McCormick Foundation

The McCormick Foundation is a Chicago-based nonprofit charitable trust created in 1955 under the will of Colonel Robert R. McCormick, the longtime editor and publisher of the Chicago Tribune. McCormick directed that his estate support causes associated with his civic philosophy, including First Amendment freedoms, citizenship, community service, education, and journalism. The foundation is therefore not a consumer-products brand despite the McCormick name; it is a grantmaking and public-benefit institution whose work has historically been concentrated in Illinois, particularly the Chicago area. The organization developed from assets and public-interest commitments associated with the McCormick family. Its activities have included direct grants, institutional partnerships, cultural and educational projects, and support for nonprofit organizations. Its program areas have covered early-childhood education, journalism and news literacy, civic education, community needs, veterans' services, health and human services, and cultural institutions. The foundation has also supported public-facing facilities and initiatives, including Cantigny Park in Wheaton, Illinois, and a First Amendment museum project. Education has been a significant part of its grantmaking. A major 1989 grant helped renovate Northwestern University's Technological Institute, after which the university's engineering school was named the Robert R. McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science. From 2003 onward, the foundation placed particular emphasis on children up to age eight in Illinois, supporting organizations and initiatives concerned with early learning, child welfare, family services, and education policy. Its journalism program has supported organizations working in newspaper leadership, media management, public-interest reporting, journalism education, and news literacy. Its civic program has focused on expanding civic-learning and participation opportunities for young people, especially Chicago-area residents between approximately 12 and 22 years old. Community grantmaking has included partnerships with media organizations and professional sports teams to raise funds for local causes, sometimes through matching-grant arrangements. In 2008 and 2009, the foundation also directed grants toward services for veterans returning from the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. The foundation was formerly known as the McCormick Tribune Foundation. In May 2008, its board adopted the shorter McCormick Foundation name to clarify that the organization no longer owned a stake in the Tribune Company. In May 2009, it appointed David Hiller, a Chicago native and former chief executive of the Los Angeles Times, as president and chief executive officer, succeeding retired U.S. Army Major General David L. Grange. Public reference material reported that the foundation held more than one billion U.S. dollars in assets as of 2010, although this figure is historical rather than a current financial measure. The foundation's public identity combines philanthropy with stewardship of places, educational institutions, civic initiatives, and First Amendment programming. Its work is best understood as a U.S. charitable foundation rather than as a commercial brand, with its influence expressed through grants, partnerships, named facilities, and public educational projects.

Robert R. McCormick inherited the estate known as Cantigny from his grandfather, Joseph Medill, and became editor and publisher of the Chicago Tribune in 1911. During his career, McCormick developed strong views about constitutional freedoms, civic responsibility, education, community service, and the role of journalism in public life. His will provided for the creation of a charitable trust after his death in 1955, establishing the institutional basis of what became the McCormick Foundation. The foundation's early and continuing purpose was to apply McCormick's estate to public-benefit activities rather than to operate as a commercial enterprise. One important element of this legacy was Cantigny, the Wheaton, Illinois, estate that McCormick intended to preserve as a public park. Cantigny subsequently became a public destination combining open space, cultural interpretation, and educational uses. Over time, the foundation broadened its grantmaking across several connected fields. In education, it supported institutions and programs serving children, families, and students. A notable institutional grant in 1989 contributed 30 million dollars to renovation of Northwestern University's Technological Institute; the university later named its engineering school the Robert R. McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science. Beginning in 2003, the foundation concentrated more heavily on Illinois initiatives serving children through approximately age eight, including early-childhood education, family support, and related policy and service organizations. Journalism became another major area of activity. Grants supported groups involved in newspaper leadership, media management, journalism education, public-interest communications, and news literacy. This focus reflected both McCormick's professional history and the foundation's broader interest in the First Amendment and an informed citizenry. The foundation also supported civic programs designed to give young people opportunities to learn about government, constitutional rights, public service, and participation. Its civic portfolio included organizations working with Chicago-area youth and students. The organization also used partnerships to address community needs. It worked with media outlets and sports organizations, including teams in Chicago and other U.S. markets, to raise money for local causes. These arrangements often incorporated matching grants intended to encourage additional contributions. In 2008 and 2009, veterans' services became a stated grantmaking priority, with support directed toward people returning from military operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. Additional grants reached health, cultural, education, and human-service organizations, including services for people with visual impairments, hospitals, and youth-serving community groups. From April 2006 through March 2009, the foundation funded the McCormick Tribune Freedom Museum. The museum interpreted the five freedoms protected by the First Amendment: speech, religion, press, assembly, and petition. In January 2009, the foundation announced a change from a fixed museum model to a mobile format. The resulting mobile Freedom Museum debuted in Chicago in May 2010, allowing the foundation to deliver constitutional and civic education to audiences outside a single permanent venue. The foundation's institutional identity changed during the same period. In May 2008, its board renamed the McCormick Tribune Foundation as the McCormick Foundation. The change was intended to make clear that the foundation no longer held an ownership position in the Tribune Company. In May 2009, David Hiller became president and chief executive officer, replacing David L. Grange, who had led the foundation from 2005 to 2009 after a career that included service as a U.S. Army major general. Reference material stated that the foundation had more than one billion dollars in assets as of 2010. That figure describes a historical point in time and should not be treated as a current balance-sheet estimate. Overall, the McCormick Foundation's history is defined by the conversion of a newspaper publisher's estate into a long-term philanthropic institution, with programs linking constitutional rights, journalism, education, youth development, community support, and public access to cultural resources.

