Annenberg Foundation

American charitable family foundation

The Annenberg Foundation is a family foundation that provides funding and support to non profit organizations in the United States and around the world. The following current projects are implemented by Annenberg Foundation Trustees and guided by their philanthropic vision:

The Annenberg Foundation is involved in a number of projects, some of which are listed below.

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 issues addressed are effective governance, fundraising, and public accountability.

Spearheaded by Wallis Annenberg's commitment for building community spaces, The Annenberg Community Beach House at Santa Monica State Beach opened in 2009. Built on an historic site, The Beach House is a free public swim and gathering facility located on of oceanfront property.

Annenberg Learner, formerly Annenberg Media, is an entity of the Annenberg 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 website, 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.

The Annenberg Retreat at Sunnylands in Rancho Mirage, California, is the former private estate of Mr. and Mrs. Walter H. Annenberg. It opened in March 2012 as a historic house and visitor center. Sunnylands has been informally referred to as "Camp David West". It has been visited by numerous U. S. Presidents, heads of state, and international dignitaries. The visitor center includes a desert garden, historical exhibitions and programming highlighting its architectural significance as well as the Annenberg's collections of art.

The Annenberg Space for Photography, was an exhibit space for where digital and print photography. The Space held roughly two exhibits per year of digital technology or traditional prints by established and emerging photographers. It was in Los Angeles' Century City district, across the street from Century Plaza Hotel. On June 8, 2020, it was announced that the facility will not re open following the closing in March due to pandemic. Photographers that have been exhibited include John Baldessari, Lauren Greenfield, Timothy Greenfield Sanders, Walter Iooss, Lynn Johnson, Douglas Kirkland, Neil Leifer, Michael Nichols, Catherine Opie, Matthew Rolston, Julius Shulman, Melvin Sokolsky, John Stanmeyer, Bert Stern, Tim Street Porter, Tyen and Albert Watson, Harun Mehmedinovic, Gavin Heffernan.

Led by Charles Annenberg Weingarten, Explore is a multimedia organization that creates video documentaries and photographic essays about non profit organizations around the world. Explore. org hosts the worlds largest collection of nature livecams, streaming video of animals in their natural habitat, from around the world. Explore. org hosts the well known Bear Cams from Brooks River in Katmai National Park, home of Fat Bear Week.

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 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.

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.

On January 28, 2013, the Annenberg Foundation signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and several other state agencies to explore the possibility of constructing a 46,000 square foot facility in the protected Ballona Wetlands Ecological Reserve which would have included adoption and veterinary services for domestic pets. However, on December 2, the Foundation announced that it was suspending its plans. The Los Angeles Times reported that some wetlands advocates had opposed the proposal. The Los Angeles Daily News noted that this was the Foundation's second failed attempt to construct this project on public land. The Los Angeles Times and Los Angeles Daily News editorial boards called the project "a bad fit" and "inappropriate," respectively.

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. Annenberg Institute at Brown University: The Annenberg Institute at Brown University was established in 1993 through an anonymous gift of $5 million. Several months later, a $50 million gift – part of Ambassador Walter H. Annenberg's $500 million Challenge to the Nation to improve public education in America – enabled the fledgling Institute to expand the scope of its work. In appreciation of the Ambassador's gift, the Annenberg Institute was renamed in his honor. The Institute adopted its current mission in 1998: "To develop, share, and act on knowledge that improves the conditions and outcomes of schooling in America, especially in urban communities and in schools serving disadvantaged children." 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 was founded in 1958. The Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism of the University of Southern California: With more than 83 full time faculty members and 120 adjunct professors, more than 2,200 undergraduate and graduate students are served at USC Annenberg. 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.

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 nonprofit oceanographic research center. Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts (Beverly Hills, California): This effort preserves the landmark, historic Beverly Hills Post Office (adjacent to Beverly Hills City Hall) by transforming the building into a performing arts and cultural facility for the presentation of theater, dance, music, professional children's theater and other cultural activities. The Center features a 500 seat theater, 150 seat studio theater/rehearsal hall, classrooms, café, gift shop, and sculpture garden. The center opened to the public in October 2013. 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. Nearly 30 treehouses have been built nationally.