The Stuart Foundation (formally the Elbridge Stuart Foundation) is a left-leaning grantmaking foundation formed by Elbridge A. Stuart, the creator of Carnation-brand evaporated milk. Its principal focus is on education in the state of California.

Background

The Stuart Foundation was started by Elbridge A. Stuart in 1937. Elbridge Stuart formed the Carnation company, a food processor best known for its evaporated milk product. Carnation was later sold to the Nestle corporation in 1985 for $3 billion. ¹

The Stuart Foundation is a grantmaking organization that provides funding for education and child welfare initiatives. ² It has an asset base of $520 million with expenditures of approximately $21 million each year. ³

The son of Elbridge Stuart started the Dwight Stuart Youth Fund in 2001. The DSYF was later merged with the Stuart Foundation. The Board of Advisors for DYSF is comprised of the late Elbridge A. Stuart’s four sons. ⁴

Leadership

In 2014, the Stuart Foundation announced a new president. Jonathan P. Raymond replaced Christy Pischel, who had led the organization since 2003. ⁵ Jonathan Raymond is the former director of the California Office to Reform Education and Superintendent of the Sacramento Unified School District; he later left Stuart Foundation. ⁶

In 2019, the Board of Trustees for the Stuart Foundation announced that Sophie Fanelli had been selected as president for the foundation. Fanelli previously worked at UCLA and the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California. ⁷ Ms. Fanelli replaced David Barlow, who acted as interim president during a search for the next president of the Stuart Foundation. ⁸

Grants

Grants from the Stuart Foundation primarily focus on programs in the States of Washington and California. ⁹

The Stuart Foundation has provided financial grants for Oceanside Promise,¹⁰ the California Office of Reform Education,¹¹ a California State University San Marcos program called “ART=OPPORTUNITY,”¹² the Policy Institute of California, California Community Foundation, California County Superintendents Educational Services Association, California State Fullerton Philanthropic Foundation, University of California Berkeley Institute of Urban and Regional Development, Orange County Superintendent of Schools, John Burton Advocates for Youth, Californians Together, National Center for Youth Law, PJS Consultants, Asian Americans Advancing Justice, ConnectEd: the California Center for College and Career, Californians Together, Education Resource Strategies, Council for a Strong America, Standford University, University of California Los Angeles, Sacramento City Unified School District, Center for Powerful Public Schools,¹³ Treehouse,¹⁴ the Community School for Creative Education,¹⁵ the Education Leadership Development Academy,¹⁶ and CASEL. ¹⁷

California Black Freedom Fund

The Stuart Foundation was one of the original donors to fund the creation of the California Black Freedom Fund (CBFF) at the end of 2020. The CBFF is a left-of-center grantmaking organization that funds California-based groups that seek to eliminate what it perceives as systemic racism. It used funding from the original donors to provide grants that went towards advocacy for targeted redistricting, so-called racial equity, and the firing of who it determines are racist police officers. ¹⁸

Funding

While the Foundation’s endowment investments are its principal source of revenue, in 2018, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation provided a grant to the Stuart Foundation for a learning collaborative based on state-level education equity. ¹⁹

1. “History.” Stuart Foundation. Accessed March 17, 2020. https://stuartfoundation.org/about-us/history/.
2. Fenlon, Judith. “The Stuart Foundation.” The Chronicle of Social Change, February 28, 2013. https://chronicleofsocialchange.org/funders/the-stuart-foundation.
3. “Stuart Foundation Names New President.” Northern California Grantmakers, May 2, 2019. https://ncg.org/news/stuart-foundation-names-new-president.
4. “Dwight Stuart Youth Fund.” Dwight Stuart Youth Fund – Sponsor Information on GrantForward | Search for federal grants, foundation grants, and limited submission opportunities. Accessed March 17, 2020. https://www.grantforward.com/sponsor/detail/dwight-stuart-youth-fund-5580.
5. Ochs, Alyssa. “Three Things You Should Know About the Stuart Foundation’s Grantmaking.” Inside Philanthropy. Inside Philanthropy, May 29, 2014. https://www.insidephilanthropy.com/k-12-education/2014/5/29/three-things-you-should-know-about-the-stuart-foundations-gr.html.
6. “The Author.” Wildflowers. Accessed April 7, 2020. https://www.wholechildchallenge.org/what-we-do.
7. “Stuart Foundation Names New President.” Northern California Grantmakers, May 2, 2019. https://ncg.org/news/stuart-foundation-names-new-president.
8. Prest, M.J. “World Vision VP Will Now Lead Action Against Hunger USA (Transitions).” The Chronicle of Philanthropy. The Chronicle of Philanthropy, April 26, 2019.     https://www.philanthropy.com/article/World-Vision-VP-Will-Now-Lead/246196.
9. Ochs, Alyssa. “Three Things You Should Know About the Stuart Foundation’s Grantmaking.” Inside Philanthropy. Inside Philanthropy, May 29, 2014. https://www.insidephilanthropy.com/k-12-education/2014/5/29/three-things-you-should-know-about-the-stuart-foundations-gr.html.
10. “Stuart Foundation Grant Release.” Oceanside Promise. Accessed March 17, 2020. https://www.oceansidepromise.org/newsroom-links.
11. Candid. “Stuart Foundation Pledges $5.2 Million for California District-Based Education Reform.” Philanthropy News Digest (PND), July 27, 2011. https://philanthropynewsdigest.org/news/stuart-foundation-pledges-5.2-million-for-california-district-based-education-reform.
12. Csusm. CSUSM Receives Stuart Foundation Grant to Improve Literacy Through the Arts. CSUSM, November 7, 2016. https://news.csusm.edu/csusm-receives-stuart-foundation-grant-to-improve-literacy-through-the-arts/.
13. “Grant Search.” Stuart Foundation. Accessed March 17, 2020. https://stuartfoundation.org/current-partners/grant-search/.
14. “Stuart Foundation Reaches $1 Million in Lifetime Donations to Treehouse.” Treehouse, February 14, 2019. https://www.treehouseforkids.org/stuart-foundation-reaches-1-million-in-lifetime-donations-to-treehouse/.
15. Tue, Submitted by aida on. Community School for Creative Education. Accessed March 17, 2020. http://www.communityschoolforcreativeeducation.org/node/89.
16. “5 Things Every Nonprofit Board Should Be Doing in Response to Recent Turmoil.” SOLES Recent News – SOLES’ ELDA Program Receives Stuart Foundation Grant – University of San Diego, April 17, 2009. https://www.sandiego.edu/news/soles/detail.php?_focus=33119.
17. “Funders and Growth Partners.” Casel. Accessed March 17, 2020. https://casel.org/funders/.
18. California Black Freedom Fund, February 4, 2021. https://cablackfreedomfund.org/#partners.
19. Nov 8, 2018 $60, and 2017 $120 Jun 30. “Stuart Foundation – for Support of a Learning Collaborative Focused on State-Level Education Equity.” Hewlett Foundation, November 8, 2018.   https://hewlett.org/grants/stuart-foundation-for-support-of-a-learning-collaborative-focused-on-state-level-education-equity/.