2009 Year In Review

2009 was the first year in implementing a five-year strategic plan that identified four areas on which to focus our efforts. Below is a summary of focus areas including highlights of 41 grants awarded totaling $24,136,767. Of grants awarded, $15,530,202 was distributed in calendar year 2009 with $8,606,565 to be disbursed in calendar years 2010 – 2013.

Quality of Life
The Foundation awarded 25 quality of life grants in 2009. All grants were awarded to organizations located in the greater Louisville area except for Christian Appalachian Project located in Eastern Kentucky and had a state-wide social services expansion project. 

Education
Brown Fellows Program - 2009 was the inaugural year for the Brown Fellows Program established with a goal to challenge Centre College and the University of Louisville to become more competitive through recruitment and retention of top academic students, and to strive for excellence. The BFP provides academic and summer enrichment opportunities for Fellows as well as gap funding to each institution to ensure that each Fellow receives full comprehensive tuition. The Foundation allocated approximately $489,000 toward this inaugural year and anticipates allocating approximately $4 million over the next three years toward this program. 

James Graham Brown Cancer Center
In 2009 distributed the second of five $5 million disbursements which are to be used to recruit scientists and experts focused on lung cancer research, breast cancer research and clinical care; and a facility devoted to new drug development and tumor immunology studies.

Top Performance
Staff participated in several national- regional- community-oriented activities including Southeastern Council of Foundations: Membership, Program, Government Affairs Committees; Council on Foundations: Public Policy Committee and Foundations on the Hill; Grant making School: Grants Portfolio Analysis Course; Greater Louisville Project, Mayor’s Education Roundtable and Task Force.

Staff convened two roundtable discussions with nonprofit agency and foundation executives to discuss community needs and challenges due to economic downturn.

Multi-Year Grantmaking:

Grants awarded as multi-year disbursements for fiscal year 2010 – 2013 totaled $8,606,565. This figure does not include our 2008 commitment to the J G Brown Cancer Center in the amount of $20,000,000 which requires funding of $16 million from 2010 – 2012 or the Foundation’s commitment to the Brown Fellows Program with an estimated cost to be approximately $4.5 million 2010 – 2012.