February 16, 2009 — Responding to a deepening economic crisis, some Massachusetts foundations are increasing their grant making, despite declines in endowment values, while views are mixed on how many donors are decreasing their giving as opposed to holding steady.

Easthampton-based Women’s Fund of Western Massachusetts, which aims to create economic and social equality for women and girls in western Massachusetts, announced that it will award $500,000 in grants over the next two years, a 150% increase in its annual grant making.

The United Bank Foundation, based in West Springfield, expects to make at least $250,000 in new grants this year, up from $207,000 in 2008, according to a report in today’s Boston Globe.

Boston-based Associated Grant Makers, which connects nonprofits with foundations, corporate grant makers, and philanthropists, said that it expects half its members to reduce their giving and most of the rest to maintain their grant making this year, the Globe reported.

In contrast, The Philanthropic Initiative (TPI), a Boston-based organizations that advises donors, reports that three-quarters of its clients plan to maintain their current level of grant making, according to the newspaper report. Another 20% are cutting back, while 5% plan to increase their grants.

"There's a big kind of wait-and-see attitude before anybody makes any rash decisions to increase or decrease their charitable giving," TPI Vice President James Coutre was quoted as saying. "We also see a desire across the industry of everybody feeling the need to step up and give more. Some people are acting on it. There are quite a number of people who are still deer in the headlights."

Earlier this month, Eos Foundation, based in Harwich Port, through its Boston Rising initiative announced a five-year, $10 million Impact Zone program designed to measurably improve the economic and community well-being of a targeted neighborhood in Boston. The initiative is part of a larger $15 million program that Eos announced a year ago.

After the Eos Foundation experienced a 30% decline of what had been a $50 million endowment, Ken Nickerson and his wife have also contributed an additional $10 million to help the Foundation offset its losses, the Boston Globe reported.

Recently, The Cape Cod Foundation restructured its grants program to include Strategic Focus Grants that support requests of $5,000 or more.

The new Community Impact Grant Program (formerly the General Grants Program), divides grants into two types, General Grants and Strategic Focus Grants. General Grants are requests under $5,000 and will be accepted on a rolling basis throughout the year. Strategic Focus Grants are requests of $5,000 or more and will be accepted once a year.

“We believe that the new process will allow us to better support the important work of nonprofit organizations to strengthen and improve our community,” said Foundation Vice President Lisa McNeill.

On a related front, a number of nonprofits, including Mass Audubon, are working to pass the Uniform Prudent Management of Institutional Funds Act, which updates the laws that govern endowment management. In particular, it would remove the floor of historical dollar value and allow spending into principal in a prudent manner.