Biden Helps Women, Fearless Fund Update, Little League Opens Grants

It should no longer be a secret that more than half of all college degrees are granted to women. This has been the trend for some time now. So when the Biden Administration announced the cancellation of student debt for approximately 153,000 borrowers, the math tells us that most of those benefiting are women. Finally, some good news.

According to the Fact Sheet released by the White House, a total of $1.2 billion in student debt will be forgiven.

Grants are now open for Girls with Game. See below. (Image credit: Little League)

To qualify, the borrower must be enrolled in the administration’s Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) program. The initial debt must be under $12,000, and the borrower must have been making payments for at least ten years. The SAVE plan bases payment amounts on income and family size.

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Upcoming Women’s Philanthropy Webinar on 2024 Giving Trends

Kiersten Marek, of Philanthropy Women, will be on a panel for a webinar presented by the Women’s Philanthropy Institute (WPI) on January 30, 2024 at 1:00 PM Eastern Time, (12:00 PM Central Time). The discussion is scheduled for one hour. 

The central topic will be how women’s philanthropy will transform itself in 2024. The US general election in November is sure to have an impact on women’s priorities and so women’s giving. The influence of megadonors, as always, will continue to be a significant factor in the sector as well as we head into this new year.  

Next Tuesday, join WPI for a webinar on women’s philanthropy trends. (Image credit: WPI)

Join Kiersten, WPI and others for the discussion as we explore research-driven insights that inform trends in gender and giving. We will also hear from leaders in the field who will share their predictions for 2024 and beyond. 

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Thankful to Keep Learning as a Quantic Executive MBA Scholar

Hello philanthropy friends! With Thanksgiving in our midst, it seems the perfect time to announce some big news!  I am going to pursue an Executive MBA degree with Quantic, a highly selective MBA program that seeks to disrupt the business world as we know it. I am so excited to be going back to school!!!

Quantic MBA
I will be entering the 58th cohort for Quantic, which boasts an 89% graduation rate and very high scores for student satisfaction. (Image credit: Kiersten Marek)



One of the big reasons I am pursuing an Executive MBA is to better understand how to attract markets to feminism and gender equality. In going through the process of applying and interviewing at Quantic, I had the realization that I had already crossed two hurdles: I created a feminist product that people would pay money for and I created a sizable market for this product. Now I will figure out if this product can be expanded, and, beyond that, how to proceed in convening stakeholders in business to move the needle on equal rights for women and girls.

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It’s Official: Amplify Her Foundation Has Launched

The Amplify Her® Foundation, a new private grantmaking foundation created to support the economic and social advancement of women changemakers from under-invested communities in New York City, held an official launch celebration. The foundation will also release “If She Can Make it Here,” a comprehensive research report that identifies the most significant barriers faced by women and girls from underserved communities in the city and interventions to help them overcome those obstacles and meet their full leadership potential.

The Amplify Her Foundation has launched to provide more funding for women and girls. (Image credit: Amplify Her Foundation)

“After years of working to advance women in the public, nonprofit and political arenas, what consistently stood out to me was the dearth of funding and support specifically for nonprofit organizations serving women and girls. Women and girls face unique challenges and yet funding is rarely tailored to their needs…”  —Marti Speranza Wong, Amplify Her Foundation founder, executive director and board chair.

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Leaders Fight for Feminist Giving in Congress with First-Ever Hill Day

“The power imbalance in philanthropy—often maintained by those without intimate knowledge of a community’s historical context, the needs on the ground, and the most urgent issues—spurs activists in marginalized communities, especially Black women and girls, to call for more input in determining what should be prioritized, how it should be funded, and who gets the money.” This is the opening paragraph of Feminist philanthropy: Dismantling silos and raising long-term funding (link).

Advocates at WFN’s first Hill Day included Monica Ramirez, Genisus Holland, Jocelyn Frye, Latanya Mapp-Frett and Fatima Goss-Graves. (Image credit: WFN)

Feminist giving, especially that focusing on women and girls, and especially women and girls of color, faces a dilemma. On one side, traditional philanthropic organizations are often hampered by a “white savior” mindset and scrutiny from the patriarchy; on the other, Black women face access issues, and are often not granted adequate trust to control large gifts. 

