Cap Times’ Evjue Foundation awards more than $300,000 to UW programs

The Capital Times’ charitable arm, The Evjue Foundation, is awarding $322,500 in grants to 30 different programs at the University of Wisconsin–Madison.

In addition to the 30 grants for UW, the foundation’s directors also approved $1,166,500 in grants to 82 community projects. In total, The Evjue Foundation is awarding nearly $1.5 million to better the community.

The donations include a $30,000 grant for the university’s acclaimed Odyssey Project that gives low-income adults a chance to attend college and $40,000 to support the Wisconsin Historical Society.

As has been its tradition, the foundation distributed its available funds to numerous area organizations that focus on children’s education, the arts and other social services.

The foundation’s finances are derived from the controlling stock in The Capital Times Co. held by the late William T. Evjue — the founder and longtime editor and publisher of the newspaper — and the foundation’s investments. The community and the university have received gifts and grants totaling more than $57 million since Mr. Evjue’s death in 1970.

Mr. Evjue established the foundation before his death, but it was the provision in his will to distribute the income from his controlling stock in the newspaper back to the community that accelerated the giving. The grants represent a significant portion of the profits of The Capital Times Co., which is locally owned.

The William T. Evjue Charitable Trust, which holds Mr. Evjue’s controlling stock in the newspaper company, distributes the income from that stock and other investments to the foundation, which in turn makes decisions about where the money will be spent.

The foundation board consists of 15 directors. Seven are from The Capital Times Co.: John H. Lussier, Clayton Frink, Dave Zweifel, Nancy Gage, Paul Fanlund, Jim Lussier and Laura Lussier-Lee. Four of the directors represent the UW Foundation: Anne Lucke, Marion Brown, Vince Sweeney and Mark LeFebvre. And four represent the Madison Community Foundation: Kathleen Woit, Steve Mixtacki, Bob Sorge and Jim Bradley. Pam Wells is the Evjue Foundation’s executive director and is in charge of its administration.

Here’s a list of the grants awarded to UW–Madison:

University of Wisconsin grants

Center for Journalism Ethics: $10,000 in support of the center’s annual ethics conference and to underwrite the William T. Evjue keynote address.

Wisconsin Idea Seminar: $11,000 for the annual trip around the state, which introduces new faculty to Wisconsin and the spirit of the Wisconsin Idea.

Madison Journal of Literary Criticism: $1,500 to help support the only international journal dedicated to the publication of literary criticism.

Egungun Masquerade Performance and School/Community Workshops: $5,000 to Art History/Afro American Studies/School of Human Ecology/African Studies to bring a masquerade performance group from the Oyotunji African Village in Sheldon, South Carolina, to the Madison campus.

Lily’s Fund for Epilepsy Research: $10,000 in support of finding a cure for epilepsy.

UW Campus Child Care: $6,000 in support of developing model programs that demonstrate best practices in child care.

Dance Department’s Performing Ourselves: $10,000 in support of the outreach program to teach dance to underserved youth in the Madison area.

UW Odyssey Project: $30,000 in support of the 15-year-old program, which offers adults near the federal poverty level a chance to start college for free.

Morgridge Center for Public Service: $15,000 in support of the center’s Badger Volunteers program, which provides transportation for student community volunteers.

UW-Madison Libraries: $7,000 to help underwrite the Wisconsin Women Making History project, which tells the stories of women who have taken leadership roles.

UW-Madison Libraries: $20,000 to enhance the digitization of The Daily Cardinal student newspaper.

UW Infant Early Childhood and Family Mental Health Program: $8,000 to help provide scholarships to early childhood teachers and graduate students.

Center for History of Print and Digital Culture: $4,000 to support the center’s annual conference and help lower the registration fees.

Waisman Center: $10,000 to help attack the waiting time for autism evaluations at the acclaimed center.

Wisconsin Union Theater: $15,000 to help underwrite the Theater’s free performances, allowing lower-income people to attend the events.

Dictionary of American Regional English: $5,000 to help upgrade the unique dictionary’s availability online.

Biocore Outreach Ambassadors: $4,000 in support of student volunteers who conduct science outreach in all corners of the state as part of its Wisconsin Idea mission.

Center for the Humanities: $25,000 to help underwrite the center’s efforts to connect scholars in language and literatures with high school teachers and students across Wisconsin.

School of Human Ecology: $9,000 in support of the school’s program to connect Wisconsin residents with health care coverage, particularly important given the changes Congress is considering for health care this year.

University of Wisconsin Press: $18,000 to support Evjue internships that allow students to get training and experience in publishing.

School of Library and Information Services: $9,000 toward a program aimed at reaching campus and community members to explore printing technologies.

UW Law School: $10,000 in support of the school’s Innocence Project, which attempts to exonerate innocent people who have been imprisoned.

Arts Institute: $7,000 to help underwrite the institute’s Madison Early Music Festival.

School of Nursing: $5,000 toward a program aimed at increasing diversity in the nursing profession.

UW-Madison Writing Center: $10,000 in support of the center’s Madison writing assistance program, which provides one-on-one assistance at libraries and neighborhood centers.

Wisconsin Center for Academically Talented Youth: $12,000 to help underwrite one-to-three week academic experiences designed to help develop higher-level thinking skills.

School of Human Ecology: $2,000 toward the school’s center for community and nonprofit studies.

Office of the Provost: $9,000 toward the Chancellor’s and Powers-Knapp Scholarship programs for historically under-represented minority groups.

Office of the Provost: $12,500 to match a grant aimed at enhancing the Chancellor’s Scholarship, which supports approximately 265 scholars each year.

UW System President’s Fund: $10,000 to defray expenses incurred by the UW president in official duties.

Here are some of the community grants that are closely connected with UW:

Aldo Leopold Nature Center: $5,000 in general support of the center’s work connecting young people with the marvels of nature.

Friends of Allen Centennial Garden: $1,000 to help cover expenses at the celebrated garden on the UW campus.

University of Wisconsin Foundation: $48,000 in general support.

Wisconsin Historical Foundation: $40,000 to support the historical society’s magazine, underwrite the costs of two history books and digitize the photographs donated by longtime Capital Times photographer David Sandell.

To see a full list of grant recipients click here.
— The Capital Times