Understanding Foundation Philanthropy to Human Service Organizations: Funding Stratification in an Urban Grants Economy

ABSTRACT

Human service nonprofit organizations navigate a complex funding environment. Grants from philanthropic foundations are one piece of this puzzle, conveying both funds and legitimacy. This paper examines foundation funding to human service nonprofits in one urban grants economy. Nonprofits are stratified into three groups: new entrants, repeat players, and sustained players. This sorting has serious consequences and is related to organizational characteristics, resource dependence, institutional factors, and network participation. Further, it appears that funding to repeat players is becoming more concentrated over time. Implications for research and practice are considered.

KEYWORDS:

• Human service nonprofits
• philanthropic foundations
• grantmaking

Acknowledgements

The author thanks the journal Editors, two anonymous reviewers, Steve Morrison, Susan Silbey and Erynn Beaton for their helpful comments on previous drafts.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).