OVERVIEW: Franke Family Charitable Foundation’s grantmaking includes support of education, arts and humanities. Chicago is a geographic priority.
IP TAKE: The Franke Family Charitable Foundation is a major supporter of the humanities in the greater Chicago area. It keeps a low public profile, which limits information available on its grantmaking priorities and activities. This funder does, however, accept letters of intent from nonprofits working in its areas of interest. Contact information is provided below.
PROFILE: Founded in 1990, the Franke Family Charitable Foundation was established by Barbara and Richard Franke, an investment banker. Richard J. Franke received a B.A. from Yale University in 1953, and an MBA from Harvard Business School. Franke spent his business career as an investment banker with the John Nuveen Company, retiring in 1996 as chairman and CEO. The Franke Family Charitable Foundation’s grantmaking includes support of education, arts and humanities. To a lesser extent, the foundation has funded health, human rights and community development.
Grants for Humanities
The Frankes have been strong patrons of the humanities for many years and seem to have made this their primary area of support.
- In 1988, Franke helped found the Chicago Humanities Festival, which brings together artists and culture critics from all over the world, and it has continued to receive steady annual support from the foundation.
- In 1997, he was a member of the first cohort to receive the new National Humanities Medal from then President Clinton. In the late 1990s, Franke and Barbara gave $2.5 million to University of Chicago’s Humanities Institute, and it was renamed the Franke Institute for the Humanities.
- Franke has also supported the Alice Kaplan Institute for the Humanities at Northwestern University and the Whitney Humanities Center at Yale University, where the Frankes created the Franke Seminar and Lectures in the Humanities program and endowed the Franke Program in Science and the Humanities.
Grants for Arts and Culture
Franke supports arts and culture institutions throughout the Chicago area, most of which tend to be larger, established organizations.
- Regular support has gone to Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago Historical Society, and The Newberry Library.
- Other Chicago-area grantees include the Lyric Opera of Chicago, where Richard Franke is a lifetime director, Illinois Arts Action Coalition, Court Theatre, Chicago Public Library, Chicago Public Media, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, and Window to the World Communications.
Grants for K-12 and Higher Education
Other Chicago-area grantees include Barbara’s alma mater, Northwestern University, home to the Franke Fellowship Program and which has received millions over the years.
- Franke gave $1 million to North Shore Country Day School in 2023.
- The foundation has supported Frankes’ alma mater Yale University, as well as the Yale Club of Chicago, an alumni organization.
- Other education grantees include University of Chicago, Golden Apple Foundation for Excellence in Teaching, North Shore Country Day School, The Chicago Scholars Foundation, Judson University a Baptist Institution, Legacy Charter School, and Shimer College.
Important Grant Details
Grants typically range from $500 to $500,000, but they have gone as high as $1 million. The foundation gave away over $4.2 million in grants in a recent year and held more than $53.7 million in assets.
- Arts and humanities organizations of all sizes have received Franke support.
- Grantmaking prioritizes but is not limited to Chicago.
- The foundation accepts written narratives with proof of 501(c) status.
- The funder’s phone number is 312-573-2743.
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CONTACT:
Franke Family Foundation
676 N. Michigan Ave., Ste. 2920
Chicago, IL 60611-2861
(312) 573-2743
