Published in AP

By Thalia Beaty

When the Ford Foundation took the unprecedented step in June 2020 of issuing $1 billion in debt to help stabilize other nonprofits, it delighted investors and inspired several other large foundations to follow suit.

Two years later, the foundations all stand by their decisions to take on long term debt, allowing several to essentially double the amount of their grantmaking.

“If we can’t swing for the fences at a time like this and use every aspect of our resources to try to make a difference in an existential moment, what are we here for?” – Hilary Pennington, executive vice president of programs.