9 survey respondents
Location: 320 E 43rd St, New York, 10017 NY
EIN: 13-1684331
43%
57%
8 hours
Median
17%
83%
39%
61%
2017 Deadlines:
Types of Grants Awarded:
Geographic Focus:
For Fiscal Year
Total Assets:
Total Grants:
Change in Assets FY :
Amount of Grants to Minnesota Nonprofits:
Largest Grant:
Smallest Grant:
Average Grant:
Grant Applicant - applied in 2019
Unless you have a good contact it's probably best not to apply. And I say this having received monies!
Texas
Current or former grantee
Other
2019
Bad
It is a highly intellectually arrogant foundation, really the worst of the worst.
Bad
Big on strategy, low on impact. Their gender equality work is a great example of this. The CEO wrote a tome about their need to get into that space after Time's Up started. But if you ask about what they are doing, they say we are giving to repro rights orgs. First of all, women are more than their uteruses. Second, their strategy (which hasn't changed in a decade) is failing.
Be transparent. Make your grant making actually accessible and clear. Or don't and admit that it's a closed system.
I had a good relationship with funder because that's what we in the sector do. But I did not have a positive experience with them.
I have met with program officers at Ford a number of times. It takes months to get on the calendar. Then when the meeting happens they look confused and say things like 'wow, your org is a great fit for us, but you should be meeting with NAME OF OTHER PROGRAM OFFICER. She's at a bunch of conferences for the next two months, but here's her contact information.' Then, when we finally get the meeting (which gets cancelled a few times) it's the same story. Seriously, this has happened like 3 times. During Covid they just stopped making new grants but Darren Walker kept opining online, which appeared to be the sum total of the foundation's work.
5
Reviewer 6988 - Professional in the field
They don't have a clue, especially the leadership.
Inadvertently exerts negative influence in the field, Doesn't "get" nonprofits and issues, Difficult to work with, Culturally incompetent, Bureaucratic, Risk averse
New York
Professional in the field
2020
Bad
Bad
Top down conversion to community-centric fundraising. Follow the advice of the billionaire that made the foundation possible. "I have no patience with professional charity or with any sort of commercialized humanitarianism,” he wrote in 1923. “The moment human helpfulness is systematized, organized, commercialized, and professionalized, the heart of it is extinguished, and it becomes a cold and clammy thing.” Ford gave 1/3 of his wealth to charity.
Don't waste your time applying.
Getting its leaders names in the celebrity media when they attend charity events.
0
Grant Applicant - applied in 2019
The are the most unresponsive foundation I've ever dealt with. Sending them an LOI is like dropping it into a well so deep you never hear it hit the bottom. Even once you've met with the program officer who's barely cordial and says to send the LOI you still NEVER get a response. They're the worst.
Inadvertently exerts negative influence in the field, Difficult to work with, Bureaucratic, Risk averse
Georgia
Applied and not funded
2019
Bad
As I said, they are the worst I've ever dealt with.
Bad
I know for a fact that if they like your project they'll literally throw money at it. One friend received money she never even applied for but they make no effort whatsoever to work with you on any level or to explore other possibilities.
Respond to people's emails!
They're such a big dog in the field that getting their approval can really launch a project and help bring in more funds but they're ridiculously tight lipped and unresponsive so good luck!
They promote themselves very well and when they're on board with a project they're very generous.
Less than 5
Grant Applicant - applied in 2018
My experience is that if you let them believe that they are really smart and know more than you do and that they helped shaped the proposal, you can get them to fund it. That said, some of them are really smart about housing and development -- they just seem to have forgotten that they are no longer practitioners in MY field -- they are now practitioners in philanthropy and maybe they should work at being just as good at that.
Friendly, Likes site visits, Responsive
Michigan
Current or former grantee
Funded for amount requested
2018
Average
Average
Be good at what you do and support us in being good at what we do.
Read the website carefully.
I had a good sense right up front if our proposal would be a match for their interests. I appreciated that.
8
Grant Applicant - applied in 2016
My experience with program officers has been uniformly unpleasant, unlike virtually every other foundation with which I deal. Talk with development person at funded sister organizations to get insight on which program officers to approach (each focus area has several), and get that person to also do an e-intro first. Very difficult to get a meeting unless you know someone there, or an ally does and is willing to promote you to a Ford person.
Doesn't "get" nonprofits and issues, Difficult to work with, Bureaucratic, Risk averse
Array
Current or former grantee
Funded for amount requested
2016
Bad
I can only speak for the program area through which I am funded. Although we have done very detailed reports, in all the years we've been funded we have never received a word of feedback on them or much in the way of comment on our successes. I wonder if even they know whether they are accomplishing current goals...I wonder if funding is based on positive reputation rather than a thoughtful examination of goals and progress.
