Connie Matthiessen

2 weeks ago | insidephilanthropy.com | Connie Matthiessen

Edgar Villanueva. Credit: Decolonizing Wealth ProjectMany of the Trump administration’s early actions — the immigration crackdown, attacks on DEI, undermining civil rights — are challenging the very foundations of Edgar Villanueva’s work, but that reality appears to energize rather than discourage him. Case in point: the Decolonizing Wealth Project, the organization Villanueva founded and heads, recently launched two ambitious initiatives.

3 weeks ago | insidephilanthropy.com | Connie Matthiessen

Many experts point to a cause-and-effect link between social media and the youth mental health crisis — unsurprising, given how much time we all spend these days, young and old, staring at screens. While a number of funders have attempted to tackle the problem, its scale and sheer pervasiveness in modern life is daunting.

3 weeks ago | insidephilanthropy.com | Connie Matthiessen

Mothers participate with their children in a baby massage class at the Children's Home Society of New Jersey in Trenton, NJ. © 2024 Bethel Kriston Jae. Photo courtesy of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Our health is determined by many factors besides access to healthcare. In fact, research has found that medical care accounts for only 10 to 20% of health outcomes.

4 weeks ago | insidephilanthropy.com | Connie Matthiessen

Since Trump took office, the administration has slashed staff and programs at the Department of Education and aims to shut it down altogether. Native American education hasn’t been spared in the torrent of executive orders and budget cuts. In February, for example, administrators, teachers and maintenance staff were terminated at two federally funded Native American colleges operated by the Bureau of Indian Education.

1 month ago | insidephilanthropy.com | Connie Matthiessen

Sending your child to college has long been considered part of the American Dream — but it’s becoming an increasingly pricey one. College tuition has gone up a head-spinning 197% since 1963, after adjusting for inflation. As tuition continues to rise — with the price tag edging toward $100,000 a year at some private colleges — many students find themselves buried in debt by the time they graduate.