Gannett Co., Inc.-served communities. Grants for seminars or other continuing edu- • National or regional organizations unrelated to cation programs are made only to organizations or journalism. institutes whose primary activity is journalism ed- • Religious organizations for religious purposes. ucation and support of professionalism and a ma- • Elementary or secondary schools, public or pri- jority of whose directors are journalists or journal- vate, except for innovative special programs that ism educators. serve disadvantaged or gifted students, enhance teaching skills or otherwise add a desirable edu- Funding is not available for endowments, in- cation dimension not provided by regular school cluding named or distinguished chairs; buildings operating or capital budgets. or capital improvements; publications of any kind, • Political or legislative action groups. including student newspapers; and equipment pur- • Endowment funds , loan programs or annual chases. contributions other than United Ways. All requests for journalism education grants • Multiple-year pledge campaigns. must include a budget projection and a copy of the • Medical or other research unrelated to journal- applying organization's most recent IRS Form 990 ism. (if a new organization, then a financial statement). • Organizations in nations other than the United All requests for funding in this area should be States and Canada. directed to the vice president/education at the • Fraternal groups, athletic teams, bands, veterans Foundation's Rochester office. organizations, volunteer firefighters and other Scholarships such organizations, however worthy their pur- Each year the Gannett Foundation awards three poses, whose numbers far surpass the Founda- different kinds of college scholarships. These tion's ability to provide meaningful , consistent are the Frank Gannett Newspapercarrier Scholar- assistance. ships, scholarships for sons and daughters of • Programs that would financially benefit Gannett Gannett Co., Inc. employees and retirees, and Co., Inc. properties. scholarships for students studying for careers in journalism. Information on each of these programs can be obtained from the Foundation's scholarships ad- ministrator at the Rochester office. What We Need to Know Time lines rant applications to the Gannett Foundation he Gannett Foundation accepts proposals at and to the local Gannett Co., Inc. proper- any time throughout the year. Its executive ties must be in writing. They can be in Tcommittee approves grants monthly, and the G full board of trustees meets quarterly. Applicants either letter or proposal form, and elaborate pre- sentations or personal interviews are not required. should plan on 90 to 120 days for processing and a However, the following information is needed: decision. Either the Gannett Foundation or the • The project's purpose and cost. Gannett

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