Foundation Timeline

We invite you to look back at a brief history of the Foundation, particularly as seen through the evolution of our grantmaking. Over the years, our grantmaking approach has changed in response to regional opportunities and challenges, and the needs of the people who live and work here. While what we call our program areas has changed over time, since our earliest days we have remained committed to improving educational opportunities for children and young people, protecting the environment, and helping foster diverse cultural expression and experiences in the region. The grants highlighted in the timeline are examples intended to illustrate the progression of our work.

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1887

Haas

After the death of his father, Otto Haas (second from right) goes to work as a bank clerk, at age 15, in his native Germany, learning English-language skills.

1909

Haas

In 1907, Otto partners with chemist Otto Rohm to create the Rohm & Haas chemical company in Esslingen, Germany. Two years later, the company expands to America, opening its first U.S. office in Philadelphia, eventually residing on N. Front Street where it was located until 1927.

1914

Haas

Otto marries Phoebe Waterman. Phoebe earns degrees in mathematics and astronomy from Vassar College and the University of California, Berkeley, and is among the first women to earn a Ph.D. in astronomy. The two met while on board a ship to Buenos Aires. Otto was embarking on a two-month trip to South America to expand markets for Rohm & Haas, and Phoebe was on her way to an observatory to work as an astronomer in the southern hemisphere.

1945

Haas

Together, Otto and Phoebe create the Phoebe Waterman Foundation. World War II had just ended and throughout the 40's their early philanthropic interests addressed post-war needs including scholarships for fatherless children and aid for European recovery.

1955

Haas

Grantmaking in the first decade reflected the family's personal interests and concerns. Ninety grants were made, ranging in size from a few dollars to over $100,000 for construction of a dormitory at the Philadelphia Divinity School. Medical research and hospital expansion projects were also among the Foundation's initial philanthropy, including support for cancer research and the founding of Lower Bucks Hospital.

1960

Haas

Otto Haas passes away in 1960, and the Foundation receives the bulk of his estate. Phoebe continues regular gifts to the Foundation until her death in 1967.

1960

Haas

Sons John C. and F. Otto Haas take leadership roles at both Rohm & Haas and the Foundation shortly after Otto's passing. F. Otto and his wife, Dorothy, show interest in protecting open green space, historic preservation, and arts and culture institutions. John and his wife, Chara, primarily focus on efforts to improve the quality of life for children and families, especially in disadvantaged communities.

1961

Watershed Protection

Whitpain Township Municipal Improvement Authority

The first grant for environmental protection was made to Whitpain Township to acquire land for a park. In 1987, environment became a separate category for the Foundation's philanthropy, but was the smallest part of the grant budget. In 1996 it became the second largest, reflecting the Foundation's concern for protection of the region's natural resources.

$125,600.00

1965

Great Learning

During the 60's funding for children and youth went to a wide range of agencies including Big Brothers of Bucks County, the Girl Scouts and the YMCA, while others were awarded to neighborhood houses and churches for the construction or improvement of playgrounds, youth centers, and summer camps.

1967

Creative Communities

Walnut Street Theatre

Dating from 1808, America's oldest theatre had accommodated every imaginable form of entertainment, until, in the late 1960's it was in decline and in danger of being replaced by a parking garage. From 1969-1976 the Foundation provided over $4.5 million for interior renovations and restoration of the theatre's classic facade, and in 1972 the Foundation began supporting its operations as well. The Foundation continues to support its arts education programs today.

$4,500,000.00 over several years.

1972

Creative Communities

School District of Philadelphia & The Theater Ticket Fund

In partnership with the School District, Foundation funding gives students the opportunity to attend local theater performances with discounted tickets for the 1972-1973 season.

$25,000.00

1974

Haas

To recognize its range of grantmaking interests--arts and culture, human development, education, and the environment--the Foundation renames itself to commemorate William Penn, a 17th century Quaker whose pursuit of an exemplary society led to the establishment of Philadelphia.

