- Phone:
- (812) 855-4072
- Email:
- llenkows@indiana.edu
- Room Number:
- 327
- Areas of Interest:
- Nonprofits and public policy ,
- Civil society in comparative perspective ,
- Institutional grant-makers ,
- Volunteering and civic engagement ,
- Education and social welfare policy ,
- Social entrepreneurship
Education
- Ph.D., Harvard University, 1982
- A.B., Franklin and Marshall College, 1968
Courses
- Civil Society in Comparative Perspective
- Principles and Practices of Social Entrepreneurship
- Communications for Public and Nonprofit Affairs
Biography
Dr. Leslie Lenkowsky is an expert in volunteering and civic engagement, nonprofits and public policy, civil society in comparative perspective, education and social welfare policy, and social entrepreneurship. A leading scholar on philanthropy, Lenkowsky has been a member of O'Neill’s faculty since 2004, and, for five years, was the director of Graduate Programs at IU’s Center on Philanthropy in Indianapolis. He also served for many years as professor of philanthropic studies and public policy at IUPUI.
In 2001, President George W. Bush appointed Lenkowsky to be CEO of the Corporation for National and Community Service, a position he held for three years. The Corporation engages more than a million Americans of all ages in improving local communities through three initiatives: AmeriCorps, Learn and Serve America, and the National Senior ServiceCorps. President Bill Clinton appointed Lenkowsky as one of the founding directors of the Corporation when it was created in 1993.
Among his other positions, Lenkowsky has served as president of the Institute for Educational Affairs, deputy director of the United States Information Agency, research fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, adjunct faculty member at Georgetown University, director of the Philanthropy Roundtable, and director of research at the Smith Richardson Foundation. He has also served on a number of for-profit and nonprofit boards.
For seven years (1990-97), Lenkowsky served as president of Hudson Institute, an internationally renowned public policy research institution headquartered in Indianapolis. During Lenkowsky’s tenure, Hudson developed an innovative set of programs aimed at providing practical solutions to the nation’s most pressing domestic problems, such as crime, welfare dependency, and inadequate educational skills.
A graduate of Franklin and Marshall College, Lenkowsky received his doctorate from Harvard University. His writing has appeared in such publications as Commentary, The Weekly Standard, The Wall Street Journal, The Public Interest, The Chronicle of Philanthropy and the Indianapolis Business Journal. He has spoken frequently to educational and philanthropic groups throughout the United States and internationally.
In 2001, President George W. Bush appointed Lenkowsky to be CEO of the Corporation for National and Community Service, a position he held for three years. The Corporation engages more than a million Americans of all ages in improving local communities through three initiatives: AmeriCorps, Learn and Serve America, and the National Senior ServiceCorps. President Bill Clinton appointed Lenkowsky as one of the founding directors of the Corporation when it was created in 1993.
Among his other positions, Lenkowsky has served as president of the Institute for Educational Affairs, deputy director of the United States Information Agency, research fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, adjunct faculty member at Georgetown University, director of the Philanthropy Roundtable, and director of research at the Smith Richardson Foundation. He has also served on a number of for-profit and nonprofit boards.
For seven years (1990-97), Lenkowsky served as president of Hudson Institute, an internationally renowned public policy research institution headquartered in Indianapolis. During Lenkowsky’s tenure, Hudson developed an innovative set of programs aimed at providing practical solutions to the nation’s most pressing domestic problems, such as crime, welfare dependency, and inadequate educational skills.
A graduate of Franklin and Marshall College, Lenkowsky received his doctorate from Harvard University. His writing has appeared in such publications as Commentary, The Weekly Standard, The Wall Street Journal, The Public Interest, The Chronicle of Philanthropy and the Indianapolis Business Journal. He has spoken frequently to educational and philanthropic groups throughout the United States and internationally.
Highlights
- Country Expert, United States, The Index of Philanthropic Freedom, Hudson Institute, 2015
- Clinical Professor of Philanthropic Studies, Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, Indiana University
- Chief Executive Officer, Corporation for National and Community Service, Washington, D.C.
- President, Hudson Institute, Indianapolis
- David R. Jones Award, Leadership in Voluntary Service (2010), The Fund for American Studies
- Honorary Degrees, Franklin and Marshall College, John Carroll University, and Westminster College
In the News
- "Kevin Spacey and Cal Ripken Jr. to Team Up for Fund-Raising Gala" - The New York Times, September 4, 2015
- "Matching the Way You Give to the Cause You Give To" - The New York Times, November 28, 2014
- "Exclusive: Apple, Employees Raise $50 Million for Charity, Program to Expand Globally" - Bloomberg Businessweek, October 2, 2014
- "Book Review: 'Abusing Donor Intent' by Doug White" - The Wall Street Journal, August 17, 2014
- "Move Aside Cyber Monday, Here Comes Giving Tuesday" - Indianapolis Star, December 2, 2013
- "Scouts Issue No-Politics Reminder" - San Diego Union Tribune, November 15, 2013
Selected Works
- "Foundations and Corporate Philanthropy,"(pp. 459-494), The State of Nonprofit America, 2nd Edition (L. M. Salamon (Ed.). Washington, DC: Brookings Institute for the Aspen Institute (2012)
- "Education and the Conservative Foundations," (with J. Piereson) in Reconnecting Education & Foundations: Turning Good Intentions into Educational Capital, (R. Bacchetti and T. Ehrlich, Eds.), New York: Jossey-Bass (2007)
- "The Politics of Doing Good: Philanthropic Leadership for the Twenty-First Century," (Chapter 3) Taking Philanthropy Seriously: Beyond Noble Intentions to Responsible Giving (W. Damon and S. Verducci, Eds). Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press (2006)
- "The 'Best Uses' of Philanthropy for Reform,"With the Best of Intentions (F. M. Hess, Ed.), Cambridge, MA: Harvard Education Press (2005)
- "Can Government Build Community? Lessons from the National Service Program,"Gifts of Time and Money, (A. C. Brooks, Ed.). Lanham, MD: Rowman and Littlefield Publishers, Inc. (2005)
- "Foundations and Corporate Philanthropy,"The State of Nonprofit America, Lester M. Salamon, ed., Brookings Institution Press in collaboration with the Aspen Institute (2002)