Grantee Perception Report

Lumina Foundation releases Grantee Perception Report

Lumina Foundation places a high value on evaluation. We support evaluation efforts that look closely at our work and the work of our grantees to answer the questions: What have we learned? What works? What's next? We also support evaluation that looks closely at our own work to help us learn how we can better advance our mission and serve our grantees. Although grantee perceptions are not definitive evidence of a foundation’s end social impact, they can be helpful in assessing a foundation’s overall performance and progress.

Since 2003, the Center for Effective Philanthropy (CEP) has surveyed more than 27,000 grantees of 142 foundations across the nation. Its survey results provide the only national benchmark against which foundations can measure their performance in grantee perception. Lumina Foundation participated in the 2003 CEP survey and again in Spring 2005. This year, CEP surveyed 149 grantees that received Lumina Foundation grants in 2004. Of the 149 targeted grantees, 111 responded, constituting a 75 percent response rate.

Overall, Lumina Foundation again scored well against its own performance in 2003; against the performance of 12 hand-selected peer foundations in the survey; and against the performance of the entire group of 142 foundations whose grantees CEP surveyed. We are delighted to share these results with you. Recognizing the complete report is quite lengthy, we present you with several viewing options that provide varying levels of detail:

Lumina Foundation is publishing a two-page summary of the report and CEP's 50-page version of the original 110-page report. If you have questions or comments, please contact us.

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