| Founder(s) | Walter H. Annenberg |
|---|---|
| Type | Educational Charity |
| Founded | 1989 |
| Location | 2000 Avenue of the Stars, Suite 1000, Los Angeles, California 90067, United States |
| Key people | Wallis Annenberg Lauren Bon Gregory Annenberg Weingarten Charles Annenberg Weingarten |
| Area served | United States |
| Focus | Arts, Education, Health and Human Services, Animal services and Civic responsibility |
| Mission | Encouraging the development of more effective ways to share ideas and knowledge |
| Motto | Advancing the Public Well-Being Through Improved Communication |
| Website | Official website |
The Annenberg Foundation is a private foundation that provides funding and support to non-profit organizations in the United States and around the world.[1] The foundation's core initiative is the Annenberg/Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) project, which funds many educational television shows broadcast on Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) Public television in the United States.
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The Annenberg Foundation continues its historic programming focus, but is expanding to include environmental stewardship, social justice, and animal welfare. The Foundation continues to evolve from a traditional grantmaking institution to one that is actively involved in the community. The Annenberg Foundation strives to promote charitable activities through which large-scale solutions to systemic problems are pursued.
The following current projects are implemented by Annenberg Foundation Trustees and guided by their unique philanthropic vision:
Walter H. Annenberg headed the Annenberg Foundation until his death in 2002. Leonore, his wife, ran it until her death in March 2009. After that the foundation's trusteeship went to Wallis Annenberg and three of her children: Lauren Bon, Gregory Annenberg Weingarten and Charles Annenberg Weingarten.
The Annenberg Foundation is involved in a number of projects, some of which are listed below.
The Annenberg Space for Photography is a cultural destination dedicated to exhibiting both digital and print photography in an intimate environment. The space features state-of-the-art, high-definition digital technology as well as traditional prints by some of the world's most renowned photographers and a selection of emerging photographic talents as well.
Spearheaded by Wallis Annenberg’s commitment for building community space, The Annenberg Community Beach House at Santa Monica State Beach opened in 2009. Built on an historic site, The Beach House is a stunning free public swim and gathering facility located on 5 acres (20,000 m2) of oceanfront property. The Beach House represents one of the most unique public beach facilities in the United States.
The Metabolic Studio is Lauren Bon’s practice at the intersection of art and philanthropy. The Studio incorporates creativity and innovation to remediate brownfields, places incapable of supporting life. Ms. Bon’s signature projects include: Not A Cornfield, 2005-2006; Farmlab, 2006-2008; Strawberry Flag, 2009-2010; and Silver and Water, 2006-Present. Ms. Bon’s work creates innovative solutions to critical social issues often engaging complex bureaucracies including the California Department of Parks and Recreation, Veterans Administration, California State Lands Commission, and the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power.
Led by Charles Annenberg Weingarten, explore is a multimedia organization that creates video documentaries and photographic essays on non-profit organizations around the world. The explore team members document their missions, which include traditional philanthropic site visits to potential grantees whose leaders have devoted their lives to extraordinary causes. Explore uniquely combines global grantmaking, filmmaking, and photography as tools to educate and inspire.
Alchemy is a free non-profit leadership development program that offers capacity building with a focus on the strength of Executive Directors and Board Chairs. Participation is open to non-profits with operating budgets of $2 million or less based in Los Angeles County, California. However, the Executive Director and Board Chairperson are asked to participate together through the duration of the training. Among the critical issues addressed are effective governance, fundraising, and public accountability.
Annenberg Learner, former Annenberg Media, is an entity of the Foundation that creates educational resources (video, print, and Web based) to improve teaching methods and subject-matter expertise. Their K-12 and higher education resources are distributed to schools, non-commercial community agencies, colleges and universities. Annenberg Learner delivers its materials free-of-charge through learner.org. The site, which also houses interactive activities, downloadable guides, and resources coordinated with each video series, receives more than 10 million visits per month from teachers and learners worldwide. The website offers integrated multimedia K-12 materials to teachers for in-class use and professional development. Programs are also available for viewer’s use at home.
Coordinating with the Los Angeles Fire Department and the Los Angeles County Fire Department as well as private and public healthcare agencies, the Wallis Annenberg Heart Program, helped create a new paramedic system for improving the diagnosis and treatment of chest pain in thousands of Los Angeles area residents each year. Implemented in 2005, the new method replaced previous 4-lead EKG procedures, with a more accurate and revealing 12-lead system that helps paramedics and hospital-based physicians better diagnose and treat patients with symptoms of heart attacks.
Sunnylands is the former private estate of Mr. and Mrs. Walter H. Annenberg that is currently being transformed into an educational destination that will be open to the public as: The Annenberg Center at Sunnylands. Informally referred to as “Camp David West,” the estate was visited by U.S. Presidents, heads of state, and international dignitaries. The visitor center will include a 9-acre (36,000 m2) desert garden, historical exhibitions and programming highlighting its architectural importance as well as the Annenberg’s collections of art.
The Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism The Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism, is one of the foremost programs of its kind in the United States. The school fosters dynamic synergies and multidisciplinary approaches to the study of communication and journalism through unparalleled access to the nation's and the world's entertainment, mass media and technology industries. With more than 83 full-time faculty members and 120 adjunct professors, more than 2,200 undergraduate and graduate students are served. The school houses dozens of research and public interest programs, including the Norman Lear Center and the Knight Digital Media Center. USC Annenberg has become a center for discussion among scholars and professionals in journalism, communication, public policy, media, and education.
Annenberg Challenge In 1993, the largest gift to public education was made by Ambassador Walter Annenberg, a $500 million grant named the Annenberg Challenge. The grant was designed to unite the resources throughout the United States and ideas of those committed to increasing the effectiveness of public schooling. Recognizing that no single gift could improve all schools, the Challenge served as a catalyst to energize and support educational reform efforts across the country.
The Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania The Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania developed FactCheck.org. Factcheck.org monitors the factual accuracy of what is said by major U.S. political players in the form of TV ads, debates, speeches, interviews and news releases.
The Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania The Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania offers students a firm grounding in various approaches to the study of communication and its methods, drawn from both the humanities and the social sciences.
Ocean Alliance’s Tarr and Wonson Paint Manufactory: The Foundation provided funding to help purchase, preserve and restore the Tarr and Wonson Paint Manufactory in Gloucester, Massachusetts. This historic 1863 building at the entrance to the harbor will become the headquarters for Ocean Alliance, a world-renowned nonprofit oceanographic research center.
Wallis Annenberg Center for Performing Arts, Beverly Hills, California: This effort will preserve the landmark, historic Beverly Hills Post Office (adjacent to the Beverly Hills City Hall) by transforming the building into a dynamic performing arts and cultural facility for the presentation of theater, dance, music, professional children's theater and other cultural activities. The Center will feature a 500-seat theater, a 150-seat studio theater/rehearsal hall, classrooms, café, gift shop, and sculpture garden.
The Universally-Accessible Treehouse in Torrance, California:
The first universally-accessible treehouse in a public space in California was opened April 10, 2005 at Wilson Park in Torrance, California. The treehouse, a 2,500-square-foot (230 m2) wooden structure, was designed to give children and adults of all ages and physical abilities an awe-inspiring experience—and a bird’s eye view. Created as a service to the immediate community and as an inspiration for others, nearly 30 treehouses have been built nationally.
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