We are especially interested in improving public policies, because public systems such as education and welfare directly affect the lives of so many people, and because public policies help shape private sector decisions about jobs, the environment, and the health of our communities. To ensure that public policies truly reflect public rather than private interests, we support efforts to reform the system of financing election campaigns. Our program areas are Education, Employment, Environment, Gun Violence, Money and Politics, and Culture. We focus our grantmaking on initiatives that promise to have an impact on the Great Lakes region, specifically the states of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin. A limited number of environment grants are made to organizations in Canada.
Education grantmaking focuses on public schools in Chicago, Cleveland and Milwaukee.
Culture grants are restricted to the Chicago metropolitan area. We do not generally support capital proposals, endowment campaigns, religious activities, direct service programs, or scholarships. The Joyce Foundation was created in 1948 by Beatrice Joyce Kean of Chicago. The Joyce family wealth was based on lumber and sawmill interests and was left to the Foundation when Mrs. Kean died in 1972. The Joyce Foundation supports efforts to reform public schools in Chicago, Cleveland, and Milwaukee to ensure that all children, regardless of race, gender or economic circumstances, get an education that prepares them for lives as thoughtful and productive citizens.