The Philanthropy Roundtable is a non-profit organization that supports and advises philanthropists to strengthen a free American society. The Roundtable aims to protect philanthropic freedom and advance liberty, opportunity, and personal responsibility. ¹

The Philanthropy Roundtable maintains a membership of over 620 philanthropic organizations and individuals. ²

The Philanthropy Roundtable is an associate member of the State Policy Network, a coalition of free-market state-level policy organizations. ³ While the Roundtable is non-partisan, members of its board of directors have affiliations with the Republican Party.

History

The Philanthropy Roundtable was established in 1987 as a project of the Institute for Educational Affairs and became an independent non-profit organization in 1991. In 1992, The Philanthropy Roundtable held its first Annual Meeting and continues to host this and additional regional meetings, focused on topics related to its donors’ interests. In 1997, the Roundtable moved to Washington, D.C., and upgraded its newsletter to a quarterly magazine, Philanthropy, geared towards donors who support freedom, opportunity, and personal responsibility through their giving. In 2004, the Roundtable established the Alliance for Charitable Reform (ACR) to sustain and strengthen philanthropic freedom. ⁴

Activity

The Philanthropy Roundtable provides donors with philanthropic strategies and tools to support and advance private philanthropy supporting a free society. The Roundtable hosts donor-only meetings, creates publications geared towards its donors’ interests, and provides donors with access to a like-minded, influential network of peers. ⁵

The Philanthropy Roundtable claims that a free society cannot exist without private philanthropy and that philanthropy cannot exist without a free enterprise system, which supports a strong private sector and generates private wealth. The Roundtable further claims that private philanthropy is one of the most effective ways to improve the performance of government, while limiting its reach, because it provides competition and accountability. To this end, The Philanthropy Roundtable advocates for upholding donor intent, especially as it regards charitable laws, regulations, and donor privacy. ⁶

Opposition to “Woke Philanthropy”

In a September 8, 2021, article, The Chronicle of Philanthropy objected to Philanthropy Roundtable’s CEO Elise Westhoff criticism of “woke philanthropy.” This ideology pushes an agenda of racial equity and identity politics and pressures donors to fund progressive groups that support dismantling systemic racism, at the risk of being shamed. The Chronicle alleged that Westhoff’s arguments have caused some organizations to leave the Roundtable and other philanthropic leaders to accuse her of putting foundations in the middle of an American culture war. ⁷

The Philanthropy Roundtable responded to this article by reaffirming its focus on remaining true to donor intent and not just keeping up with the latest political fads. ⁸ The Roundtable goes on to claim that much of woke philanthropy caters to left-progressive identity politics instead of addressing the day-to-day hardships faced by the communities they intend to help. The Philanthropy Roundtable will continue to highlight organizations that support communities through innovative efforts, while acknowledging America’s complicated history. ⁹

Funding

The Philanthropy Roundtable is funded by donations from individuals, foundations, and corporations. While the Roundtable does not disclose its donors, tax filings show donations from the William E. Simon Foundation ($430,000 in 2012), ¹⁰ the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation ($300,000 in 2018), ¹¹ and the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation ($250,000 in 2019). ¹²

People

Staff

Elise Westhoff is the president and CEO of The Philanthropy Roundtable and formerly worked as the executive director of the Snider Foundation. Westhoff sits on the board of the State Policy Network. ¹³

Jessica Browning is the vice president of conferences and events at the Roundtable. Browning formerly worked as the managing director of development and strategic events at the American Enterprise Institute. ¹⁴

Annie Dwyer Dunn is the interim vice president of marketing and communications at the Roundtable. Dunn formerly worked as a strategic communications advisor at the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research, the vice president of communications at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, and a media relations manager at the Mercatus Center. ¹⁵

Debi Ghate is the vice president of strategy and programs at the Roundtable. Ghate formerly worked as senior director at the Snider Foundation, vice president of education and research at the Ayn Rand Institute, and director of academic investments at the Charles Koch Foundation. ¹⁶

