Mark Sidel, an internationally recognized expert on philanthropy and the law, has been appointed the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation Visiting Chair on Community Foundations at the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy in 2016.
Sidel is the Doyle-Bascom Professor of Law and Public Policy at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, a role in which he continues to serve. As a member of the Council on Foundations Community Foundations National Standards Board, the national accrediting and standard setting body for American community foundations and trusts, and a long-time observer of the development of community foundations in the United States and beyond, he brings to the school new perspective and insight into the community foundations movement and its future.
"Community foundations often are on the frontlines of crucial issues in our cities and towns, and many are true innovators,” said Amir Pasic, Ph.D., the Eugene R. Tempel Dean of the school. “Dr. Sidel’s intellectual leadership will help our students and members of the community expand their understanding about the growth and future evolution of these important pillars of our communities.”
Sidel is developing and teaching the school’s first course on community foundations during the 2016 spring semester, including leading a series of workshops on community philanthropy and community foundation issues. The workshops, which are free and open to the public, are:
February 11
Place-based giving in identity-focused groups: The case of Muslim community foundations and philanthropy
Co-sponsored by Lake Institute on Faith & Giving, the event is co-chaired by Sidel and Shariq Siddiqui, Executive Director of the Association for Research on Nonprofit Organizations and Voluntary Action (ARNOVA). Panelists include prominent philanthropists working on Muslim philanthropy and community foundation building in the U.S.
March 3
New developments in the regulation and self-regulation of community foundations and U.S. national standards
Panelists include the director and chair of the U.S. Community Foundations National Standards Board and the executive director of an Indiana community foundation with long experience with the national standards.
Sidel will lead a community foundations research symposium March 31 - April 1 in Indianapolis featuring leading nonprofit and foundation professionals and scholars presenting cutting-edge research and perspectives on community foundations and community philanthropy.
“The Lilly Family School of Philanthropy is a worldwide leader in philanthropy research, training and service, Sidel said. “I’m honored and delighted to have this opportunity to work with colleagues and friends at the Lilly School and in the community foundations and community philanthropy community as the Lilly School expands on its historic expertise in this crucial area of philanthropy.”
Through teaching, research and public service, scholars and foundation professionals serving in the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation Chair on Community Foundations contribute significantly to understanding and enhancing the important work of community foundations. The chair was established in 2014 with a gift from the Mott Foundation to commemorate the centennial of community foundations in the U.S. The Foundation’s goal in supporting the chair is to elevate the level of research in the field that will ultimately help produce better outcomes in local communities.
Sidel’s extensive experience in the international philanthropic and funding communities includes serving on the Ford Foundation team that established its China office and as its first program officer for law, legal reform and nonprofit organizations there. He developed and led the Ford Foundation’s Vietnam programs and its South Asia regional philanthropy program. A frequent advisor to foundations, nonprofits and governments, Sidel currently also serves as a consultant on Asia to the International Center for Not-for-Profit Law (ICNL).
The author or editor of 11 books, Sidel most recently co-edited Regulatory Waves: Comparative Perspectives on State Regulation and Self-Regulation in the Nonprofit Sector (Cambridge University Press, forthcoming 2016, ed. with Breen and Dunn). A former president of the International Society for Third Sector Research (ISTR), he currently serves on the boards of ARNOVA and the Society of American Law Teachers (SALT). He won the International Center for Not-for-Profit Law-Cordaid Civil Liberties Prize for his work on the impact of anti-terrorism law on civil society and was named to the Outstanding Academic Award by the Nonprofit Organizations Committee of the American Bar Association, Business Law Section. He holds an A.B. from Princeton University, a M.A. from Yale University and a J.D. from Columbia Law School.
About the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy
The Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy is dedicated to improving philanthropy to improve the world by training and empowering students and professionals to be innovators and leaders who create positive and lasting change. The school offers a comprehensive approach to philanthropy through its academic, research and international programs and through The Fund Raising School, Lake Institute on Faith & Giving, and the Women’s Philanthropy Institute. Follow us on Twitter @IUPhilanthropy or “Like” us on Facebook.
About the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation
The Mott Foundation, established in 1926 in Flint, Michigan, by an automotive pioneer, is a private philanthropy committed to supporting projects that promote a just, equitable and sustainable society. It supports nonprofit programs throughout the United States and, on a limited geographic basis, internationally. Grantmaking is focused in four programs: Civil Society, Environment, Flint Area and Education. In addition to Flint, offices are located in metropolitan Detroit, Johannesburg and London. With year-end assets of approximately $2.7 billion in 2015, the Foundation made 400 grants totaling more than $119 million.