Democracy Initiative Education Fund

The group reported closing operations on its 2022 form 990.

Background

The Democracy Initiative Education Fund (DIEF) is the nonprofit affiliated with the Democracy Initiative, a left-of-center coalition of 75 organizations that aims to implement left-of-center policies regarding the 2020 Census and opposes voter identification laws. Some of these organizations include including the Brennan Center for Justice, American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), Sierra Club, NAACP, Greenpeace USA, and 350.org. ¹

Funding

Democracy Initiative Education Fund receives contributions from major left-of-center organizations and foundations, including substantial grants from the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, ² the Proteus Fund, ³ and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. ^{4 5}

DIEF received just over $700,000 in contributions and grants in 2015 and had just under $68,000 in total expenses in the same year. ⁶

The fund also received just under $350,000 in total revenue in 2016, $336,000 of which came from grants and contributions;⁷ $1,026,000 in total revenue in 2017, $1,024,000 of which came in the form of grants and contributions;⁸ and $1,070,000 in total revenue in 2018, $1,058,000 of which came from grants and contributions. ⁹

DIEF reported $813,000 in total expenses for 2016,⁷ $646,000 in total expenses for 2017,⁸ and $722,000 in total expenses for 2018. ⁹

The Proteus Fund, a center-left “pass-through” funder and donor-advised fund (DAF) provider, contributed $25,000 to Democracy Initiative Education Fund in 2015 for “democracy,”¹⁰ and $476,898 in 2016 for general support. ³

The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation (also known as the MacArthur Foundation), one of the largest left-of-center foundations in the United States, contributed $200,000 to DIEF in 2017 for and another $200,000 in 2018 for general support. ^{4 5}

The Ford Foundation, another major grantmaker for left-of-center and center-left organizations, contributed $300,000 to the Democracy Initiative Education Fund in 2018 and pledged to contribute another $600,000 to the fund at a later date. ¹¹

The Overbrook Foundation, which funds  left-of-center groups that support left-of-center social policy and environmentalism, contributed $50,000 to DIEF in 2017 and 2018. ^{12 13}

The Arkay Foundation, a grantmaking group that gives money to environmentalist and other left-of-center organizations, contributed $50,000 to DIEF in 2017 to “ increase engagement of environmental organizations.” ¹⁴ The Rockefeller Brothers Fund, a major left-of-center grantmaking foundation, contributed $25,000 to DIEF in 2020 for “democratic practice.” ² DIEF is also listed as a grantee in the 2017 annual report of the Community Foundation of Boulder County. ¹⁵

People

DIEF shares a board of directors with the Democracy Initiative, consisting high-ranking members of a number of left-of-center organizations.

Karen Hobert Flynn, president of Common Cause sits as president, treasurer, and co-chair of the Democracy Initiative board of directors. Tefere Gebre, the executive vice president of the AFL-CIO, sits as an additional co-chair. Other board members include Derrick Johnson, NAACP president and CEO; Erich Pica, president of Friends of the Earth; Gustavo Torres, executive director of CASA; K. Sabeel Rahman, president of Demos; Virginia Kase, CEO of the League of Women Voters; and Ray Curry, secretary-treasurer of United Auto Workers. ¹⁶