“[T]he initiatives that Wallace supports are on major unsolved social problems where innovation is needed, and nobody – ourselves included – has all the answers…[We are trying to do] the heavy lifting of providing support that makes innovation work well on the front lines.” So says Wallace Director of Research and Evaluation Ed Pauly in
an online article by The Center for Effective Philanthropy, the first in a series of case studies focusing on how foundations can help grantees beyond just writing a check. The article describes the various forms of nonmonetary assistance that Wallace provides, including technical assistance, professional learning communities in which grantees can meet and learn from each other, and conversations with Wallace staffers filling the role of “critical friend.”