Christie Herrera is vice president of policy and government affairs at the Roundtable. Herrera formerly worked as vice president of state affairs at the Foundation for Government Accountability and as director of the Health and Human Services Task Force at the American Legislative Exchange Council. ¹⁷

Windle Jarvis is the vice president of development at the Roundtable. Jarvis formerly worked as the managing director of development and corporate relations at the American Enterprise Institute and a major gifts officer at the Mercatus Center. ¹⁸

Jenny Kim is the vice president of operations and general counsel of the Roundtable. Kim formerly worked as the vice president of policy at Koch Industries. ¹⁹

Megan Schmidt is the director of government affairs at the Roundtable. Schmidt formerly worked as a state affairs manager at the Foundation for Government Accountability. ²⁰

Clarice Smith is the program director at the Roundtable. Smith formerly worked as the program manager for public policy and higher education giving at the John William Pope Foundation and as the director of media relations at the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research. Smith sits on the board of the Network of enlightened Women. ²¹

Adam Meyerson was former president of the Roundtable. Prior to joining the Roundtable, he worked on education policy and as the editor of Policy Review magazine for the Heritage Foundation.²²

Board of Directors

Richard Graber serves as the chair of the board of The Philanthropy Roundtable. Graber is the president and CEO of the Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation and serves on the board of the Kern Family Foundation. Graber formerly served as state chair of the Republican Party of Wisconsin. ²³

David Stover serves as treasurer of the board of the Roundtable and on the boards of the John William Pope Foundation, the John Locke Foundation, and the Fund for American Studies. ²⁴

Heather Templeton Dill serves as secretary of the board of the Roundtable and the president of the John Templeton Foundation. ²⁵

John Jackson is the co-founder and executive vice president of Hoplin Jackson Charitable Advisors and the former executive director of the Adolph Coors Foundation. Jackson formerly sat on the board of the State Policy Network. ²⁶

Fred Klipsch is the chair of Hoosiers for Quality Education. ²⁷

Vivek Ramaswamy is a biopharmaceutical entrepreneur, author, and member of the board of the Foundation for Research on Equal Opportunity. ²⁸

John Tyler works as general counsel and chief ethics officer of the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. Tyler formerly sat on the boards of the Council on Foundations, the Urban Institute’s Center on Nonprofits and Philanthropy, and the Alliance for Charitable Reform. ²⁹