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New Labor Supply to Help Keep Philanthropy Women Running

Hello Feminist Giving friends! This week at Philanthropy Women brings some exciting news for us. As it turns out, a male ally to gender equality givers is retiring after 33 years as a business analyst, and he is going to be joining us as a writer at Philanthropy Women. This new writer and thinker will be adding fuel to our fire as the only funding news outlet in the world exclusively devoted to women. And who is this exciting addition to our team?

Philanthropy Women founder Kiersten Marek with her husband, Kevin Marek, who has retired after 33 years working in the business world. (Image credit: Kiersten Marek)

Why, it’s none other than my husband of over 25 years, Kevin Marek! As of May 26, he will be taking off the corporate shackles and rejoining the rest of the world to pursue all of his many interests and hobbies, and one of those interests is in being a male ally to the cause of gender equality.

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E. Jean Carroll Prevails in Triumph for Sexual Assault Survivors

Greetings, friends of Philanthropy Women! This week brings some very good news: E. Jean Carroll, American journalist who sued Donald Trump for sexual abuse and defamation, has won her suit. Her victory is evidence of her incredible stamina and persistence in pursuing justice, and it sets a new standard for how survivors of sexual assault can take action to address past crimes committed against them.

Journalist E. Jean Carroll has won her lawsuit proving that Donald Trump sexually assaulted her. (Image credit: AP)

When it comes to feminist giving, many give with their financial resources primarily. But someone like E. Jean Carroll gave not only with her financial resources, but with her time and energy, and her gift of endurance in the long fight to attain justice as a sexual assault survivor. We congratulate E. Jean Carroll and hope many other women will follow in her footsteps.

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Feminist Giving Holiday Vibes, Plus THE HARDCOVER BOOK IS OUT!

Hello again my feminist giving allies! I have some very good news: the hardcover edition of Feminist Giving: Creating New Frontiers in Social Change is now available! Please buy the book on Lulu as we get three times the percentage of revenue if you buy the book on Lulu as opposed to Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or any other major distribution outlet.

feminist giving
The author with her work! (Image credit: Philanthropy Women)

There is lots of other feminist giving news to get to, but before we go there, let’s just take a moment to pause, reflect, and be thankful. We are so thankful for our subscribers, especially those who hung on this past year while we produced less internet content and created our first real world physical product, a 405 page book with over 240 citations, in order to bring more awareness about feminist giving to the world. So thank you, subscribers! Without your help, we couldn’t have done it.

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Alarming, Affirming, Challenging: It’s HERE! Order Feminist Giving TODAY!

The wait is over for Philanthropy Women Editor-in-Chief Kiersten Marek’s new book, Feminist Giving: Creating New Frontiers in Social Change! Critics are describing the book as “alarming, affirming, and challenging,” and an “important new resource” for philanthropy and social justice movements.

It’s here!! Order Feminist Giving on Kobo and Lulu today!

Out TODAY as an eBook on Kobo and Lulu, Feminist Giving features some of the best research and insights from the feminist giving sphere in the last five years. Hard copy and Amazon editions are coming soon (cheer on those processors!), and we’ll be sure to let the whole world know as soon as they are available.

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Coming October 4th: Kiersten Marek’s New Book, Feminist Giving!

Pre-orders are now available for Philanthropy Women Editor-in-Chief Kiersten Marek’s next book, Feminist Giving: Creating New Frontiers in Social Change!

Kiersten Marek’s new book, Feminist Giving: Creating New Frontiers in Social Change, arrives in digital and hardcover copies on October 4th, 2022! Click here to pre-order your copy!

Out October 4th in hard copy and digital formats, Feminist Giving features some of the best research and insights from the feminist giving sphere in the last five years. Pre-order your copy today so you don’t miss a moment of the latest and greatest research in feminist giving!

This exquisitely researched resource is packed with real-world examples and interviews with the best and brightest of the philanthropy world. Pre-order your copy today, and celebrate with us on October 4th!

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