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| Philanthropy |
Three Vehicles for a Vision
Jay Steenhuysen
12/01/2003
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Mary and David Collins wanted to make a difference in the lives of the children of their community. Mary, chief administrative officer, and David, chairman and CEO of Reston, Virginia-based Learning Tree International, a global information technology training company, were dedicated to improving education, but they wanted to do more than give passively to an existing charity. They had very specific ideas and wanted to be involved in setting the charitable organization’s goals, as well as in deciding how to carry them out. But they also wanted to bring the expertise of friends and community members to bear.
 Two years ago, when the Collinses decided to start a new education program, they decided that rather than employing the family foundation they set up after their company went public seven years ago, they would use a different type of vehicle, called a supporting organization. Supporting organizations are trusts that are tied
to specific charities. They require their sponsors to bring in (and cede control to) non-family board members; this can endow them with
a wider range of expertise and governance flexibility than family foundations, while lessening the decision-making and administrative burden on the philanthropist.
The Collins’ supporting organization operates Learning Tree Farms, which provides free educational programs on a 2,000-acre farm in northern Virginia. Working within parameters set up by the local school board, Learning Tree Farms helps children from the 4th through 11th grades meet school education requirements. It offers programs year-round about the Civil War, nature, architecture, 18th-century frontier life, and even the explorations of Lewis and Clark. The home of John Marshall, the fourth Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, is on the farm and is a key component of
the programs. One of Marshall’s descendents, Thomas Marshall de Butts, is on the organization’s board.
The supporting organization—along with the traditional family foundation and a more passive
structure called a donor-advised fund—is one of the main philanthropic vehicles available to families. (See charts on pages 166 and 168.) Utilized separately or in combination, these three platforms allow philanthropists to manage their charitable gifts in a targeted, flexible, and financially sound manner.
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