1. “Who We Are.” Philanthropy Roundtable, 2021. Accessed September 19, 2021. https://www.philanthropyroundtable.org/home/about/who-we-are.
2. “History of The Philanthropy Roundtable.” Philanthropy Roundtable, 2021. Accessed September 19, 2021. https://www.philanthropyroundtable.org/home/about/who-we-are/history-of-the-philanthropy-roundtable.
3. “The Network: Washington, DC.” State Policy Network, 2021. Accessed September 13, 2021. https://spn.org/directory/#DC.
4. “History of The Philanthropy Roundtable.” Philanthropy Roundtable, 2021. Accessed September 19, 2021. https://www.philanthropyroundtable.org/home/about/who-we-are/history-of-the-philanthropy-roundtable.
5. “Get Involved.” Philanthropy Roundtable, 2021. Accessed September 19, 2021. https://www.philanthropyroundtable.org/home/about/get-involved.
6. “Who We Are.” Philanthropy Roundtable, 2021. Accessed September 19, 2021. https://www.philanthropyroundtable.org/home/about/who-we-are.
7. Rendon, Jim. “The Philanthropy Roundtable’s CEO Opposes ‘Woke Philanthropy,’ Prompting Some Grant Makers to Flee and Others to Give More.” The Chronicle of Philanthropy, September 8, 2021. Accessed September 20, 2021. https://www.philanthropy.com/article/the-philanthropy-roundtables-ceo-opposes-woke-philanthropy-prompting-some-grant-makes-to-flee-and-others-to-give-more?bc_nonce=qqplk75poxip6afjzhwye&cid=reg_wall_signup.
8. Schaefer Riley, Naomi. “The Woke Threat to Philanthropy.” The Wall Street Journal, July 16, 2021. Accessed September 20, 2021. https://www.wsj.com/articles/elise-westhoff-woke-philanthropy-cancel-culture-charity-11626448092.
9. “Philanthropy Roundtable is Standing Up for What It Has Always Believed In.” Philanthropy Roundtable, September 14, 2021. Accessed September 20, 2021. https://www.philanthropyroundtable.org/home/blog/post/roundtable/2021/09/14/philanthropy-roundtable-is-standing-up-for-what-it-has-always-believed-in.
10. William E. Simon Foundation, Return of Private Foundation (Form 990-PF), 2012, Part XV, Line 3a.
11. Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Return of Private Foundation (Form 990-PF), 2018, Part XV, Line 3a.
12. William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, Return of Private Foundation (Form 990-PF), 2019, Part XV, Line 3a.
13. “Elise Westhoff.” Philanthropy Roundtable, 2021. Accessed September 19, 2021. https://www.philanthropyroundtable.org/home/about/our-staff/detail/westhoff.
14. “Jessica Browning.” Philanthropy Roundtable, 2021. Accessed September 19, 2021. https://www.philanthropyroundtable.org/home/about/our-staff/detail/browning.
15. ^[1] “Annie Dwyer.”Philanthropy Roundtable, 2021. Accessed September 19, 2021. https://www.philanthropyroundtable.org/home/about/our-staff/detail/dwyer.
16. “Debi Ghate.” LinkedIn, 2021. Accessed September 19, 2021. https://www.linkedin.com/in/debi-ghate/.
17. “Christie Herrera.” Philanthropy Roundtable, 2021. Accessed September 19, 2021. https://www.philanthropyroundtable.org/home/about/our-staff/detail/herrera.
18. “Windle Jarvis.” Philanthropy Roundtable, 2021. Accessed September 19, 2021. https://www.philanthropyroundtable.org/home/about/our-staff/detail/vice-president-of-development.
19. “Jenny Kim.” Philanthropy Roundtable, 2021. Accessed September 19, 2021. https://www.philanthropyroundtable.org/home/about/our-staff/detail/jennykim.
20. “Megan Schmidt.” Philanthropy Roundtable, 2021. Accessed September 19, 2021. https://www.philanthropyroundtable.org/home/about/our-staff/detail/schmidt.
21. “Clarice Smith.” Philanthropy Roundtable, 2021. Accessed September 19, 2021. https://www.philanthropyroundtable.org/home/about/our-staff/detail/clarice-smith.
22. “Adam Meyerson, President, Philanthropy Roundtable: Donors and Philanthropic Intent.” Philanthropy News Digest. Candid, November 29, 2006. https://philanthropynewsdigest.org/features/newsmakers/adam-meyerson-president-philanthropy-roundtable-donors-and-philanthropic-intent.
23. “Richard W. Graber.” Philanthropy Roundtable, 2021. Accessed September 19, 2021. https://www.philanthropyroundtable.org/home/about/our-staff/detail/graber.
24. “David Stover.” Philanthropy Roundtable, 2021. Accessed September 19, 2021. https://www.philanthropyroundtable.org/home/about/our-staff/detail/stover.
25. “Heather Templeton Dill.” Philanthropy Roundtable, 2021. Accessed September 19, 2021. https://www.philanthropyroundtable.org/home/about/our-staff/detail/templeton-dill.
26. “John Jackson.” Philanthropy Roundtable, 2021. Accessed September 19, 2021. https://www.philanthropyroundtable.org/home/about/our-staff/detail/jackson.
27. “Fred Klipsch.” Philanthropy Roundtable, 2021. Accessed September 19, 2021. https://www.philanthropyroundtable.org/home/about/our-staff/detail/klipsch.
28. “Vivek Ramaswamy.” Philanthropy Roundtable, 2021. Accessed September 19, 2021. https://www.philanthropyroundtable.org/home/about/our-staff/detail/ramaswamy.
29. “John Tyler.” Philanthropy Roundtable, 2021. Accessed September 19, 2021. https://www.philanthropyroundtable.org/home/about/our-staff/detail/general-counsel-secretary-and-chief-ethics-officer.