1976

Watershed Protection

Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education

Incorporating elements of both watershed protection and education, the Foundation makes a two-year grant in cooperation with the School District of Philadelphia. Visitors to the Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education are able to learn and develop appreciation for our regional ecosystem.

$67,800.00

1977

Great Learning

School District of Philadelphia

Continuing its mission to advance education in Philadelphia, the Foundation makes a significant contribution to provide books for preschool children in the city.

$144,000.00

1979

Great Learning

Boys and Girls Club of Philadelphia, Inc.

The Foundation has supported the Boys & Girls Club of Philadelphia over several decades. This grant supported the renovation of four facilities, but since that time support has included a variety of projects including construction of a new gymnasium and multipurpose addition to the Wissahickon Boys & Girls Club, a new resource development office, and support of enrichment programs at its summer camps.

$150,000.00

1979

Creative Communities

Taller Puertorriqueno

The first of 24 grants was made to Taller Puertorriqueno to help renovate a cultural community center. Later grants included support for a wide range of efforts including expansion of its artistic programs, building renovations, and toward creating a business plan totaling more than $2.7 million, collectively.

$75,000.00

1987

Watershed Protection

Natural Lands Trust

The Foundation's second-ever grant to the Natural Lands Trust is used to acquire ecologically fragile land for the Glades, a nature preserve in southern New Jersey. The land is critical to preserving and protecting water quality within the watershed.

$280,000.00

1988

Creative Communities

Zoological Society of Philadelphia

In an effort to engage families and create an appreciation for the environment and diverse habitat, the Foundation provides a three-year, $300,000 grant toward the construction of a new carnivore exhibit at the Philadelphia Zoo, America's oldest zoo. The Foundation has supported the Zoo for a variety of efforts since that time including the launch of Zoo360, an animal exploration trail experience. This campus-wide network of see-through mesh trails affords more opportunities for animals to roam around and above Zoo grounds.

$300,000.00

1990

Creative Communities

South Broad Street Cultural Initiative

A nearly $1 million grant was awarded to purchase a historic bank building at 601 South Broad Street, which is later developed into the University of the Arts' Arts Bank. Since that time the Foundation awarded more than 24 grants to improve South Broad Street and help reinvigorate Broad Street as a cultural hub of Philadelphia and the region.

$901,000.00

1993

Haas

John C. Haas steps down after 32 years as Chairman of the Foundation’s Board of Directors. John's son David becomes chair of the board and Janet Haas becomes vice chair, and the third generation of the Haas family assumes leadership of the Foundation.

1994

Creative Communities

Philadelphia Folklore Project

The Foundation awards its first grant to the Philadelphia Folklore Project to support its Folk Arts Access Program. This was the first of several grants to the organization over the years totaling more than $1 million.

$50,000.00

1995

Watershed Protection

New Jersey Conservation Foundation

To further protect the Delaware River watershed, the Foundation continues to strategically invest dollars toward preserving critical land within the region. A grant to the New Jersey Conservation Foundation preserves environmentally significant lands within the Upper Delaware River Corridor.

$550,000.00

1996

Great Learning

School District of Philadelphia

In August 1994, the Philadelphia School District adopts the "Children Achieving" education reform program, which places teaching and learning at the forefront of all program and resource decisions. In 1996, the Foundation donates $13.8 million toward strengthening teaching and learning resources for schools in Philadelphia's underserved neighborhoods to help more children succeed.

$13,800,000.00

1996

Great Learning

Free Library of Philadelphia

In honor of 50 years of grantmaking, the Foundation awards the Free Library with a Model Urban Library Services for Children grant in the amount of more than $18 million. With the grant dollars, the Central Library on the Parkway is expanded and remodeled, and dozens of neighborhood branches receive remodeled children's areas and new technology.

$18,066,943.00

1996

Watershed Protection

Trust for Public Land

The Foundation addresses two objectives through a multi-purpose grant to this national land conservation organization: acquisition and preservation of critical lands within the Barnegat Bay watershed, and a re-grant program to promote stewardship and public education.

