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+resources and best practices
Sunset Planning for Grantmakers+definitions
Sunset planning: A term for when foundations decide to spend down their assets. (Usually, this type of planning is used when a foundation intends to close.)
Sunset Planning for Grantmakers+best practices
- "Planning the Future of Your Foundation" article by Association of Small Foundations Member Amy Zell Ellsworth, Zell Family Foundation and The Philanthropic Initiative: http://www.tpi.org/downloads/pdfs/ASF%20Fall%202007_Ellsworth.pdf
- ASF has also published a Primer about planning for sunsetting called "Closing Shop". It describes the main decisions involved in closing a foundation, including choosing from among several strategies for spending down, communicating your plans to grantees and other stakeholders; helping grantees plan; and navigating the IRS rules for closing a foundation. Available for a fee for both members and non-members: http://tinyurl.com/dlxv2y
- "The National Center for Family Philanthropy did a teleconference on "Perpetuity is a Long Time," where one foundation walked through its sunsetting procedure. The intended audience is family philanthropy. Access to is subscription-based: http://www.ncfp.org/program-teleconferences.htm
- Grantcraft has a booklet on exit strategies (you have to register, but downloads are free): http://www.grantcraft.org/dl_pdf/guide_exit.pdf
Sunset Planning for Grantmakers+issues
Economy Forces Two Big Foundations to Make Staff Reductions By Ian Wilhelm, July 17, 2009. The Chronicle of Philanthropy http://philanthropy.com/news/updates/8905/two-wealthy-foundations-make-changes-in-staff
Sunset Planning for Grantmakers+lessons learned
Association of Small Foundations
The Beldon Fund (www.beldon.org) was established as a spend-down foundation, and after 10 years of grantmaking, closed it doors in May 2009. Beldon made its last grants in June 2008 and closes its doors the end of May 2009. Beldon's archives will be preserved at the Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis University Library as part of its Philanthropy Collections and available for research in 2014. This website will remain live for the foreseeable future: http://www.beldon.org/
