Few of us will soon forget the year 2020. Of course, for the country and the world, it was the year of COVID-19. But for those of us connected to the Apgar Foundation, it was the year in which Martha died.

On February 28, 2020, Martha Apgar passed away, leaving much of her modest estate to the Apgar Foundation.

Martha was a true believer in the idea of sunsetting foundations. Frequently, in the years before her death, she talked about wanting to accelerate the process and “just get rid of” her money. Incorporated in the Foundation bylaws is a provision that the Foundation spend out and close within five years of the settlement of Martha’s estate, and under no circumstances should the process take more than ten years.

The Foundation board has begun planning accordingly and anticipates increasing its annual giving in order to close within five years of Martha’s death, with final grants paid in 2024 or 2025.

During this year of COVID, foremost in our minds have been the many challenges and opportunities our grant-supported programs have been facing. Times of dramatic dislocation often lead to fear, fear which hijacks our thought processes, our values and our reason. We need to pause and allow reason to catch up. Mrs. Apgar strongly believed in the future of this country and would have seen COVID as a challenge. She would have expected Americans to rise to the occasion, with fortitude, compassion, and innovation.

Our grantees have been forced to innovate, and we are proud of the ways in which many of them have been able to continue their programming; we are also understanding of those who—often due to institutional mandates, have had to modify or delay their programming significantly while COVID shutdowns and restrictions continue.

During 2020, a total of $394,000 were granted to eleven faculty programs at universities. Each program has had to explore the do’s and don’ts of the pandemic’s new educational paradigms. We are honored to work with faculty who saw continued “product delivery” with substantive, challenging content and engagement with online social events as a priority. At ASU, for example, two public lectures were moved off campus where larger rooms are available for social distancing and mask-wearing. Other reports from faculty have pointed out that in particular Great Books education, markedly in smaller classes, is perhaps surprisingly well-suited for online learning.

In addition, several faculty noted the refreshing interactions as a result of their substantive work in fulfilling their grant obligations. One professor, who used the time to develop workshops for faculty on his campus on how to incorporate Great Books into their courses, wrote, “We found we had more in common when debating ideas than when we spoke about pedagogy, much less other technical or administrative matters.” We hope such sentiments are widely felt, and are eager to allow others to replicate this experience. Below, please find examples of successful programs achieving the goals of the Apgar Foundation. They are chosen for their illustrative value: