Our Foundation

The Richard S. Shineman Foundation is a private foundation established at the bequest of Richard S. Shineman, who was a tenured professor of chemistry at SUNY Oswego. As a man of many intellectual interests and a deep passion for his community, Dr. Shineman made a provision in his will for the establishment of a foundation that would serve the broad needs of Oswego County and Central New York.

Driven by his vision and with continuing guidance from Barbara Palmer Shineman, today's Richard S. Shineman Foundation focuses on improving the quality of life in the communities we serve -- particularly within Oswego County. We fulfill this mission in three ways:

• Grantmaking to qualified nonprofits whose goals, programming, or mission we support. With an utmost commitment to integrity, honesty, compassion, and the pursuit of excellence in the discipline of grantmaking, our grants are made on an annual basis, following a uniform and proven process, and based on specific criteria.
• Collaboration with like-minded nonprofit organizations, economic development agencies, educational institutions, local governments, and other community partners and resources to advance our mutual goals of improving the quality of life and future of Oswego County.
• Nonprofit Education & Training (NET) Series – Workshops and seminars for nonprofit staff and board members that provide a variety of tools for professional and organizational development.