Ulysses S. Grant Foundation is an educational summer program for qualifying middle school students in New Haven, Connecticut that is held on Yale University’s Old Campus in Dwight Hall. It was founded in 1953 by Eugene Van Voorhis, a Yale alumnus.

Ulysses S. Grant Foundation has received funding from John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the Mellen Foundation, William Caspar Graustein Memorial Fund, and Yale University. Many classes the program has offered have revolved around political topics such as race, gender, vaccines, climate change, and “fake news.” The program boasts about its demographic diversity and shares its statistics on its website.

Background

Ulysses S. Grant Foundation is an educational summer program for qualifying middle school students in New Haven that is held on Yale University’s Old Campus in Dwight Hall. It was founded in 1953 by Eugene Van Voorhis. ^{1 2} Van Voorhis’s aim was to help Black middle schoolers obtain admission to elite boarding schools, and the grant program was the incorporated version of earlier efforts. ³

About 60 students are admitted to the program every year from sixth grade through ninth with most being low-income students from the New Haven area. ^{3 4} Ulysses S. Grant Foundation boasts about its demographic diversity, sharing the statistical breakdown of its 2022 summer students and teachers by gender and ethnic group on its website. It claimed to be 59.6 percent female, 25 percent Black, 20.5 percent Hispanic or Latino, 11.4 percent Asian-American or Pacific Islander, 13.6 percent Caucasian, 2.3 percent Middle Eastern or Arab, and 27.2 percent “two or more races or ‘Other.’”  ⁵

Activities

The education program features a six-week schedule of classes in groups of 8-15 students. The classes are designed and taught by Yale undergraduate students and are broken up into humanities (history, poetry, speeches, creative writing lessons) and investigations (experiment-based natural and social sciences lessons). The program also hosts electives and clubs such as sports, games, performing arts, music, debate, mock trials, and book clubs. Students also take field trips. ²

Many classes the program has offered have been political or current-events focused, such as “Pop Music and its Politics,” “Real Versus Fake News: The Battle for Truth,” “13 Reasons Why You Should be Skeptical of Your Favorite TV Show,” “Perspectives on Mental Illness,” “Race and Identity Through the Arts,” “Climate Changes: What it is and What to Do,” “Everything in the World, I Guess: The United Nations and Current Events,” and “Vaccines: The Past, Present and Future.” ⁶

Prominent alumni of the program include former president of John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Jonathan Fanton, Connecticut Supreme Court Justice Flemming Norcott, Connecticut Department of Education official Marcus Rivera, attorney Vanessa Roberts, former chief development officer of the NAACP and as of 2021 chief strategy officer of People For the American Way (PFAW) Roger Vann, former manager of Yale New Haven Hospital Pharmacy Operations Norbert Robinson, and former Dean of Yale College Richard Brodhead. ¹

Finances

In 2021, Ulysses S. Grant Foundation had a total revenue of $41,863 (reporting $126,121 in contributions and grants but a loss of $86,308 in investment income), total expenses of $103,827, and net assets of $819,088. ⁷

Funding

Ulysses S. Grant Foundation has received funding from Bank of America Charitable Foundation, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the Mellen Foundation, Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program, William Caspar Graustein Memorial Fund, and Yale University. ⁸

Leadership

In 2021, Ulysses S. Grant Foundation’s principal officer and chair was listed as Janna Wagner. Board members included Susan Lamar, Samuel Purdy, Claudia Merson, Carmel Paleski, Abdul-Razak M. Zacharia, Jennifer Heikkila Diaz, Maria Parente, Sarah Cussler, and Leslie Blatteau. ⁹

1. “Alumni and Friends.” Ulysses S. Grant Foundation. Accessed August 15, 2023. https://campuspress.yale.edu/usgrant/teachers/.
2. “About.” Ulysses S. Grant Foundation. Accessed August 15, 2023. https://campuspress.yale.edu/usgrant/home/.
3. Alden Branch, Mark. “A Firm Foundation.” Yale Alumni Magazine, Archives, October 2002. Accessed August 16, 2023. http://archives.yalealumnimagazine.com/issues/02_10/grant.html.
4. “Ulysses S. Grant Foundation.” Dwight Hall. Accessed August 15, 2023. https://dwighthall.org/ulysses-s-grant-foundation/.
5. “Student and Teacher Diversity.” Ulysses S. Grant Foundation. Accessed August 15, 2023. https://campuspress.yale.edu/usgrant/home/student-teacher-diversity/.
6. “Classes Offered.” Ulysses S. Grant Foundation. Accessed August 15, 2023. https://campuspress.yale.edu/usgrant/home/classes-offered/.
7. Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax (Form 990). Ulysses S Grant Foundation. 2021. Part I, lines 8, 10, 12, 18, 22.
8. “Full-Text Search – Ulysses S Grant Foundation.” ProPublica. Accessed August 15, 2023. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/full_text_search?q=ulysses+s+grant+foundation.
9. Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax (Form 990). Ulysses S Grant Foundation. 2021. Part VII.