The Council on Foundations, an organization that represents many of the nation’s biggest grant makers, has eliminated 19 positions in the last two months, part of a “redesign” its president says will enable the organization to better serve its members.

In an interview, Vikki Spruill, who has led the association since July, said the change was driven by a need to work differently, not a decision to cut certain services or programs. The council, she said, would focus on better anticipating the needs of member foundations and would be creating up to a dozen positions next year that fit that new approach.

“It’s a different business model, and we need different skills and competencies to support a new business model,” she said.

The organization, Ms. Spruill said, would also aim to be less “hierarchical.” As an example, she said the council eliminated its chief operating officer…

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The Funding Exchange, a 33-year-old organization that helped to pioneer social-justice giving, announced this week that it is ceasing operations.

Financial woes stemming from declining investment earnings from the group’s donor-advised funds led to the decision, said Casey Cook, executive director of the Bread and Roses Community Fund and chairman of the Funding Exchange’s board.

“Ultimately the board had to make the very difficult decision to cease operations at this time in order to be able to honor our existing commitments,” she said. “The board acted on its fiduciary responsibility not to operate in a deficit.”

In addition to its donor-advised funds, the Funding Exchange held an endowment of roughly $12-million that supported the 16 member foundations that made up the collaborative. The board has yet to decide what exactly will happen to the endowment, but it will continue…

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Foundation jobs are often viewed as the most-desirable positions in the nonprofit world, but a new study finds they do not guarantee happiness.

Employees at the nation’s grant makers rated their job satisfaction an average of 5.3 out of 7, according to a study based on a survey of more than 1,000 people conducted by the Center for Effective Philanthropy.

Employees are far more likely to express satisfaction with their jobs if they feel they are respected, their ideas are valued, and they can use their skills and creativity to make a positive difference, according to the study. Those factors were more important than pay or workload, the study says.

To encourage a feeling of “empowerment” among employees, the study recommends, foundation leaders should clearly communicate goals, conduct employee reviews that are fair and helpful, and give workers the sense that they are valued.

…

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The Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation has selected a longtime board member, Tom McDonnell, to serve as its new chief executive, the grant maker said today.

Mr. McDonnell is a business leader who is retiring this year after nearly 40 years as chief executive of DST Systems, a technology company in Kansas City. He has served on the Kauffman foundation board since 2003 and as its chairman since 2006.

Mr. McDonnell succeeds Carl Schramm, who led Kauffman from 2002 until last year.

Mr. McDonnell said in a statement that he was “honored” to serve as the foundation’s leader. “Our important work in education and entrepreneurship has made an impact both around the globe and in our hometown of Kansas City,” he said.

His nonprofit affiliations include serving as chairman of the Greater Kansas City Community Foundation and the Kansas City United Way Campaign.

Janice Kreamer,…

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A group of more than 80 grant makers, nonprofits, and businesses has created a network to help legal immigrants living in the United States become citizens.

The New Americans Campaign will aim to use $20-million donated by multiple foundations to make it easier for people to become full-fledged Americans. Currently, barriers prevent the vast majority of the nation’s 8 million legal immigrants from becoming naturalized. Only 8 percent of those eligible each year do so, the campaign reports.

Applying for citizenship costs $680—too much for many immigrants. The lengthy, labyrinthine path to citizenship can take two years to complete, dissuading many from trying. Many who do fall prey to fraudulent operators who take their money but offer little in legal services in return.

“The goal of the campaign is to allow those who want to take that last step toward citizenship navigate the …

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Bloomberg Philanthropies announced today the 20 finalists for a competition designed to spark innovation among U.S. cities.

The 20 finalists—including High Point, N.C., for a plan to adapt a nonprofit gang-violence program to reduce domestic abuse; Philadelphia’s proposal to “re-imagine” the government grant-making process; and Milwaukee’s ideas for using foreclosed property—will attend an “ideas camp” in New York later this month to share their ideas and help them take shape.

“We want to identify the best thinking and most creative solutions percolating up from across the country, elevate the solutions, and ultimately help them spread,” said Jim Anderson, who leads the foundation’s government-innovation work.

The cities are competing for a $5-million top prize and four runner-up awards of $1-million each. Winners will be announced this spring.

Mr. Anderson said 305…

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In an effort to educate lawmakers about health issues, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation last week announced that it has appointed David Colby as its first vice president for public policy.

Mr. Colby currently leads the foundation’s research and evaluation work. He spent nine years in federal government before joining Robert Wood Johnson.

“David’s experience in both the federal government and academic sectors make him uniquely qualified to lead our representation on important matters of public policy,” said Risa Lavizzo-Mourey, the philanthropy’s president, in a statement. “He will significantly enhance our presence in Washington.”

Mr. Colby will split his time between Washington and the foundation’s headquarters in New Jersey. His responsibilities will include sharing with politicians the foundation’s research on health care, in an effort to influence how government…

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Sterling Speirn, president of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, announced today that he plans to step down at the end of next year.

Mr. Speirn has led the organization since 2006. He said in a letter that he does not plan to retire but will instead continue to focus on ways to help vulnerable children and families.

“He’s had a lot of accomplishments here, a lot to be proud of, and I think he likes the idea of going out on the top of his game,” said Joanne Krell, vice president for communications, in an e-mail. Mr. Speirn will be 65 at the time of his departure.

In a statement, Rod Gillum, Kellogg’s board chair, said Mr. Speirn had strengthened the foundation’s work aiding needy families by “creating new systems that provide better, more affordable food, higher-quality education options, and clear paths out of multigenerational poverty.”

The foundation also made explicit long-term …

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The fate of the charitable deduction worried many of the donors, grant makers, and nonprofit experts gathered in Palm Beach, Fla., on Thursday for the opening of the Philanthropy Roundtable’s annual conference.

Loss of the deduction would be so devastating to philanthropy, said one legal expert, that she urged donors and other nonprofit advocates to push to amend the Constitution or the federal tax code so that a donor’s gross income would be reduced by the amount he or she contributes to charity.

“Stop calling it a deduction and start calling it an incentive,” said Cleta Mitchell, a lawyer who advises nonprofits, corporations, and political candidates and campaigns. “If you give money to charity, it should not be defined as income.”

Sandra Swirski, head of the Alliance for Charitable Reform, a coalition of foundations and donors, said she feared reductions in the a…

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Fifteen of the country’s biggest philanthropies have agreed to release information on their grants in a consistent, timely way, the Foundation Center said Tuesday.

Known as the “Reporting Commitment,” the project is the latest attempt by the Foundation Center to encourage openness on the part of philanthropies.

The 15 foundations will provide their grant-making data to the Foundation Center on at least a quarterly basis. Some will release that information daily.

The grants data will be shared on the Foundation Center’s Web site in an open format so it can be independently sorted and analyzed. An interactive map of the data aims to provide viewers with a sense of the geographic reach of U.S. foundations.

Bradford Smith, the Foundation Center’s president, wrote in a blog post that philanthropy is playing catch up.

“In a world where value is being created exponentially by…

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