OVERVIEW: The TCF Foundation supports housing, education, health and arts and culture in areas where its parent banking company maintains operations.
IP TAKE: This corporate foundation tends to support organizations that have strong connections to the communities they serve.
The TCF Foundation is somewhat accessible and accepts letters of inquiry by mail at any time. The foundation generally responds within three months, inviting some applicants to submit full proposals. About half of its grants stay in the Minneapolis area, with the balance supporting organizations in midwestern states. This is predominantly a regional Midwestern funder.
PROFILE: The TCF Foundation is the philanthropic arm of TCF Bank, formerly Twin Cities Federal Savings and Loan, a regional bank headquartered in Wayzata, Minnesota. It broadly funds “activities designed to improve the economic and social well-being of our communities,” prioritizing education, human services, community development and the arts. This foundation maintains a sparse web page, limiting information about its grantmaking practices. A significant portion of its grants remain in the state of Minnesota.
Grants for Housing, Homelessness and Community Development
The TCF Foundation has demonstrated a strong commitment to supporting affordable housing initiatives and emergency and transitional housing for the homeless. In Minnesota, the foundation has supported the Milwaukee Rescue Mission, a homeless shelter and service organization, the Family Housing Fund and the Minnesota HomeOwnership Center, which offers homeownership education and financial counseling to first time buyers in the state. Other grantees include Chicago’s Mercy Housing Lakefront, which develops housing projects for the area’s lowest-income residents, and the Neighborhood Housing Services of Chicago, which supports Chicago homeowners with home-related financial services, low-cost loans and affordable insurance. The foundation has also given to multiple chapters of Habitat for Humanity.
Grants for Education
TCF’s recent education funding has been mainly limited to organizations operating in the state of Minnesota. While the foundation does not outline specific goals for its grantmaking in this area, most of its grants have supported secondary education initiatives. Minneapolis’s Summit Academy, a vocational high school, received funding for its Opportunities Industrialization Center programs. Another grantee, the Minnesota COPE program supports college-bound high school students with academic resources, guidance and scholarships. Other education grantees include the Kids in Need Foundation, the Project Prep Olympic Development Program, Friends of Education and several local chapters of the national organization Junior Achievement.
Grants for Public Health
TCF’s public health funding has focused on pediatric healthcare in Minnesota. Recent grants have supported the Children’s Healthcare Foundation of Minnesota, North Metro Pediatrics and Hope Kids, Inc., which supports families with children who are diagnosed with cancer. Other public health grantees include the Minnesota Ovarian Cancer Alliance and the American Lung Association of Minnesota.
Grants for Arts and Culture
Arts and culture represent a smaller area of giving for this foundation. Grants tend to support small organizations in areas where TCF maintains banking operations. In Minneapolis, the foundation has supported the Cowles Center for Dance and Performing Arts and the Illusion Theater. In Illinois, the foundation has given to Petite Opera Productions and the Huntly Historic Society.
Important Grant Details:
The TCF Foundation made $1.9 million in grants in a recent year and gave an additional $600,000 in its employee matching donation program. Most TCF grants range from $2,5000 to $10,000, but a few have been as high as $75,000. A significant portion of grantmaking stays in the state of Minnesota. Illinois, Wisconsin, Ohio and Michigan also appear to be geographic areas of interest. TCF’s grantees tend to be small, local organizations with strong ties to the communities they serve. For additional information about past grantmaking, see the foundation’s recent tax filings.
The TCF Foundation accepts letters of inquiry by mail on an ongoing basis. The foundation’s mailing address is provided below. Prospective grantees may expect to hear back from the foundation within three months, when they may be invited to submit full proposals. General inquiries should be directed to TCF’s director of community relations, Latrice McClendon, via email or telephone at 833-823-4483.
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CONTACT:
TCF Foundation
333 W. Fort St., Suite 1800
Detroit, MI 48226
(833) 823-4483