Chicago has become a hotbed of "venture philanthropy" in education, as two local foundations contribute not only money, but also the hands-on work of some of the city's wealthiest and most influential residents, to help improve the schools in the nation's third-largest district. These two venture-philanthropy funds consist of the Renaissance Schools Fund and the Chicago Public Education Fund. The Renaissance Schools Fund was founded after Mayor Richard M. Daley asked the Commercial Club to lead an effort among business leaders to raise money to pay for the new schools he wanted to open under the Renaissance 2010 initiative, announced in 2004. Meanwhile, the Chicago Public Education Fund got off the ground in 2000, and has raised and spent $25 million over the past eight years to improve teaching in the city. Both the Chicago Public Education Fund and the Renaissance Schools Fund have adopted practices used by venture capitalists, who contribute startup money for new businesses in exchange for owning a percentage of them, closely monitor their growth, and often play leadership roles in the companies they finance.