ANN ARBOR—On July 9-13, the University of Michigan School of Education will host a seminar on how private foundations have helped set the direction for higher education in the United States.

John Burkhardt, U-M professor of higher education, and Joel Orosz, senior program director at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, will conduct the seminar incorporating presentations from representatives from several major national and state foundations. Burkhardt says, “Philanthropy in general and private foundations in particular have had a profound effect on shaping the direction of American higher education and yet, little is known about the ways these organizations view their work, make decisions and evaluate the impact of their investments. This seminar is being organized as a dialogue between individuals who work within foundations and those who seek to better understand foundations.”

The five-session course will be organized around several themes including the historical, legal and philosophical basis of foundations supporting higher education, and how private foundations can shape higher education. Space is limited to no more than 20 people and participants will be required to submit a summary paper following the course.

“Some of those signing up will be students in our graduate program who have an interest in higher education and for them the outcome will be a better sense of how philanthropy shapes institutional planning and activity. Many of those who attend will be individuals who need to work with foundations to be successful—faculty members, development officers, administrators,” says Burkhardt. “One direct outcome will be a stronger sense of partnership around the common vision of a better society that inspires the work of both foundations and higher education in the United States.”

Guests from a number of different foundations both national and international will offer their perspectives and be available for questions and answers and informal discussions. Toby Citron, professor in the U-M School of Public Health, will offer a U-M perspective, focusing on how the support of national foundations has shaped work in the U-M School of Public Health and in the field and profession. There will also be a section of the seminar devoted to Web-based research on foundation related topics that go beyond the usual techniques taught in proposal writing workshops.

To find out more about this seminar, contact Lesley Harding at (248) 360-9415 or lionles@aol.com

Contact: Lesley Harding Pager: (888) 761-6263
 

School of EducationJohn BurkhardtToby Citronlionles@aol.com