$1,122,000.00

1996

Watershed Protection

Fairmount Park Commission

The Foundation provides significant support to the Fairmount Park Commission to build public awareness and enhance community stewardship of the park. This includes improved employee training programs, increased community outreach, and support for securing new funding sources.

$26,600,000.00

1998

Creative Communities

Kimmel Center

As plans surface for a new regional performing arts center in Center City, the Foundation contributes $10 million toward its design and construction.

$10,000,000.00

One-time exceptional civic opportunity grant.

2000

Creative Communities

National Constitution Center

The Foundation funds the endowment of and youth educational programming for the National Constitution Center, which becomes the first and only nonprofit, nonpartisan institution devoted to the U.S. Constitution. Today, the Center serves as an interactive museum, national town hall, and civic education headquarters.

$2,334,121.00

2001

Watershed Protection

New Jersey Conservation Foundation

In the absence of a sole governing entity driving watershed protection and land conservation in the Delaware River Basin, the Foundation provides a grant to the NJ Conservation Foundation toward improved management and protection of New Jersey's natural resources through coordinated public and private planning, policy, and land preservation efforts in the Delaware Bay Watershed and the Delaware River Corridor.

$660,000.00

2001

Watershed Protection

Natural Lands Trust

The Foundation continues to protect environmentally significant acres within the Delaware River watershed to preserve water quality through a grant to the Natural Lands Trust. The grant is used to protect land within the Pennsylvania Highlands through conservation planning, land acquisition, and community-based stewardship programs.

$1,650,000.00

2002

Great Learning

Delaware Valley Council for Early Care and Learning

As it has for nearly 60 years, the Foundation remains at the forefront of children's education advocacy by supporting this regional organization's research, data collection and analysis, and public education on emerging child care issues.

$80,000.00

2002

Creative Communities

Greater Philadelphia Urban Affairs Coalition

One of the first grants made by the Foundation to the Department of Recreation's Mural Arts Program, this funding introduces arts workshops and program planning support into four Philadelphia communities for youth development.

$249,999.00

2002

Watershed Protection

Fairmount Park Conservancy

Fairmount Park stands as one of the largest urban green spaces in the country, with thousands of acres of open green space, trails and woodlands, offering a refuge for all who live and work in the city. The Foundation's support aims to strengthen the partnership between the Fairmount Park Conservancy and the former Fairmount Park Commission to improve park restoration and stewardship. The Conservancy was established in 1998 as the Fairmount Park Foundation and renamed the Fairmount Park Conservancy in 2001.

$1,500,000.00

2003

Creative Communities

Barnes Foundation

In 2003, the Barnes Foundation moves from its historic home in Merion, Pa., to its current location on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway in Center City. A Foundation grant for capital and endowment needs supports this long-term vision for greater public access to the institution.

$10,000,000.00

One-time exceptional civic opportunity grant.

2004

Creative Communities

Please Touch Museum

At the turn of the new millennium, the Foundation supports the Please Touch Museum's plans to move from Philadelphia's Museum District along the Benjamin Franklin Parkway and construct a new, expanded museum at Penn's Landing. When the new waterfront location falls through, the Foundation contributes to the museum's $72 million capital campaign in 2004 to relocate to Memorial Hall in Fairmount Park, where it remains today.

$500,000.00

2008

Watershed Protection

Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia

As bicycle transit becomes a more popular option for city dwellers, the Foundation funds a study to determine the feasibility of establishing a bike sharing program in Philadelphia. In 2015 the Foundation supported the expansion of Philadelphia’s bike share program, Indego, with an emphasis on equity and ensuring bike share was accessible to low-income communities.

$82,500.00

2008

Creative Communities

Rosenbach Museum and Library

Nationally known for its collection of rare books, the Rosenbach receives Foundation funding that helps create a three-year capitalization strategy for long-term financial sustainability. The work positions the Rosenbach for a planning process that leads to its 2014 merger with the Free Library of Philadelphia.

$840,000.00

2009

Haas

A few months short of its 100th anniversary, the Rohm and Haas Company is acquired by The Dow Chemical Company. In December, John C. Haas directs a significant portion of the family's charitable assets from that sale to the Foundation.

