Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation Increasing Grantee Impact Through Communications

Foundations have a long tradition of tackling difficult social problems through grants to nonprofit organizations. But all too often the successful outcomes of those investments are unknown to the general public.

A recognized leader in land conservation and arts funding in Chicago and South Carolina, Chicago-based Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation (GDDF) has been working with Valerie Denney Communications and Boyer Media to use communications to advance the work the foundation supports.

Monthly meetings help the Foundation identify communications opportunities and develop a communications “mindset” for all of the Foundation’s work. Projects range from direct consulting with grantees to website development to media outreach directly on the Foundation’s behalf.