Windhover Foundation Inc.

The Windhover Foundation was established in 1983 by Harry V. Quadracci, founder of Quad/Graphics Inc., and is now led by his daughter, President Kathryn Quadracci Flores. Named after the Gerard Manley Hopkins poem "The Windhover," this is a deeply personal family philanthropy with one operational reality that overrides every other strategy consideration: the foundation does not accept unsolicited grant applications. It is classified as preselected only, meaning all grantmaking flows through preexisting personal and institutional relationships with the Quadracci family and the Quad/Graphics corporate network. Relationship development, not proposal quality, is the primary variable determining access.

The foundation's mandate is to invest in nonprofit organizations serving communities where Quad/Graphics employees live and work. This concentrates giving in three primary geographic corridors: southeastern Wisconsin (Milwaukee metro, accounting for 50% of all grants by count), South Florida (Hallandale Beach and Hollywood, where the Quadracci family maintains a personal community presence), and the New York-Connecticut corridor (reflecting alumni connections to elite boarding schools such as Greenwich Academy, Collegiate School, and Brunswick School, and universities including Brown, Yale, NYU, and Columbia).

Three realistic pathways exist to foundation consideration. First, a direct corporate connection through Quad/Graphics — the company's Windhover Scholars employee scholarship program provides a structured channel for families of Quad employees. Second, an existing institutional relationship — the foundation has maintained decade-long partnerships with Regis University ($525K, Harry V. Quadracci Legacy Scholarship), the Milwaukee Art Museum ($1.5M+ across 13 grants), and Nova Southeastern University ($630K across 10 grants). New organizations typically arrive through introductions from these established partners. Third, an invitation or referral channeled through Foundation Source, the administrative agent managing operations from Wilmington, Delaware.

First-time organizations entering the portfolio typically receive modest initial grants ($2,500-$25,000) before progressing to larger, multi-year commitments. The September 2024 recommitment to The BrandLab — a $1 million, three-year pledge building on a 2021 $1 million initial investment — exemplifies the multi-cycle, deepening-relationship model the foundation rewards. Do not approach for: religious programming, sports team or league sponsorships, fundraising events, competitions or contests, or direct grants to individuals outside the Quad employee scholarship program.

Windhover Foundation distributed $5.0M-$6.4M annually in fiscal years 2019-2023: $5.17M (FY2019), $5.04M (FY2020), $5.36M (FY2021), $5.58M (FY2022), $6.39M (FY2023). Total assets have declined from a peak of $86.8M (FY2015) to $64.2M by FY2024, a 26% reduction over nine years. The FY2024 filing shows $27.1M in total expenses against $5.5M in revenue, a disparity likely reflecting a major asset distribution or capital restructuring event.

Across 922 documented grants totaling $14.37M in the database, the average award is $15,586. The distribution is highly skewed: the foundation reports a median grant of just $2,500, with a range from $500 to $600,000 (with individual top-line awards reaching $1.85M through the Greater Horizons donor-advised fund channel). Approximately 70% of grants by count fall under $10,000, while a smaller cohort of major institutional partners receives multi-year, six-figure investments.

Geographic distribution by grant count: Wisconsin 461 (50%), Florida 129 (14%), New York 78 (8.5%), Connecticut 35 (3.8%), Illinois 21 (2.3%), West Virginia 18 (2%), California 17 (1.8%), Rhode Island 16 (1.7%), Georgia 15 (1.6%), Texas 12 (1.3%).

By program area, based on top-50 grantee analysis:

• Education (~28% of documented giving): Dominated by named scholarship endowments — Regis University $525K (Harry V. Quadracci Legacy Scholarship), Nova Southeastern $630K (Quadracci Library and Centers), Brown University $615K combined (crew boathouse + Parents Council), NYU $350K (Raja Flores MD Scholarship), Columbia $350K (Raja Flores Scholarship), Yale $275K (Windhover Scholarship Fund), University of Wisconsin Foundation $290K, Colorado College $151K (Professor Juan Lindau Endowed Scholarship).
• Arts & Culture (~14%): Milwaukee Art Museum $1.5M+ across 13 grants, Milwaukee Chamber Theatre $135K, Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design $100K, Conecta Miami Arts $210K (3 grants).
• Human Services & Hunger (~7%): Hunger Task Force $391K (5 grants), Mobile School Pantry $218K (8 grants), Police Athletic League of Hallandale Beach $95.5K (8 grants).
• Healthcare (~3%): American Heart Association $144K, Children's Hospital of Wisconsin $100K, Operation Smile $65K.
• LGBTQ+ and Inclusion (~1.5%): Milwaukee Gay Sports Network $75K, National LGBTQ Task Force $70K, Safe Schools South Florida $52.4K.