• 2010

  Freedom Express debuts in Chicago

  [1]McCormick Foundationen.wikipedia.org

  The mobile First Amendment museum made its public debut at Pioneer Court in Chicago.

• 2009

  Mobile museum model announced

  [1]McCormick Foundationen.wikipedia.org

  The foundation announced that the Freedom Museum would transition into a mobile educational exhibit.

• 2008

  Organization renamed McCormick Foundation

  [1]McCormick Foundationen.wikipedia.org

  The board removed 'Tribune' from the name to clarify the foundation's lack of an ongoing ownership position in the Tribune Company.

• 2006

  Freedom Museum funding period begins

  [1]McCormick Foundationen.wikipedia.org

  The foundation began funding the McCormick Tribune Freedom Museum's public interpretation of First Amendment rights.

• 2003

  Greater emphasis on early childhood in Illinois

  [1]McCormick Foundationen.wikipedia.org

  The foundation focused more strongly on programs serving Illinois children through approximately age eight.

• 1989

  Major grant supports Northwestern engineering facilities

  [1]McCormick Foundationen.wikipedia.org

  A 30 million dollar grant helped renovate Northwestern University's Technological Institute, contributing to the later naming of the Robert R. McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science.

• 1955

  Charitable trust established

  [1]McCormick Foundationen.wikipedia.org

  Following McCormick's death, his will established the charitable trust that became the McCormick Foundation.

• 1911

  Robert R. McCormick becomes editor and publisher of the Chicago Tribune

  [1]McCormick Foundationen.wikipedia.org

  McCormick assumed the leadership role that connected his later philanthropic legacy with journalism and public affairs.

A civic-minded charitable foundation focused on strengthening education, journalism, democratic participation, communities, and public service.

• Philanthropic programs · 1955

  Grantmaking programs

  The foundation's principal offering is philanthropic support rather than a commercial product. Its grantmaking has included education, journalism, civics, communities, veterans' services, health, culture, and human services. The work is delivered through grants and partnerships with nonprofit organizations, educational institutions, media groups, sports organizations, and community-service providers.

• Public park and cultural facility

  Cantigny Park

  Cantigny is the former McCormick estate in Wheaton, Illinois, preserved as a public park. It represents the foundation's role in maintaining public cultural and educational assets in addition to making grants. The site provides a tangible expression of McCormick's intention that part of his estate serve the public.

• Civic and First Amendment education · 2006

  McCormick Tribune Freedom Museum

  The Freedom Museum was a public educational project focused on the First Amendment's protections for speech, religion, press, assembly, and petition. The foundation funded the museum from 2006 to 2009 before shifting the concept into a mobile format intended to reach audiences in multiple locations.

• Mobile civic-education exhibit · 2010

  Mobile Freedom Museum

  The mobile successor to the Freedom Museum carried First Amendment educational programming beyond a fixed museum venue. It debuted at Chicago's Pioneer Court in May 2010 and was designed to make constitutional-rights education accessible to broader public audiences.

• 2010Freedom Express

  United States · Chicago

  A mobile version of the foundation's First Amendment museum initiative, developed to present educational material on speech, religion, press, assembly, and petition outside a permanent museum building.

  Outcome. The mobile museum debuted at Pioneer Court in Chicago on May 27, 2010.

  Source

• 2009

  Convert the Freedom Museum into a mobile exhibitStrategy

  Background

  After the fixed-location museum funding period, the foundation sought a format capable of reaching audiences beyond one Chicago venue.

  Action taken

  The foundation announced that the McCormick Freedom Museum would become mobile.

  Aftermath

  The mobile museum debuted in Chicago in May 2010.

  Source

• 2008

  Remove Tribune from the foundation's nameStrategy

  Background

  The foundation no longer held an ownership position in the Tribune Company, creating a need to clarify its institutional identity.

  Action taken

  The board changed the name from McCormick Tribune Foundation to McCormick Foundation.

  Aftermath

  The shorter name emphasized the foundation's independent philanthropic identity.

  Source

• 2010

  Mobile Freedom Museum makes Chicago debut[1]McCormick Foundationen.wikipedia.org

  Product launch

  The mobile museum made its public debut at Pioneer Court in Chicago, presenting educational material about First Amendment rights.

• 2009

  David Hiller appointed president and chief executive officer[1]McCormick Foundationen.wikipedia.org

  Leadership change

  David Hiller succeeded retired Major General David L. Grange as the foundation's president and chief executive officer.

• 2009

  McCormick Freedom Museum transitions to a mobile format[1]McCormick Foundationen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  The foundation announced that the First Amendment-focused McCormick Freedom Museum would become mobile, extending its educational programming beyond a fixed museum location.

• 2008

  Foundation adopts the McCormick Foundation name[1]McCormick Foundationen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  The board changed the organization's name from McCormick Tribune Foundation to McCormick Foundation to reflect that it no longer held an ownership position in the Tribune Company.

1. 1McCormick Foundationen.wikipedia.org