Leadership Investment

Leadership Investment Programs

The two key components of the Leadership Investment portfolio are the annual Leaders for a New Chicago Award and the Field Foundation Graduate Fellowship.

• Leaders for a New Chicago Award: Created in partnership with the MacArthur Foundation in 2018, this initiative uplifts leaders outside of the city’s power structure and celebrates the impactful change they are bringing to their communities through new approaches to civic discourse and action. The initiative provides $50,000 no-strings-attached awards to individual leaders and, if eligible, a $25,000 grant for their affiliated, not-for-profit organizations.

• Field Foundation Graduate Fellowship: College students pursuing graduate degrees in Chicago may apply for a nine-month academic year fellowship. The program is a supervised placement at the Field Foundation, offering field work and philanthropic experience. Past fellows have applied through their schools to gain credit towards their degrees. Fellows learn all aspects of the Foundation’s grantmaking process by reviewing grant proposals, conducting site visits, writing grant recommendations, and supporting work for the Foundation’s staff and board of directors. Fellows also work on special projects.

Leadership Investment Goals

We seek to:

• Increase individual leadership capacity by supporting leaders and their organizations.

• Strengthen connections between rising and existing leaders across communities by growing leaders’ networks and social capital.

• Learn from leaders, incorporating insights about their experiences to better understand and support civic leadership.