NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Tuesday, February 7, 2017

Describing the past 18 months as “intense” and “challenging,” Clinton Foundation President Donna Shalala was eager to reassure that the foundation is “alive and well and thriving” in a call with a small group of reporters on Friday. “Rumors of our demise are greatly exaggerated,” she said.

Changes outlined by former President Bill Clinton last week in his annual letter will allow the foundation to refocus certain programs and make new investments, including giving it the ability to add new initiatives, Shalala said. Several programs will spin off and become independent, and the foundation will focus on some new issues within the United States.

Fundraising will also be a key priority in 2017, after two years of reduced activities during the U.S. presidential campaign, according to Shalala. This may include selected donations from foreign governments on a case-by-case basis.

Shalala spoke to reporters about the process of charting the foundation’s future. Much of the past year was spent assessing all of the foundation’s programs, through a variety of metrics depending on the specific program, and determining what was working and what was having the greatest impact.