Foundation for Child Development

Foundation for Child Development

The Foundation for Child Development was founded in 1900, but its financial anchor was set in 1944 when the estate of Milo Belding funded the organization's endowment. President and CEO Vivian Tseng has led the foundation since November 2022, stewarding a mission to use research to improve early learning experiences. The foundation operates from New York City and is a recognized, small-scale voice with what it describes as an outsized impact on child-focused policy. The foundation's investment strategy concentrates on buyouts. It deploys its roughly $88 million endowment through a portfolio managed in New York, making strategic grants rather than unsolicited, open-call funding. While specific portfolio companies or fund commitments are not publicly disclosed, the foundation identifies its sector focus as the intersection of research, policy, and practice for young children. It is an active member of the Early Childhood Funders Collaborative and Philanthropy New York, aligning its grantmaking with collaborative, evidence-driven initiatives across the United States. The foundation maintains a lean operational profile from its offices in The Interchurch Center on Riverside Drive in New York. Vivian Tseng also serves on the Board of Directors for Grantmakers for Education, extending the foundation's influence beyond direct grantmaking. In May 2026, the foundation announced the departure of its Vice President of Program and Communications, JoAnn Hsueh, a leadership transition that narrows the senior team as it advances a strategic framework launched in 2025 to advance social justice for young children. Unlike family offices anchored to a living wealth creator, the Foundation for Child Development is a perpetual philanthropic entity whose grantmaking is structurally separated from any family's ongoing business interests. Its endowment, born from a mid-20th-century estate, gives it permanent capital governed by a board chaired by Velma McBride Murry, creating a time horizon that supports multi-year advocacy and research commitments without pressure for liquidity events.