# Cleveland Foundation *Community foundation in Cleveland, Ohio* The Cleveland Foundation is a [[Community foundation]] headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio. Its Wikipedia entry, retrieved October 26, 2026, describes it as the earliest foundation of its type anywhere and one of the biggest still operating. The entry gives $2.8 billion in assets, yearly grantmaking above $100 million, and upward of 800 component funds held for individuals, families, organizations and companies. The foundation serves Cuyahoga, Lake and Geauga counties, and the entry names Lillian Kuri as its president and chief executive officer.[^1] [[Frederick Goff]], a lawyer and banker at the [[Cleveland Trust Company]], set up the foundation in 1914.[^2][^1] The foundation's centennial record dates the founding to January 2, 1914, and a validated Minnesota master cites that record for the date. The arrangement is known as the [[Cleveland Foundation Model]], and it spread as a product line of bank trust departments.[^3] In the [[Minnesota]] record, the foundation appears as the origin of the form used by Minnesota community foundations, including the [[Minneapolis Foundation]], founded in 1915.[^4] The record does not establish any role for the Cleveland Foundation itself in a Minnesota matter.[^4] ## History Goff created the foundation to end the "dead hand" problem in philanthropy. Under that problem, money left to charity stayed bound to the terms of old wills that could not be changed.[^1][^2] The foundation's own history page connects Goff with the design of the variance power.[^2] The Wikipedia entry lists the foundation's leaders as follows:[^1] - Goff, 1914–1919 - Raymond C. Moley, 1919–1923 - Carlton K. Matson, 1924–1928 - Leyton E. Carter, 1928–1953 - J. Kimball Johnson, 1953–1967 - James A. Norton, 1968–1973. He left at Ohio Governor John J. Gilligan's invitation to become chancellor of the Ohio Board of Regents. - Barbara Haas Rawson, interim director, 1973–1974 - Homer C. Wadsworth, 1974–1983 - Steven A. Minter, 1984–2003. He had been Massachusetts commissioner of public welfare and the first under secretary of the US Department of Education. - Ronald B. Richard, 2003–2023. His background included the U.S. Foreign Service, the CIA and the private sector. ## The model in Minnesota The validated master cites the centennial record for two further dates. Twelve community foundations were founded in 1915. In 1920 the [[American Bankers Association]]'s Trust Company Section established a permanent Committee on Community Trusts.[^3] The Minneapolis Foundation (EIN 41-6029402) dates from 1915. Its Form 990 for the fiscal year ended March 2025 reports total assets of $1,185,664,206.[^5][^4] The validated master puts the Minneapolis Foundation and the [[Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation]] together at roughly $3.1 billion on a stewardship basis. The EIN-level Forms 990 show about $2.8 billion; the difference is partner-foundation assets under management. The two foundations grant a combined $230 million a year.[^4][^5] Under Treasury Regulation 26 C.F.R. §1.170A-9(f)(11), a community foundation's tax treatment depends on its governing body holding a specific power. That body must be able "to modify any restriction or condition on the distribution of funds" when, in its sole judgment, the restriction becomes "unnecessary, incapable of fulfillment, or inconsistent with the charitable needs of the community."[^4] The companion power to replace a trustee is conditioned on breach or underperformance.[^4] The Minneapolis Foundation's 2025 Donor Advised Fund Policies restate the regulation's three conditions nearly word for word. The policies describe gifts as "irrevocable" and as held under the Foundation's "exclusive legal control."[^4] In December 2023 the Minneapolis Foundation took a grantmaker role in the Environmental Protection Agency's [[Environmental justice]] program for Region 5.[^4] EPA terminated the funds in early 2025. In April 2025 the foundation and two co-grantmakers sued in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland: [[Minneapolis Foundation et al. v. EPA (Environmental Justice grantmaker terminations)]].[^4][^6] On June 17, 2025, the court found the termination arbitrary and capricious. The validated master reports $180 million restored across the three grantmakers.[^4][^6] The master records the Minneapolis Foundation's award at three points: $50 million announced in December 2023, $52 million on the foundation's program page, and $60 million at litigation. The Star Tribune reported the award as $60 million.[^4][^7] The record does not show the Cleveland Foundation as a party to this litigation.[^4] ## In the Minnesota record ### Who - Frederick Goff, of the Cleveland Trust Company, devised the model.[^3] - The Minneapolis Foundation, founded in 1915, is a Minnesota community foundation using the form.[^4] ### What - The Cleveland Foundation Model is the form taken by Minnesota's community foundations.[^3][^4] ### When - January 2, 1914: Goff establishes the Cleveland Foundation at the Cleveland Trust Company.[^3] - 1915: twelve community foundations are founded, among them the Minneapolis Foundation.[^3][^4] - 1920: the ABA Trust Company Section creates a permanent Committee on Community Trusts.[^3] - April 2025: the Minneapolis Foundation and two co-grantmakers sue EPA in the District of Maryland.[^4] - June 17, 2025: the court finds the EPA termination arbitrary and capricious.[^4][^6] ### How - Treasury Regulation 26 C.F.R. §1.170A-9(f)(11) requires the governing body's power to modify restrictions on funds as a condition of community-foundation tax treatment.[^4] ## See also - [[Minneapolis Foundation]] - [[Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation]] - [[Cleveland Foundation Model]] - [[Variance power]] - [[Community foundation]] ## Notes [^1]: Wikipedia, *Cleveland Foundation* (revision 1380714968, retrieved 2026-10-26) — establishes the 1914 founding, assets ($2.8 billion), grants (more than $100 million), more than 800 funds, service counties, current CEO and leadership list. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cleveland_Foundation [^2]: Cleveland Foundation, *History* (undated) — establishes Goff's role and the variance design. https://www.clevelandfoundation.org/about/history/ [^3]: Cleveland Foundation, *Foundation of Change: Invention — Introduction* (centennial site, undated) — establishes the model's invention by Goff at Cleveland Trust Co. on January 2, 1914, the twelve community foundations founded in 1915, and the ABA Trust Company Section committee of 1920. The validated master marks these points primary-confirmed (note 28). https://www.clevelandfoundation100.org/foundation-of-change/invention/introduction/ [^4]: *How Minnesota Got Here* (merged master, footnoted; validated June 10–12, 2026) — covers the Minneapolis Foundation's 1915 founding and EIN; the combined stewardship and EIN-basis assets and annual grants; the text of 26 C.F.R. §1.170A-9(f)(11), confirmed against eCFR; the 2025 Donor Advised Fund Policies; and the EPA grantmaker role, suit, ruling and award reconciliation (notes 27, 29, 30, 35). The pack carries no URL for this document. [^5]: Minneapolis Foundation, *FY2025 IRS Form 990 (public copy)* (2026) — records EIN 41-6029402 and total assets for the fiscal year ended March 2025. https://www.minneapolisfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/TMF-FY2025-IRS-Form-990-Public.pdf [^6]: Minneapolis Foundation, *Federal court rules in favor of regional grantmakers* (undated) — gives the plaintiff's own account of the ruling. https://www.minneapolisfoundation.org/stories/climate/federal-court-rules-in-favor-of-regional-grantmakers/ [^7]: Star Tribune, *EPA must unfreeze $60M awarded to Minneapolis Foundation, judge rules* (2025) — reports the $60 million figure. https://www.startribune.com/epa-must-unfreeze-60-million-awarded-to-minneapolis-foundation-judge-rules/601375267