Educational Foundation of America

The foundation's endowment stems from the fortune generated by Prentice-Hall, the textbook publishing company co-founded by Richard Prentice Ettinger. Ettinger and his wife established the foundation in 1959 with initial seed funding, and it received the bulk of its assets upon Ettinger's death in 1971. The Ettinger family continues to oversee the foundation through a board controlled by third-generation descendants.

Yes. EFA was an original signatory of the Divest-Invest Movement and has committed to a fully fossil-fuel-free endowment. This goes beyond screening out direct fossil-fuel holdings to encompass a broader climate-aligned investment policy. The foundation reinforces this posture through active shareholder advocacy via its memberships in the Ceres Investor Network and the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility.

Day-to-day operations and investment staff oversight are managed by Executive Director David W. Stocks from the foundation's Bethesda office. The board, led by President Barbara Hapgood and Vice President Wendy Ettinger, sets the overall investment policy and mission alignment. EFA also relies on peer networks like Confluence Philanthropy and the Intentional Endowments Network to source opportunities and diligence managers, given its lean internal team.

EFA is a member of the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR), through which it files or co-files shareholder resolutions targeting corporate behavior on social and environmental issues. Its membership in the Ceres Investor Network further extends its advocacy reach, focusing specifically on climate risk, emissions reduction, and corporate governance reforms at major portfolio companies.

EFA allocates capital across both direct public and private securities, as well as external fund commitments. Its participation in Confluence Philanthropy's Transparency Working Group and the Intentional Endowments Network facilitates access to a curated pipeline of impact-oriented fund managers. The foundation does not publicly characterize its balance between direct investments and fund commitments, but its network activity suggests a hybrid approach.

The foundation's board remains under direct family control more than six decades after its founding. Barbara Hapgood, a third-generation Ettinger descendant, serves as President and Director. Her sister Wendy Ettinger serves as Vice President. This multi-generational governance structure is designed to preserve the founding values — education, reproductive rights, and environmental stewardship — without drift typical of foundations that professionalize their boards with non-family members.

EFA holds memberships in several high-profile responsible-investor networks. It is a founding investor in Confluence Philanthropy's Transparency Working Group, participates in the Intentional Endowments Network, and actively engages through the Ceres Investor Network and ICCR. These affiliations give EFA, a relatively small foundation, access to the deal flow, manager due diligence, and advocacy platforms more commonly utilized by billion-dollar-plus university endowments.