Better Way Foundation

The Better Way Foundation is a Minneapolis-based private family foundation with $68.2 million in assets, founded in 1988 by Gerald and Henrietta Rauenhorst — founders of the Opus Companies — as the Sieben Foundation. A 2014 merger with the Alpha Omega Foundation created the current entity. Rooted in Catholic social values, it is today led by Gia Rauenhorst (President/Chair) with Karen Rauenhorst and the broader Rauenhorst family at its governance core. As of 2025, the foundation has completed a total strategic pivot: 100% of its grantmaking now supports Indigenous communities.

The foundation's signature approach is its commitment to nine-year partnerships guided by a four-stage lifecycle framework — build, grow, sustain, and transition/exit. This is not a grant program in the conventional sense; it is a relationship-first funder that maintains a relatively small, deeply invested portfolio. Evidence of this depth is visible in the grantee data: top recipients have received $242,000–$392,000 across 3–5 grants, with multi-year commitments the norm rather than the exception. Keres Children's Learning Center ($392,250, 5 grants for the Indigenous Montessori Institute), Thunder Valley CDC ($352,250, 4 grants for Lakota language immersion), and Wicoie Nandagikendan ($242,250, 3 grants) exemplify the ideal profile.

First-time applicants face a high bar. The pathway begins with an inquiry — rolling, not deadline-driven — followed by an eligibility confirmation and exploratory meeting with program staff before any formal proposal is considered. Expect a 4–6 month timeline from initial inquiry to first grant decision for new relationships. The foundation explicitly invites inquiries, but applicants without prior relationships in Indigenous philanthropy networks (W.K. Kellogg Foundation, Native Americans in Philanthropy, the Francesco Collaborative) should invest in those connections first.

Organizations most likely to succeed are Native-led and community-centered, focused on early childhood development (ages 0–6), and integrating Indigenous language or cultural revitalization. Catholic mission schools serving Native students in Indian Country represent a second, historically funded track — St. Joseph Mission School, St. Augustine Indian Mission School, and San Carlos Apache Catholic Community all appear in the grantee record — but this track is likely contracting given the broader 100% Indigenous pivot. All applicants should prioritize demonstrating Indigenous community leadership and governance above everything else.

The Better Way Foundation's median grant is $30,000 (range: under $1,000 to $392,250), with an average individual disbursement of $39,012 across 147 documented transactions totaling $5.73 million. The foundation's internal typical grant size profile shows a $5,000 minimum, $54,915 average, and $182,000 maximum across its active grant cohort of 41 awards — indicating that the largest sustained multi-year grants cluster in the $100,000–$200,000/year range.

Annual giving has fluctuated significantly over the decade. The 2019 peak of $6.2 million in total giving ($5.6M in grants paid) reflects disbursements under the 2018 $10M, 10-year Indian Country ECD commitment. Giving contracted sharply to $1.6 million in 2021 before recovering to $2.84 million in 2022 and $3.62 million in 2023. The 2024 fiscal year shows $3.46 million in charitable disbursements despite total revenue of only $1.36 million — the foundation is drawing on its $68.2 million asset base to honor multi-year commitments, a strong reliability signal for grantees in active partnerships. Total assets have remained stable between $63–$68 million since 2021.

By program area, approximately 65–70% of total documented giving flows to U.S. Indigenous ECD and language preservation programs. Roughly 25–27% historically went to international Tanzania programs (Mama's Hope Organization, Tanzania Home Economics Association, Tumaini Letu, Children In Crossfire Tanzania, Amani Girls Home — collectively approximately $1.56 million across the database), though this international track has been eliminated under the 2025 100% Indigenous pivot. The remaining 5–10% covers small community grants, Catholic institutions, and capacity-building support.

Geographically, Minnesota leads with 34 grants (23% of grant count), followed by Colorado and New Mexico (12 grants each, 8% each), Oregon (10 grants), Arizona and Nebraska (8 each), Washington (7), South Dakota (6), and Indiana and Wisconsin (5 each). Grant sizing by stage: entry-level Catholic school annual awards cluster at $5,000–$15,000; core multi-year Indigenous ECD partnerships run $75,000–$125,000 per annual cycle; flagship partnerships scale to $200,000+ annually. Responsible exit grants — the foundation's named category for long-term partner transitions — run $75,000–$250,000/year and represent the ceiling of individual award size.

