In The News

On Saturday, Maxwell King, president and CEO of The Pittsburgh Foundation, and Grant Oliphant, president of The Heinz Endowments, released a joint statement saying, “We have asked the question, ‘Would Antwon Rose be alive today if he had been white?’ We, his family and African American community leaders believe that more than likely he would be.”

Two of the region's most influential philanthropies on Saturday morning joined forces to say that there are "questions that must be urgently addressed, locally and nationally, concerning police behavior, law enforcement recruitment and police officer training," in the wake of Friday's acquittal of former officer Michael Rosfeld in the killing of 17-year-old Antwon Rose II. In a joint statement, Pittsburgh Foundation president and CEO Maxwell King and Heinz Endowments president Grant Oliphant wrote that a "sense of shock and outrage" at the acquittal "is understandable, and we share it."

The leaders of two major Pittsburgh charities issued a statement expressing "shock and outrage" over the verdict. "Pittsburgh now sadly joins a disturbing and ever-growing catalogue of cases across the United States where law enforcement or security officials have walked free after the killings of young black men under questionable circumstances," wrote Maxwell King, president and CEO of the Pittsburgh Foundation, and Grant Oliphant, president of the Heinz Endowments.

A new philanthropic fund launched this week will provide money to groups and individuals that agree to take quick action to combat social injustices. The Social Justice Rapid Response Fund is a collaboration of New Voices for Reproductive Justice, an East Liberty advocacy organization, and the Pittsburgh Foundation. The $100,000 fund was created with $75,000 from the foundation and $25,000 from New Voices.  

Based on Census counts, Westmoreland County receives about $3.3 million annually through federally funded Community Development Block Grants. The funds are used for water, sewer and road infrastructure as well as sidewalks and parks, said Phil Koch, executive director of The Community Foundation of Westmoreland County, a local grant-making organization. “There’s a danger that some folks may not be counted, and that is just not OK,” Koch said. “And we looked at, who are those people that may be at risk of not being counted? It’s vulnerable populations and vulnerable communities.”

A single misbehaving protein - called TDP-43 - is behind 97 percent of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) cases and 45 percent of frontotemporal dementia diagnoses. This research was funded by the National Institutes of Health. Additional support was provided by the LiveLikeLou Fund at The Pittsburgh Foundation, a gift from Barbara McCormick, Target ALS, the Frick Foundation for ALS Research, the ALS Association and the Life Extension Foundation.

In this webinar, Media Impact Funders board member Joy Thomas Moore and Maxwell King, president of The Pittsburgh Foundation, offer advice on how to prioritize early childhood care as a parent and stay present while doing it. 

The Pittsburgh Foundation and the East Liberty-based advocacy group New Voices for Reproductive Justice took a step toward closing the gap. At an event in the Strip District, the two civic organizations announced the launch of the Social Justice Rapid Response Fund, a new grantmaking program aimed at providing support for activists and civic organizations in underserved communities across Allegheny County.

In the words of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” Penn State Greater Allegheny takes this seriously, as does its community partners. Partnerships play a crucial role in growing and The Pittsburgh Foundation recently recognized the collaborative work Penn State Greater Allegheny is doing to address racism in the region. The campus, in McKeesport, Pennsylvania, was awarded a $25,000 grant through the foundation’s organizing principle, 100 Percent Pittsburgh.

The Pittsburgh Foundation announced yesterday that former Riverlife chief Lisa Schroeder would succeed current CEO Max King. Schroeder will return from Baltimore where she's served as CEO of the Parks and People Foundation. (Lisa's interview is the first segment of the podcast.)