2010

Watershed Protection

Pennsylvania Land Trust Association

The Foundation aligns with the Pennsylvania Land Trust Association on policy development and efforts to advance permanent protection of land in the Commonwealth. A 2010 grant funds education, outreach, and technical assistance to various Pennsylvania land trusts to advance best practices in these areas.

$242,000.00

2010

Creative Communities

Kimmel Center

A $3 million capitalization grant was awarded to the Kimmel Center to help the organization improve its business model in service to the Resident Companies.

$3,000,000.00

2010

Creative Communities

Delaware River Waterfront Corporation

With a vision for a more vibrant, lively riverfront, in 2007 the Foundation supported an effort to ensure public riverfront access guides the redevelopment of the Central Delaware Riverfront. Initial Foundation support funded a civic engagement process to create a new citizen-based vision for the Central Delaware Riverfront. That vision identified a series of key early actions including a new master plan and a series of riverfront public access improvement projects including the Race Street Pier, Spruce Street Harbor Park, Washington Avenue Green, Pier 68 Recreation Park, and a new waterfront trail, which the Foundation supported in 2010.

$5,000,000.00

2011

Creative Communities

Philadelphia Museum of Art

A multi-year, $5 million grant funds the construction of the museum's new 68,000-square-foot Art Handling Facility designed by Gehry Partners, providing much-needed improvements for the care, storage, and movement of the works of art in the museum’s collection.

$5,000,000.00

2011

Creative Communities

Center City District

At the epicenter of historic Philadelphia is City Hall, once the city's tallest building. The Foundation supports the renovation of the outdoor space surrounding the building through matching funds to secure individual and corporate contributions; later, Philadelphia's Dilworth Plaza is revealed as a newly revitalized public space.

$1,200,000.00

2011

Great Learning

Public Citizens for Children and Youth (PCCY)

Through one of its largest grants to PCCY since its first in 1987, The Foundation supports the organization as a partner in advancing children's access to high-quality education. As the region's leading child advocacy organization, PCCY advances policy work in support of adequate public funding and high-quality opportunities for children and youth.

$576,356.00

2012

Watershed Protection

Wildlands Conservency, Inc.

The Foundation aligns with Wildlands Conservancy in its mission to build a greater watershed constituency base, funding an expansion of the Conservancy's river and trail programs in the Lehigh Valley. The programs combine recreation and environmental education to build stewardship for the Delaware River watershed.

$360,000.00

2012

Great Learning

Delaware Valley Assocation for the Education of Young Children

Considered to be one of the Foundation's most pivotal early childhood education grants for its emphasis on child care provider collaboration, the Foundation maximizes dollars through this grant by encouraging the use of shared services and tools by early care and education providers, improving the quality of provider care and the financial sustainability of their programs.

$1,089,550.00

2013

Creative Communities

Settlement Music School

The Foundation supports arts education in public schools by funding organizations to offer arts education residencies in partnership with schools. One is provided by the Settlement Music School, one of the largest and oldest community schools of the arts in the United States. Funding allows Settlement to pilot and launch a unique in-school music program, bringing its high-quality instruction into four city schools.

$770,000.00

2013

Creative Communities

Delaware River Waterfront Corp

New sections of multi-use trail are blazed in South Philadelphia, where the Foundation also funds the design of two new public parks at Washington Avenue Green and Pier 68, increasing access to green space and the Delaware River waterfront for an underserved community.

$5,000,000.00

2013

Watershed Protection

PA Environmental Council

The Circuit Trails, a network of more than 750 miles of multi-use trails in the region, makes continued progress. The Foundation grants $1.5 million to complete and promote trail connections to and along the Delaware and Schuylkill Rivers.

$1,500,000.00

2013

Watershed Protection

Fund for Philadelphia

A grant to the Fund for Philadelphia finances the first-phase design of the Bartram’s Mile Riverfront Trail and Park, a proposed addition to connect this National Historic Landmark to the Schuylkill River. The design includes future public programming for the community.

