Community

"Another great connection with the employees of McGraw-Hill....the teachers, administrators and parents of Charlotte Park Elementary couldn't be more impressed with the team. Hands On Nashville received a grant for coordinating, supplying and managing the event." -- Non-profit feedback

We are committed to helping people around the world obtain the knowledge and skills needed to enhance the quality of their lives. To achieve these goals, we partner with community organizations, donating money, time and products. We encourage employees to do the same through our matching gifts program and our volunteer efforts.

Given that a substantial portion of the Corporation's work centers on education and financial analysis, we take particular pride in our community efforts surrounding financial literacy, a synergy of several of our business' core competencies. Through funding a diverse array of programs, we have helped untold numbers of people in need to better understand and manage their personal finances.

As Harold McGraw III, our Chairman, President and CEO told Education Update, economic empowerment is vital to our national future: "Unfortunately, the U.S. savings rate is on the decline and is now the lowest of any developed country, while average credit card debt per household has been increasing. Foreclosures and personal bankruptcies are also on the rise. And more than one-third of American workers say they are not saving for retirement. We can and must do better, because we know that a basic understanding of economics is necessary for young people to comprehend how the world works and to prepare for their futures."

To meet these challenges, The McGraw-Hill Companies is creating new opportunities to enhance financial literacy across the United States. Our campaign, Financial Literacy Now, promotes financial literacy and economic empowerment by providing teachers, students and the general public resources to improve their understanding of important financial concepts.

Consistent with this effort, the Corporation also supports several microcredit initiatives and organizations. While we recognize the power of microfinance, we also understand the need for greater support of the sector, especially in light of recent challenges in India. To address these challenges, in 2010 our support included:

• Continued funding for the Microfinance Information eXchange (MIX), the leading information provider for the microfinance industry, to improve transparency of social-performance reporting and develop new data tools.
• Providing a grant to Pro Mujer, a women’s development and microfinance organization, to standardize its financial education curriculum and meet program needs in Argentina, Bolivia, Mexico, Nicaragua and Peru.
• Providing a grant directed to gender diversity efforts to Women’s World Banking, a nonprofit that provides capital, training and support to women entrepreneurs in 30 countries.
• Improved human capital management through the Grameen Foundation to develop the next generation of microfinance leaders and enable organizational growth to support poverty alleviation.

While our primary focus is financial literacy and economic empowerment, we also make grants in the arts, education and health and human services. We also make in-kind gifts and have a program to match employee charitable gifts. In addition to dollars, we also give of our time and expertise. Since 2004, we have coordinated our annual Global Volunteer Day (GVD) initiative to promote volunteerism in the communities where McGraw-Hill staff live and work.