The Lilly Family School of Philanthropy is proud to recognize the efforts of Black Philanthropy Month and the initiative’s work to showcase the important work done by Black philanthropists, scholars, practitioners, and champions.
It aligns directly with the school’s own values to make our field more equitable and just. To that end, we have gathered a variety of resources to aid in the discussion, advocacy, and future of Black philanthropy.
Giving Trends and Patterns
The school conducted two phases of research to understand everyday donors of color and their giving trends and patterns, funded by a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The goal is to provide data and analysis to better understand the patterns and trends surrounding the decline in donor participation across communities of color.
Explore the series
Featuring Helene Gayle, president of Spelman College
"Collaboration and alignment are two of the most important concepts every college president must keep at the forefront as they strive to nurture an educational environment that creates new leaders and a sustainable financial model that undergirds their long-term vision."
Read the article
Louis B. Jordan, Black Philanthropy Circle
Learn how the IU community comes together to celebrate African American students, staff, and faculty.
Black Philanthropy Month at IU
Building on the school’s ongoing Higher Education Philanthropy Initiative look at how philanthropy influences the higher education landscape in the U.S., the school convened experts from sub-Saharan Africa to examine the potential that private philanthropy from Africa has to bolster the African higher education landscape.
With funding from the Carnegie Corporation of New York, the two-part webinar series convened a panel of experts to discuss the philanthropic landscape for higher education institutions in sub-Saharan Africa, the engagement of African donors in higher education, and how the challenges in giving to higher education can be addressed to facilitate and increase African giving both within countries and across national borders.
Our Mays Family Institute on Diverse Philanthropy seeks to understand the perceptions, practices, experiences, and needs of the individuals and institutions that operationalize philanthropy in underrepresented communities and develop programming and services to engage philanthropic practitioners, scholars, and the public at large in conversations and activities to advance this field.
The Mays Family Institute hosts several nationally prominent speakers to examine diversity in philanthropy and nonprofit organizations.
During the recent NBA All-Star Game Weekend in Indianapolis, esteemed NBA players and their parents joined Indiana’s elite AAU basketball players and their parents to talk about giving back and navigating life as future NCAA D1, NBA, and WNBA players. The Mays Family Institute on Diverse Philanthropy at the IU Lilly Family School of Philanthropy and Mothers of Professional Basketball Players, Inc. (MPBP, Inc.) partnered to present the All-Star 2024 Athlete and Parent Forum, an insightful discussion on building a lasting legacy on and off the court.
Tyrone Freeman, Ph.D., assistant professor of philanthropic studies and director of undergraduate programs, is an award-winning scholar. His research focuses on the history of African American philanthropy, philanthropy in communities of color, the history of American philanthropy, and philanthropy and fundraising in higher education.
Freeman’s newest book, Madam C.J. Walker’s Gospel of Giving: Black Women’s Philanthropy during Jim Crow, examines African American women’s history of charitable giving, activism, education, and social service provision through the life and example of Madam C.J. Walker, the early twentieth century black philanthropist and entrepreneur.
Visit the Gospel of Giving website
In fall 2020, the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy formed a new committee with the mandate to support the school’s desire to foster racial justice, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) for staff, faculty, students, alumni, and partners.
Learn more about our DEI efforts