$441,000.00

2013

Haas

In January, the Foundation announces a new strategic vision, which focuses grantmaking on three principle objectives: advancing high-quality learning opportunities for children from low-income families; protecting the region's water quality; and fostering a dynamic and diverse cultural community in Greater Philadelphia.

2013

Creative Communities

Al-Bustan Seeds of Culture

Al-Bustan strives to make Arabic culture accessible for people of all backgrounds, and offers local audiences their only opportunity to hear regularly produced, exemplary, live Arab music. The Foundation’s first grant to this organization was awarded to help improve its capacity to produce its Arab Music Concert Series.

$270,000.00

2013

Great Learning

Philadelphia Youth Network

Despite improvements to the on-time graduation rate, Philadelphia still lags significantly behind state and national averages. The Foundation contributes to PYN to provide educational opportunities for at-risk students through "Project U-Turn," a successful, multi-stakeholder dropout prevention and reengagement initiative.

$2,175,000.00

2013

Great Learning

Reinvestment Fund

With a newly honed focus on advancing access to high-quality education across the city, in 2013 the Foundation makes its first contribution to the Reinvestment Fund, a catalyst for change in low-income communities. With this initial funding, Philadelphia gains an analysis of the geographic gaps in the city's available high-quality child care along with a corresponding interactive mapping tool.

$84,546.00

2014

Watershed Protection

Delaware River Watershed Initiative

In April, the Foundation announces a major grant in seed funding to launch the Delaware River Watershed Initiative, a collaborative effort of leading nonprofits to protect and restore water quality in the Delaware River Basin.

$35,000,000.00

2014

Watershed Protection

Stroud Water Research Center

A grant to Stroud Water Research Center for $1,060,300 kicked off the development of a web-based modeling tool, WikiWatershed, which uses basin-wide data to enable users to visualize changes in water quality in specific places across the watershed. This simulation tool allows decision-makers and stakeholders to visualize the impacts to water resulting from changes to the land, new pollution sources, and more.

$1,060,300.00

2014

Great Learning

Free Library of Philadelphia

In September, the Foundation makes its largest single grant to an individual institution--the Free Library of Philadelphia--to launch its 21st century library initiative and reestablish the Library as a central resource in every neighborhood in Philadelphia. With this new support, the Library can continue serving as a portal to learning, public services, economic opportunity, recreation, and community engagement for all city residents.

$25,000,000.00

2015

Great Learning

PA Association for the Education of Young Children

The Foundation continues to support quality education for its youngest residents with a grant to the Pennsylvania Association for the Education of Young Children. The project implements a continued statewide advocacy campaign to promote universal pre-kindergarten in PA, educating legislators on the need for increased high-quality programs across the state.

$322,965.00

2015

Creative Communities

Fairmount Park Conservancy

The “Reimagining the Civic Commons” initiative takes hold in Philadelphia to examine how civic assets including public parks, libraries and cultural facilities can be enhanced to promote greater social and economic integration. The Foundation makes its first major contribution to implement Parkside Edge, a project that will bring a new recreation space to West Fairmount Park and the underserved Parkside neighborhood.

$5,530,000.00

2015

Creative Communities

Delaware River Waterfront Corp

The Foundation continues to advance imaginative connectors between city residents and their waterways with a grant to design and build Penn's Landing Park, an 11-acre park lid over I-95 along the Delaware River waterfront.

$15,000,000.00

2015

Watershed Protection

Delaware Riverkeeper Network

Furthering the Delaware River Watershed Initiative's progress, the Foundation funds research, outreach, and advocacy to secure policies that will protect water quality and promote conservation practices in the watershed.

$914,000.00

2015

Watershed Protection

Academy of Natural Sciences

Through the Delaware River Watershed Initiative, the Foundation funds the Academy of Natural Sciences to increase basin-wide research to inform a better understanding of the watershed as a whole. The Academy helped to gather baseline research and data assessing the entire watershed for the benefit of all 50 organizations involved in the DRWI and beyond.