The following table compares Windhover Foundation to four foundations operating in similar Wisconsin, Midwest, or family-foundation contexts, based on publicly available IRS 990 data. Note: the foundation's own peer data was not populated in the source database.

Windhover occupies a mid-tier position among Wisconsin family foundations — larger and more broadly focused than the Kohler Foundation's arts-preservation niche, but more intimate and family-controlled than Bader Philanthropies' structured open letter-of-inquiry process. Its closest structural analog is the S.C. Johnson Fund: both are deeply family-governed, rooted in a specific corporate legacy, and accessible almost exclusively through preexisting personal relationships. For organizations with no prior Quadracci or Quad/Graphics connection, the most productive strategic investment is building relationships with established Windhover grantee partners — Milwaukee Art Museum, Hunger Task Force, and The BrandLab are logical entry points — rather than attempting direct foundation outreach.

The most significant recent public announcement came on September 18, 2024, when Quad/Graphics and the Windhover Foundation jointly announced a new $1 million, three-year commitment to The BrandLab, a nonprofit focused on diversifying the marketing and advertising profession for BIPOC youth. The 2024 pledge builds on the foundation's 2021 $1 million investment that established BrandLab's Milwaukee presence. New programmatic elements in the 2024 commitment include expansion of "Fearless Workshops" on inclusive marketing, a targeted 40% increase in internship placements through 2027, and the inaugural Future Innovators Scholarship for students pursuing marketing or advertising degrees. Joel Quadracci was quoted in the announcement, reinforcing the family's active personal role in grantmaking decisions.

No additional major announcements from 2025 or 2026 were identified in public sources at the time of this report's preparation.

Leadership: President Kathryn Quadracci Flores (daughter of founder Harry V. Quadracci, 1943-2002) and Secretary/Treasurer John C. Fowler. All officers report $0 compensation, consistent with a family-governed foundation model. Administration is managed through Foundation Source in Wilmington, Delaware.

The windhover.org URL listed in public databases redirects to the Windhover Center for Performing Arts — a separate, unrelated organization. The Windhover Foundation does not appear to maintain its own public-facing website as of early 2026, consistent with its preselected-only grantmaking posture.

The Windhover Scholars employee scholarship program continues operating: the 2026-2027 application cycle closed in early 2026, with results expected by end of June 2026 and funds disbursed by end of July 2026. The 2027-2028 cycle opens December 2026.

The single most important insight for any organization considering Windhover Foundation is that relationship position determines access, not proposal quality. This foundation has explicitly stated it does not accept unsolicited applications. The preselected-only model means grant seekers must invest in relationship development long before submitting any written materials.

Timing and geography: Concentrate efforts in Milwaukee metro (50% of grants by count), South Florida's Hallandale Beach/Hollywood corridor (14%), and the NYC-Connecticut corridor (12%). Organizations outside these corridors face significantly lower odds regardless of program alignment. If your work spans multiple Quad/Graphics plant communities — Wisconsin, New York, Georgia, Illinois, West Virginia — emphasize that geographic breadth, as it mirrors the foundation's employee-community mandate.

Language and framing: The foundation's founding philosophy centers on meeting "unfilled social needs" — a phrase worth incorporating directly. Frame proposals around service gaps: what is not being done, why existing institutions cannot fill it, and how your organization addresses a genuine community void. The foundation historically funds seed-stage programs with a clear plan toward self-sufficiency; avoid positioning your organization as indefinitely operationally dependent.

Proven program categories: The grantee portfolio reveals specific demonstrated affinities — diversity and inclusion in marketing/career pipelines (BrandLab), arts and cultural institutions with broad community access missions (Milwaukee Art Museum annual and capital campaigns), hunger and food security (Hunger Task Force, Mobile School Pantry), LGBTQ+ inclusion and safe spaces (Milwaukee Gay Sports Network, National LGBTQ Task Force), documentary media about community history and justice (Crime History Inc, South Florida PBS), and crew rowing programs at elite universities (Brown, Stanford).

What to avoid: Submitting an unsolicited formal proposal, approaching for religious programming (note: despite some Catholic church giving in the grantee data, the foundation's stated policy excludes religious organizations), sports team sponsorships, fundraising galas (even though "Charitable Event" appears in some grantee purpose codes — these reflect invited event sponsorships, not unsolicited requests), competitions, or individual grants outside the Quad employee program.

Relationship-building approach: Engage with Milwaukee Art Museum's Art: Forward Gala and related fundraising events the foundation has historically supported. Build connections with Hunger Task Force and BrandLab leadership. If a Quad/Graphics employee sits on your board or serves as a meaningful volunteer, that connection is the most direct pathway to a foundation introduction and should be developed deliberately.