Founded in 1986, the Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society (formerly, Center for the Study of Philanthropy) strives to strengthen philanthropy and civil society through education, research and leadership training. Since that time, it has placed particular emphasis on promoting research and education on women's, multicultural and international philanthropy, including their signature International Fellows and Leaders in Philanthropy Programs. Kathleen McCarthy, the director, writes, “the history of women’s philanthropy provides an important context for understanding the significance of contemporary patterns of giving, such as the remarkable success of the Women Moving Millions campaign.”

McCarthy’s research project is anticipated to be a two-volume study of women, power and money in twentieth century American life. This project will study the lives, careers and donations of a variety of women, including those born into great wealth and the middle class wives of the multimillionaires who rose to prominence in the Gilded Age. It will also look at the careers and philanthropic cultures of professional women with probing questions around the complexities surrounding professional women who acquired their own wealth through their careers and women of inherited wealth. McCarthy hopes her work will “illuminate the variety of ways in which women have helped other women as well as their communities over time.” To this end, McCarthy’s goal is to “inspire women of wealth to think of how they might target their gifts to create a more just and equitable society.”