$6,023,000.00

2016

Creative Communities

Please Touch Museum

Following a period of financial struggle, the Please Touch Museum files for Chapter 11 protection in September 2015. A $1.3 million grant from the Foundation helps alleviate debt and professional fees to enable the museum to exit bankruptcy.

$1,300,000.00

One-time exceptional civic opportunity grant.

2016

Great Learning

Public Citizens for Children and Youth (PCCY)

The Foundation continues its support of the Campaign for Fair Education Funding, a statewide coalition advocating for an adequate and equitable K-12 education funding system for all schools in Pennsylvania.

$315,425.00

2016

Creative Communities

Rebuild Initiative

The Foundation commits an unprecedented $100 million toward Mayor Jim Kenney's bold Rebuilding Community Infrastructure Initiative to transform city public spaces - such as recreation centers, libraries and playgrounds -- to enhance community life in neighborhoods across Philadelphia. The landmark grant is the largest in the Foundation's history.

$100,000,000.00

2016

Great Learning

Reinvestment Fund

Following an initial proposal to map out the availability of high-quality child care to children across Philadelphia, the Foundation makes a multi-year $15 million grant to provide planning and capital support for the expansion of high-quality child care providers serving low-income children in the city. This grant follows earlier installments in 2013, 2014, and 2015.

$15,000,000.00

Three people standing in front of a mirrored sculpture

2016

Creative Communities

Philadelphia Mural Arts Advocates

The Foundation awarded Philadelphia Mural Arts Advocates over $1 million for Monument Lab, a citywide public art and history exhibition, organized around the guiding question: “What is an appropriate monument for the current city of Philadelphia?” The Monument Lab project commissioned 20 artists to create temporary monuments for 10 sites located in neighborhoods across Philadelphia and engaged over 250,000 residents and visitors in accessing public spaces and empowering new forms of historical and civic knowledge.

$1,250,000

A young girl in a jean jacket holding a decorative plate

2017

Creative Communities

The Clay Studio

As part of The Clay Studio’s efforts to engage the South Kensington community, the neighborhood that would be home to its new building in early 2020, The Clay Studio hosted a series of “Community Maker Days.” These interactive, joyful, and celebratory workshops engaged residents of the greater Kensington area through ceramic arts-focused events in which individuals and artists created ceramic dinnerware that was then used at a community feast for over 500 guests.

$137,400

2017

Watershed Protection

Alliance for Watershed Education of the Delaware River

The Alliance for Watershed Education launches with key funding from the Foundation to grow a larger, more inclusive, and more informed constituency for protection of the Delaware River watershed. Twenty-three environmental education centers from Pennsylvania, Delaware and New Jersey join the Alliance, which aims to reach new audiences and amplify the work already underway at the centers.

$4,600,000

2017

Watershed Protection

Soil Health Study

The Foundation awards nearly $6 million to support a long-term research collaboration between the Rodale Institute and Stroud Water Research Center focused on soil health. The two world-class organizations will work to educate people who rely on the Delaware River watershed for clean drinking water about linkages between soil health and water quality, while evaluating how innovative farm management techniques can improve soil health and protect clean water.

$5,994,500

2018

Watershed Protection

Delaware River Watershed Initiative Phase 2

The Foundation awards an additional $42 million to the Delaware River Watershed Initiative, bringing its total support to more than $100 million. This three-year investment funds partners to protect and restore an estimated 43,000 additional acres to protect clean water.

$42,000,000

2018

Watershed Protection

ImpactED – DiverseForce on Boards

To diversify leadership at nonprofits across the region, the Foundation awards a grant to the University of Pennsylvania – ImpactED to work with nonprofit DiverseForce to expand its board governance and networking program. The program recruits, trains, and connects participants from communities of color, preparing them to serve on professional boards and matching them with nonprofits in the region.

