About Us

Since 1898, the Eleanor Foundation's mission has been to help independent working women of modest means in Chicago. Until 2002, the Foundation offered affordable housing, and educational and cultural opportunities. But changing demographics and the needs of working women moved us to take a new approach to fulfill our mission: to serve as a dynamic research-oriented and engaged grant-maker.

Our Mission
The Eleanor Foundation is a public grantmaking fund uniquely focused on helping working women determined to achieve sustained economic independence. We leverage our expertise and resources to invest in innovative programs that provide employment, educational and housing opportunities with supportive services.

Our Vision
Driven by our early research, the Eleanor Foundation set an ambitious goal: to build Chicago's first citywide network of services designed for working women committed to achieve lasting economic security. From 2006 to 2008, we invested $3 million through our Self-Sufficiency Initiative—a bold endeavor aimed at tens of thousands of working women who live below the radar with their families in Chicago.

Our Focus: Chicago's Working Women
Working women are determined to improve their lives and those of their children. They juggle work and family by themselves. They worry about their finances. They need safer and more affordable places to live. And they know that education is the key to economic security—for themselves and their families. Our early research showed us some sobering facts:

• Nearly 300,000 working women and children struggle to thrive in Chicago households earning no more than $30,000 a year. That's barely enough to survive.
• More than 80% of these women do not access any services, public or private, because such services simply don't exist.
• As the sole breadwinner, many are one bad event—a layoff, a child's illness, an accident—from seeing their lives fall apart.

Yet, working single mothers play pivotal roles in stabilizing their communities - where many also make significant community development investments. Women shape their children's futures. They are the core workforce for many employers. And they wield substantial buying power. We believe that investing in working women has the potential to reap enormous benefits upon their communities, children, employers, and the marketplace.