TROY, MICHIGAN – The national foundation long-recognized for its support of nonprofit capital campaigns is expanding its grantmaking to better serve the pressing needs of society. Nine values have been identified as strategic priorities and constitute new grantmaking criteria.

“We have embarked upon an unprecedented process to expand our grantmaking – one that will stretch our challenge grant program – to better address the ever-increasing gap between rich and poor, global economic restructuring, technological innovation, terrorism, climate change and other complex challenges,” says Rip Rapson, president of the foundation. “The trustees and staff at Kresge concluded a little over a year ago that, like other large, privately endowed foundations, we have a moral obligation to reposition ourselves to best contribute to approaches that work to address these issues.”

The values are as follows: creating opportunity, community impact, institutional transformation, risk, environmental conservation, innovation, collaboration, underserved geography and diversity. For descriptive information on each value, visit Our Values.

Kresge will continue to work in the fields it has traditionally supported: health, the environment, arts and culture, education, human services and community development. Each value serves as a lens through which grant proposals will be evaluated. No one value carries more weight than another. The foundation seeks proposals from organizations involved in activities that address multiple values.

“Nonprofit organizations enable our work as much as we try to enable theirs,” adds Rapson. “We cannot pursue our new vision for grantmaking without partnering with nonprofits that are working on the front lines, often against impossible odds, to pursue new and better forms of service.

“We hope organizations will let us know what they are doing and how we can help.”

For more information, visit Our Work.