Collections : [IUPUI Philanthropic Studies Archives]

The Boone County Red Cross Scrapbooks contain newspaper clippings, letters, postcards, and photographs related to the work of the Boone County chapter of the Red Cross.

Transcripts for oral history interviews related to philanthropy, which were conducted by the Indiana University Center for Documentary Research and Practice, formerly known as Indiana University Center for the Study of History and Memory, formerly known as the Indiana Oral History Research Center. The American Foundations Oral History Project consists of a series of interviews with prominent American philanthropists, each of whom relates their background, the development of their values, and their philosophies of philanthropy. The purpose and state of American philanthropy, including those family foundations and corporate foundations, form a central topic, as do the recent trend of increasing diversity and opinions on grant evaluation and philanthropic assessment. In addition, many interviewees comment on the role of government in philanthropy and the system of ethics at play in American philanthropy. The Center on Philanthropy Oral History Project traces creation of the Center from its earliest stages and its evolution into a fully operating academic institution dedicated to the study of philanthropy. It includes the negotiations in bringing the Fund Raising School to Indianapolis, Indiana, the grant proposals to the Lilly Endowment, finding the Center's first director, and the creation of its mission statement. This project also contains many different people's views on the study of philanthropy and the importance and success of the Center. The "Philanthropy: a history of fund raising" Project discusses the history of philanthropy and fundraising as a profession. The interviewees, all workers of different generations, discuss the various issues and changes the field of fundraising has faced over the years, with a major focus on fundraising in America. The changing public image of philanthropy, the introduction of women into the field, and the skills and techniques needed within the profession are all discussed in depth throughout the interviews. The major differences between various types of fundraising are also discussed.

This collection contains predominantly publications and reports of the America Reads Challenge program with correspondence, news clippings, posters, and a VHS. The America Reads Challenge, a national movement, was started to promote and ensure children's literacy in 1997 as part of President Clinton's Call to Action for Education. The publications are from the America Reads Challenge office creating teaching materials and guidebooks, and institutions that received grants for the program review by Marsha Adler, who was a director of Higher Education at the America Reads Challenge office.

Anna Margaret Ross Alexander (1913-1995) was an Indianapolis civic leader, and member and president of the Indianapolis Board of School Commissioners from 1966-1970 during the period when desegregation, integration of the teaching staff, and busing was initiated. Mrs. Alexander was an active member in diverse civic organizations, but the records collected mainly reflect her tenure on the School Board.

Vivian B. Allen (VBA) Foundation was created in 1938 in New York State by Vivian Beaumont Allen with the stated purpose, "to promote the well-being of mankind in the United States of America and elsewhere in the world, including as a means to that end research, publication, the establishment and maintenance of charitable, benevolent, religious and educational activities, agencies and institutions already established." Upon Mrs. Allen's death in 1962, VBA Foundation began to liquidate itself and was dissolved in 1971. The records consist of correspondence between VBA Foundation and grant applicants, including notification of awards or rejections, and descriptions of projects under consideration for grants; and administrative records and correspondence of the Board of Directors, including Board meeting agenda and minutes, and Memoranda distributed to the Board Members. The collection contains records dating back to 1946.

The A.L. Mailman Family Foundation was established in 1980 as a private, successor organization to the Mailman Foundation, which was founded by Abraham and Joseph Mailman in 1943. The foundation, named for Abe Mailman and originally chaired by his daughter, Dr. Marilyn Mailman Segal, provides grant funding for projects and programs concerning early childhood education and development. Initially, the Foundation's early grants supported applied research and model programs, but based on feedback and replication issues, the Foundation began to focus on products and practices intended to inform public policy. In 1993, the Directors of the Foundation decided to proactively address larger societal issues, such as racism, violence, and poverty, in addition to their continued support for early childhood education and family care. The Mailman Foundation Records contain board meeting minutes, symposia memorabilia, annual reports and administrative files, grant files and related publications, records of contributions, and correspondence.