Collections : [IUPUI Philanthropic Studies Archives]

The Commission on Foundations and Private Philanthropy was formed by John D. Rockefeller, III, in 1969, and chaired by Peter Peterson, to objectively investigate foundations and their role in society. The Peterson Commission, as it was known, was designed to be influenced by neither the government nor the foundations they investigated. An objective appraisal of foundation activities was necessary to give the Commission the credibility it needed to influence Congress' decisions on foundation activities. By researching the roles of foundations in society, the members hoped to construct policy recommendations that made foundations more accountable while allowing them to maintain their independence from outside interference. This collection contains meeting minutes, correspondence, reports, speeches, the House of Representatives and Senate Hearings on the Tax Reform Law, and the foundation research collected by the commission that includes annual reports, surveys, articles, and correspondence.

The Commission on Private Philanthropy and Public Needs was founded in November 1973 through the efforts of John D. Rockefeller, III, House Ways and Means Chairman Wilbur D. Mills, Secretary of the Treasury George P. Shultz, and Under Secretary William E. Simon. The Commission was formed to study the role of philanthropic giving in the United States and to make recommendations regarding ways to strengthen and increase the effectiveness of the voluntary sector. Composed of religious and labor leaders, former cabinet members, executives of foundations and corporations, federal judges, and representatives of several minority groups, the Commission sought to reach its goal through research and debate. The findings and recommendations of the Commission were published in a final report entitled, Giving in America: Toward a Stronger Voluntary Sector. This collection contains board and advisory records including meeting minutes and correspondence, committee recommendations, and research materials that include surveys, conferences, reports, foundation annual reports, and Senate Finance Hearings.

The Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) is an organization formed by the 1975 merger of the American Alumni Council (AAC) and the American College Public Relations Association (ACPRA). Constituents of both groups believed their goal of increasing the professional competence of those individuals involved in all phases of alumni work including, alumni administration, educational fund raising, public relations and publications in order to promote the cause of education could be better achieved as a single entity. The collection contains the records of CASE and its predecessor institutions covering the development of the early organizations and their merger to form the Council for Advancement and Support of Education.

The David Hovde Civil War Tract Collection contains mostly tract publications from the American Tract Society, the American Sunday School Union, the American Bible Society, and similar nonprofit organizations during the American Civil War. The tracts were used to promote moral and spiritual uplift for soldiers and sailors and to inspire patriotism.

David Reingold is the current Justin S. Morrill Dean of Liberal Arts and Professor of Sociology at Purdue University. This collection primarily focuses on his time working with the Corporation for National and Community Service as Director of Research and Policy Development where he was responsible for managing the agencies research and evaluation portfolio, providing consultation to the CEO on policy development, and working with the White House on the President's USA Freedom Corps initiative. This collection includes paper records as well as digital records.

The DJB Foundation, a progressive social change philanthropy, was founded in 1948 by Daniel J. Bernstein to hold the portion of his inheritance intended for donation to charities. With his death in 1970 almost five-million dollars came to the foundation. Its most active period began in 1971 when the Board of Directors decided that all assets would be given away within ten years. The grants concentrated on groups and programs generally ignored by conventional foundations because they were "controversial" -- the poor, GIs, deserters and draft resisters, ethnic groups, convicts and ex-convicts. The DJB Foundation exhausted its funds by the end of 1974. The DJB Foundation Records consist of financial summaries and grant files containing correspondence, proposals, and information about the recipient organization.

Flanner House, a social service center for the Indianapolis, Indiana African-American community, promotes the social, moral, and physical welfare of African-Americans, particularly youth. It was established in 1898 by Frank Flanner, a local mortician, under the name of Flanner Guild and was the first settlement house for African-Americans in the city. Programs and activities have included a day nursery, training for men and women, self-help projects such as housing construction, and public health programs including preventive medicine. Its current mission offers area residents a variety of direct and decentralized social services, child care, youth and senior citizen programs, and cultural and recreational activities. The records consist of board and committee records, correspondence, financial records, various programs and project records including reports and project descriptions offered by Flanner House, publications, photographs, slides and audio programs.