Partnerships & Philanthropy

Foundation giving rose by 5 percent last year, to a record high of $29 billion, a recent report from the Foundation Center says. The increase was greater than expected, considering the economic downturn and a sharp decline in the stock market, according to the center, a New York City-based organization that tracks institutional philanthropy.

"Many people expected foundation giving to decline along with the economy in 2001," said Sara Engelhardt, the Foundation Center's president. "But foundation endowments are a stabilizing influence among sources of nonprofit support."

But the rise still fell far short of the 18.2 percent increase in...