$400,000

2018

Creative Communities

Fairmount Park Conservancy

At 348 acres, FDR Park is a Philadelphia Historic Landmark, the largest green space in South Philadelphia, and Philadelphia's only estuary park. In support of FDR Park’s Master Plan, a Foundation grant to Fairmount Park Conservancy helped to foster community engagement and a sense of local stewardship through the recruitment of diverse, paid, park ambassadors; historic and cultural resource preservation; landscape restoration; stormwater management; and much more.

$225,000

2018

Creative Communities

Bread and Roses Community Fund

A two-year grant helped launch Bread and Roses’ Equitable Public Space Giving Project, which is working to level the playing field for low-income communities when it comes to shared community assets and community-engaged initiatives. This project sought to remove barriers to equitable public space access by ensuring community organizations have the skills and resources to make their voices heard in planning and decision-making processes and build communities' investment in the public spaces they help create.

$460,000

2018

Creative Communities

Fund for Philadelphia, Inc.

Philadelphia's 500 community gardens, farms, and orchards are unique shared community assets and are great examples of how citizen stewardship of shared land builds community connection, neighborhood bonds, and civic engagement. The Urban Agriculture Plan supports a coalition of city, non-profit, and resident stakeholders' efforts to strengthen citizen stewardship, better coordinate activities to sustain existing community spaces, and recommend ways to better include urban agriculture in city efforts to repurpose vacant land.

$150,000

2019

Civic, Philanthropy

2020 Census Support

The Foundation awards $1,000,000 to Pennsylvania Voice for the Keystone Counts Initiative to ensure an accurate count in the 2020 Census. The initiative reached over 400,000 households in Pennsylvania that were otherwise likely to be missed in the 2020 Census with information about how to be counted, and worked with 15 community-based nonprofit partners across the state to prioritize outreach to BIPOC, immigrant, and low-income households that have historically been undercounted.

$1,000,000

two dancers on stage with four musicians in the background

2019

Creative Communities

Nueva Esperanza

Part of the Foundation’s Great Public Spaces work is to advance equitable access to public and community spaces in neighborhoods across Philadelphia so that increasing numbers of city residents have access to high-quality community places. This grant supported Nueva Esperanza’s development of Esperanza Arts Center, now a multi-faceted destination in Hunting Park that includes a theater, community meeting space, and art gallery that are free and open to the public.

2019

Creative Communities

University City District

The West Philadelphia Park Maintenance Pilot Program set out to address the deficits in park upkeep through a social enterprise, park maintenance model. A collaboration of Parks & Recreation and University City District's Green City Works, the pilot provided maintenance at five parks in lower-income areas in West Philadelphia, promoted workforce development focused on maintenance professionals, and pilot programming to reduce environmental impacts.

$445,000

2020

Creative Communities

Philadelphia Area Cooperative Alliance

The Foundation provided funding to the Philadelphia Area Cooperative Alliance (PACA) to explore the use of community-based co-op models in addressing public space equity challenges, such as inadequate public space maintenance, programming, and access. Through this grant, PACA developed and implemented public space co-op “study circles” comprising research, study, and technical assistance to help seven groups generate cooperative enterprises that address public space equity issues.

$110,000

2020

Watershed Protection

Loan Fund for Conservation

A $3 million program-related investment to Open Space Institute establishes a loan fund for conservation projects, providing low-cost financing for projects until other funding sources can be secured, with a long-term goal of attracting more funding and return-seeking investments to the watershed.

$3,000,000

2020

Civic, Philanthropy

COVID-19 Emergency Giving

Beginning in March 2020, the Philadelphia Region enters a state of emergency amid the COVID-19 pandemic. In the ensuing months, the Foundation initiates a number of emergency funds to meet critical needs, in partnership with peer foundations and City officials. Efforts include the PHL COVID-19 Fund, the Philadelphia Emergency Fund for Stabilization of Early Education, and the Regional Arts Relief Fund. A number of additional grants were awarded to meet pressing needs like food insecurity and home internet access for students. In 2020, the Foundation awarded 89 grants totaling $23,826,681 for emergency Covid relief.