Average
Ford does not support essential, small, creative organizations that frequently are the drivers of change. Ford seems more comfortable with large, mainstream organizations or organizations with leaders who flatter the program officers and don't rock the boat. And I say this as someone who has managed to get funding from them for years. In my opinion and limited experience, there is insufficient monitoring of and accountability required of program officers -- whom they meet with or refuse to speak with, how they make their funding decisions, the extent to which they do or don't support their grantees. This is especially a problem when they have a new program officer with no grantmaking experience and very little humility. And they have been terrible on disabilities rights issues, and in funding organizations that make creative use of current disability antidiscrimination laws.
Invest in smaller creative advocacy organizations that have the ability and drive to concretely advance social equity; interview grantees regularly about their experiences with program officers; require program officers to give feedback on grantee reports; require program officers to support grantees through connections with other funding sources; make some serious investments in disability rights advocacy and efforts to expand the reach of disability antidiscrimination laws; prioritize funding of organizations whose advocacy reaches the criminal legal system, e.g., the treatment of people with disabilities in criminal proceedings, in prisons/jails.
When Ford Foundation gives you a grant, it's of a sufficient size that you can actually accomplish something.
28
Reviewer 3637 - Grant Applicant - applied in 2018
Get your ED in the same room with their program officers and schmooze schmooze schmooze. As far as I can tell it's the only way.
(Unknown)
Current or former grantee
Other
2018
Bad
Inscrutable. Sprawling. The left hand doesn't know what the right hand is doing, and neither of them will give your a clear timeline for when/if you'll be funded.
Average
Just tell us your criteria and your timeline and we will give you what you want. Being left hanging for so long compromises our ability to adequately plan our budget and execute our programming.
There was no opportunity to make a request. They just decided how much they were going to offer us.
Threy give a lot of gen ops funding.
25
Reviewer 5016 - Grant Applicant - applied in 2017
Take the time to study their website and past grantees. They are pretty clear about what they fund and if you fit, do whatever it takes to cultivate a relationship with the program officers!
Positive leader in the field, Gives more than money, Risk taker, Culturally sensitive, Insightful, Friendly, Builds relationships, "Gets" nonprofits and issues, Openminded
Oregon
Current or former grantee
Funded for amount requested
2017
Average
My org was fortunate in that our ED had a very positive relationship with Ford program officers, who are really great advocates & knowledgeable about the field. That said, we of course devoted a lot of staff time to ensure we could get as much face and phone time as possible; literally planning cross-country travel just in the hopes of scheduling a one-hour meeting with Ford! I suppose that is part of "the game" - but do they not have Skype?
Good
I really admire their commitment to social justice and innovation. I find Ford to be communicative and clear about their priorities and direction. They have accomplished some incredible work.
Reach back to your grantees, and/or facilitate ways to genuinely connect with our mission - not just a single individual who represents the org.
A leader in the field, who proactively provide resources that make it clear how they make grants.
Knowledgeable program officers. My org was lucky in that Ford understood the big picture of what we were trying to do, and willing to take a risk to support a POC arts org. I think they balance accountability alongside a realistic understanding of the sector and trends.
12
Reviewer 7956 - Grant Applicant - applied in 2017
It is difficult to communicate with the foundation.
Doesn't "get" nonprofits and issues, Difficult to work with, Bureaucratic
New Jersey
Applied and not funded
Other
2017
Bad
Difficult
Bad
This foundation funds international projects, but is not interested in Mali.
To take time to meet new grantees to better understand the organization as a whole.
We applied for a community health assessment in Samaya, Mali. We never heard from the foundation. Our team is ready to travel in December 2018.
I can't comment.
Less than 5
Grant Applicant - applied in 2017
Know that their focus areas are changing are quite a bit and just how is not always clear from external communications alone. Talking with current staff and understanding new priorities will be key.
Positive leader in the field, "Gets" nonprofits and issues
California
Current or former grantee
Funded for greater amount
2017
Average
Good
An important, progressive, funder. An ally to many great organizations.
Improve communication between Program staff and your Grants Admin & Financial staff. We are a long-time grantee and have felt on several occasions like a go-between for POs and the Grants team - who seemed unable to talk to one another.
Different parts of the foundation can have different requirements. Working with different POs at different times, we've sometimes had very smooth processes and sometimes had to jump through many administrative hoops (strangely formatted excel sheets for budgets, being asked to submit full formal CVs for staff, etc.). Its been unclear why the process can differ so much. Know that excessive (and often changing) administrative burdens only keep grantees from doing the work you are funding us to do.
Funds progressive, social change focused grantees. Offers capacity-building support.
20
