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- Assets: $41,742,644 (2005)
- Grants Received: $80,041,243 (2005)
- Grants Awarded: $123,287,819 (2005)
The Bank of America Foundation (BAF) was established in 1958 under the name NationsBank Foundation. Its current name was adopted in 1998 following the merger of NationsBank Corporation and BankAmerica Corporation. BAF recently integrated the former FleetBoston Financial Foundation into its fold. The Chairwoman of BAF is Janet Lamkin, the President is Lynn Drury, and the Executive Director is Jefferson Morgan.
BAF targets its philanthropy toward nonprofit institutions and groups that operate in the geographic areas where the Bank of America conducts business; this encompasses 21 states and Washington, DC. BAF identifies its primary areas of focus as "early childhood, professional development for teachers, and consumer education."
BAF's signature program is its Neighborhood Excellence Initiative, which sponsors internships, workshops, and training programs designed to develop young activists "who are committed to making a difference in their communities." It also teaches principles of "strategic thinking, business planning, leadership development and succession planning, long-term business growth and building a diverse funding base." In 2005, the Foundation made grants totaling $15.5 million through this program.
BAF also administers a Matching Gifts Program, which encourages associates to contribute money to qualifying nonprofit organizations of their choice. Dollar for dollar, the Foundation matches up to $5,000 per person each calendar year. This program does not cover donations made to religious, athletic, political, or fraternal organizations.
The Foundation's Volunteer Grants Program directs money to any eligible nonprofit organization for which an associate has committed substantial volunteer hours within a calendar year. For 50 hours of volunteer time within a calendar year, BAF gives a $250 grant. For 100 hours of volunteer time, the grant is $500.
BAF is rated by the Capital Research Center, which was established in 1984 to study non-profit organizations, as a "Radical Left" foundation. It funds a host of leftwing minority, feminist, gay, environmental, animal rights, and illegal-immigrant advocacy groups. Among the recipients of recent BAF grants are: the Consumer Federation of America; People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals; the Nature Conservancy; Trust for Public Land; the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund; the Carter Center; the Brookings Institution; the National Wildlife Federation; the Council on Foundations; the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute; Planned Parenthood; Resources for the Future; the Rainforest Alliance; the Urban League; the Center for Community Change; the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People; the Humane Society (a radical animal-rights group - not to be confused with the American Humane Association, a bona fide animal welfare group from which the former split off in 1954); the National Organization on Disability; the World Wildlife Fund; the Environmental Defense Fund; Conservation International; Global Green; the America Farmland Trust; the World Resources Institute; the Rocky Mountain Institute; the Women Together Foundation; the William J. Clinton Presidential Foundation; the University of Southern California - Mexican-American Alumni Association; the Union of Pan Asian Communities; 100 Black Men; Afro-American Construction Workers Association; the Afro-American Cultural Center; AIDS Arms, Inc.; the AIDS Legal Referral Panel; the American Friends Service Committee; the American Indian Liberation Crusade; the American Institute for Social Justice; Amnesty International; the Animal Legal Defense Fund; the Legal Aid Society of Atlanta; the Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Fund; CASA Maņana; the Center for Women; the San Diego Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Community Center; the Salvadoran American Leadership and Educational Fund; Rubicon Programs; Plaza de la Raza; the Cesar Chavez Foundation; the Chicago Abortion Fund; Chicanos Por La Causa; the Children's Defense Fund; the Children's Law Center; the Ocean Conservancy; the North County Latinas Association; Natural Step; the National Conference for Community and Justice; Defenders of Animal Rights; Defenders of Wildlife; Earth Share; EarthJustice; the Earthwatch Institute; La Clinica de la Raza; the Hispanic Culture Foundation; Hispanas Organized for Political Equality, California; the Zen Hospice Project; the Heartland Alliance for Human Needs and Human Rights; El Centro de Accion Social; El Centro del Barrio; Environmental Media; the Environmental Law Alliance; the Equal Justice Initiative; the Women Helping Women Fund; the Fresh Start Women's Foundation; the Foundation for Community Empowerment; Friends of the Earth; the Gaia Institute Wellness Center; and the Echo Foundation.
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