Note: Peer asset and giving figures are approximate estimates from public sources; only Better Way Foundation figures are drawn directly from verified IRS filings.

Better Way Foundation occupies a distinctive niche among Indigenous-focused funders: it is the most narrowly focused on early childhood development and language preservation, with the deepest per-grantee investment (nine-year partnerships) of any peer listed. W.K. Kellogg Foundation is Better Way's most important co-funder — they actively co-convene and organizations already in Kellogg's portfolio have a documented advantage in approaching Better Way. Unlike the Bush Foundation's broad community development scope (which includes leadership development and organizational effectiveness), Better Way has fully exited non-Indigenous programming. First Nations Development Institute and Notah Begay III Foundation address economic and health dimensions adjacent to Better Way's ECD focus, making them natural portfolio partners for grant seekers pursuing comprehensive Indian Country funding strategies.

The foundation is in an active and strategically coherent phase in 2025–2026. The most significant development is the confirmed 100% shift of all grantmaking to Indigenous communities, completing a transition that began with a 2016 commitment of $5 million over five years to Indian Country ECD and accelerated when the board doubled that commitment to $10 million over 10 years in 2018. This pivot has wound down the prior Tanzania international portfolio and Catholic school support unconnected to Native American communities.

In January 2026, Better Way co-hosted a funder reception for Saad K'idilyé alongside the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, and a 2026 foundation summit titled 'Investing in The Future' is open for registration — both signals of the foundation's growing role as a convener mobilizing other philanthropies toward Indigenous funding. In 2025, the foundation participated in webinars with Native Americans in Philanthropy and the Francesco Collaborative, conducted Massachusetts funder receptions to build external support for the Weetumuw School, and leadership was featured in a Nonprofit Quarterly interview on Indigenous philanthropy and long-term partnership models.

On the investment side, a milestone of $3 million cumulatively invested in Native CDFIs was reached by 2024, and 2025 saw the approval of the foundation's first catalytic capital investment — expanding its tools beyond traditional grantmaking. Nicholas Banovetz continues as a compensated Vice President (most recent compensation: $182,634–$208,755), confirming ongoing professional program staff capacity. Total assets held steady at $68.2 million across both fiscal years 2023 and 2024 despite active disbursements exceeding annual revenue, indicating a deliberate asset-spend strategy to honor existing multi-year commitments.

Success with Better Way Foundation begins before the application — it begins with earned visibility in Indigenous philanthropy networks. The foundation publicly names W.K. Kellogg Foundation, Native Americans in Philanthropy, and the Francesco Collaborative as active partners; a warm introduction from any of these significantly accelerates eligibility review. If your organization is already in Kellogg's portfolio or has presented at Native Americans in Philanthropy convenings, cite this explicitly when submitting an inquiry.

The inquiry letter is the gateway document. Submit via info@betterwayfoundation.org with a concise 2–3 page letter addressing three core questions: (1) What is your organization's Indigenous leadership structure and community governance model? (2) What specific ECD program model do you operate and what is your evidence base? (3) Where do you sit in a multi-year organizational lifecycle — are you building, growing, sustaining, or planning an exit from a current funder? Use the foundation's lifecycle vocabulary explicitly; it signals you understand how they think about partnership, not just grants.

Timing: grants are reviewed on a quarterly cycle, so submitting inquiries at the start of January, April, July, or October aligns with likely review windows. Allow 4–6 months from inquiry to first grant decision for new relationships. No formal annual deadline exists, but avoid late December and August when board activity is typically lower.

Common mistakes to avoid: applying without Indigenous executive leadership (Native-led is a hard requirement, not a preference); proposing a single-year pilot without a multi-year vision; failing to demonstrate Indigenous community governance or tribal affiliation; and leading with Catholic identity in a Catholic mission school application rather than leading with Indigenous community impact data.

The language that resonates with this foundation: 'decolonized pedagogy,' 'language immersion,' 'culturally grounded early childhood development,' 'community-centered,' 'evidence-based outcomes,' and 'intergenerational resilience.' The foundation's own materials cite that less than 0.5% of private philanthropy reaches Native communities — frame your case within this documented funding gap.

For Native CDFIs or organizations seeking Program-Related Investments rather than grants: contact separately with a focus on your lending portfolio, ESG alignment, and compliance with Catholic Socially Responsible Investment Guidelines, as the foundation routes these to a distinct investment committee process.