$23,826,681

2020

Civic, Philanthropy

Evaluating Philanthropy’s Response to COVID-19

To assess the equity within philanthropic giving, the Foundation partners with Philanthropy Network Greater Philadelphia, Lenfest Institute, and The University of Pennsylvania’s Center for High Impact Philanthropy (CHIP) to gather data on the region’s COVID-19 response giving and analyze who benefitted.

$342,400

2020

Creative Communities

PIDC Community Capital

Regional nonprofit arts and cultural organizations experienced early, deep, and widespread impacts as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. To support arts and culture organizations recoup and recover, the Foundation partnered with several local funders and the City of Philadelphia to create the “COVID-19 Arts Aid PHL” fund to support small- and mid-size arts and culture organizations overcome the impact of the public health crisis.

$2,500,000

2020

Creative Communities

Wilma Theater

This grant helped the Wilma Theater expand its Portable Studio, a model program with the capacity to deliver theater-based arts and culture programming in the context of COVID-19’s social distancing and public health requirements. Throughout the pandemic, Portable Studio offered programming via phone, internet, and direct mail, advancing best practices for safe, physically distanced opportunities that help participants develop a greater sense of themselves and their creative expression.

$400,000

Two toddlers, being held by adults, reaching toward each other.

2020

Creative Communities

Barnes Foundation

A grant to the Barnes Foundation supported arts and culture programming in West Philadelphia to engage people during a time of incredible challenge. “Barnes West,” is a series of creative public programs in neighborhoods along Lower Lancaster Avenue, was designed to heal, foster resiliency, and emphasize social solidarity as people worked to process and address the impacts of the pandemic, civil unrest, and racial inequity.

$380,600

2021

Creative Communities

William Penn Foundation

Over the course of two years, the Creative Communities team and members of the William Penn Foundation’s board conducted a thorough review of the Foundation’s investments in arts, culture, and public space to understand the impact of funding and whether it reflected the diversity of the region’s people and cultures. During this review, a global pandemic and urgent calls for racial, social, and economic equity took hold of the nation, furthering the commitment of the Creative Communities program to center around the goal of supporting a more diverse array of people, cultures, and experiences. In 2021, the Foundation launched its refined Creative Communities program with people, equity, and inclusive practices at the core of its grantmaking.

2021

Great Learning

Family Recovery Fund

Confronting the hardships faced by families across Philadelphia compounded by the COVID-19 crisis, the Foundation establishes a one-year, $10 million fund for organizations working with families to provide access to healthy food, support for families to stay in their homes, and enhanced K-12 learning opportunities. The fund temporarily expands the Foundation’s three main areas of support.

$10,000,000

2022

Great Learning

Grandfamilies Initiative

Eight organizations received three-year grants to improve and expand services focused on Philadelphia “grandfamilies” – families in which grandparents or other older adult kin are the primary caregivers for young children. Collectively, more than 1,500 grandfamilies will receive services through this initiative annually.

$2,800,000

2022

Haas

Janet Haas, M.D. steps down as Chair of the Foundation’s Board of Directors. Katherine H. Christiano becomes chair of the board and Christina Haas becomes vice chair, and the fourth generation of the Haas family assumes leadership of the Foundation. (In 2023, Peter Haas assumed the role of Board Vice Chair.)

2023

Creative Communities

Fairmount Park Conservancy

The Foundation awarded $10 million toward the “Nature Phase” of the FDR Park Plan to help restore the park’s natural areas by prioritizing environmental restoration. Restoration of the “Nature Phase” will establish 100-acres of accessible natural lands including improvements to restore existing creeks, a sedge meadow, forested wetland, and the creation of a wildflower hill.

$10 million

2023

Great Learning

Fair Funding Litigation

After almost a decade of litigation, the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania rules that the state’s school funding system is unconstitutional. The historic decision is the result of a lawsuit brought by six Pennsylvania school districts, the Pennsylvania Association of Rural and Small Schools, the NAACP-PA State Conference, and a group of public-school parents, represented by the Education Law Center (ELC) and Public Interest Law Center (PILC), both longtime Foundation grantees.