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American Idea Foundation Inc at a glanceMostly funded, not a grantmaker: see who funds it →

· Public charity

American Idea Foundation Inc

In america, the circumstances of your birth should not determine the outcome of your life.

$350k
Granted FY2024still arriving
8
Grants FY2024still arriving
4
States reached
$50k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its fieldRead
04Through PlinthRead
01What it funds
01100% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2022 to 2024.

Crime & Legal$210kHuman Services$200kEmployment$160kYouth Development$135kEducation$125kHealth$110kReligion$30k
02FY2024 · 8 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2024

  • $10k–50k2 grants · $50k
  • $50k–250k6 grants · $300k
$50,000
Median grant
4
States reached
$9.0M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
FUTURE FORWARD LLC$50,000
NPOWER INC$50,000
FOUND VILLAGE$50,000
DOWNTOWN BOXING GYM YOUTH PROGRAM$50,000
FAMILY PROMISE OF GRAND RAPIDS$50,000
1000 GENERATIONS INC$50,000
INNER-CITY COMPUTER STARS FOUNDATION$25,000
SUNY IMPACT FOUNDATION INC$25,000
02The need
03

Does the money reach high-need areas?

Each grant placed by the hardship in its grantee’s ZIP, against the area’s typical level.

show:

Its human-services grants (FY22–22, $80k) land where the poverty rate runs at 14%, against an area that typically sits at 13%. 100% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 13%MERIT AMERICA: $50k → 14%CORNER TO CORNER: $30k → 14%0%20%40%50%more need →
grant to an above-average-need area below average· circle size = grant amount
How this is measured
Matched: human-services grants are those whose grantee’s IRS cause code is Human Services. Placed by people below the poverty line in the grantee’s ZIP, averaged from the tracts in that ZIP.

Which US states its grants reach

IL
WI
MI
NY
MA
OR
OH
CO
MD
TN
DC
How this is measured
US grants placed by each grantee’s ZIP, which can differ from where services are delivered. Need from public data (U.S. Census/ACS, CDC PLACES, Eviction Lab, USDA), shown as context about the area, never attributed to the funder’s giving.
03Its field

Closest unfunded matches

The nonprofits that most resemble its grantees but are not funded by it, scored along the direction from the rest of the field toward the portfolio. A resemblance in what they say they do, not a recommendation.

1
Towards Employment Inc

We champion the potential of every person to succeed in a rewarding career, while working to create an equitable and inclusive workforce for tomorrow. we do this by providing skill development for in demand jobs, comprehensive supports,…

Employment
2
College Track

See schedule ocollege track is a national college completion program that equips first-generation scholars to earn a bachelor's degree and build lives filled with opportunity, choice, purpose, and power. college track partners with first…

Education
3
Onegoal

Onegoal (the organization") is a nonprofit organization incorporated on june 13, 2003 to provide underserved students with the resources, support, and network to earn a postsecondary degree.

Youth Development
4
Code to Work Inc

An employer-led initiative aimed at transforming the hiring process. we use a skills-based approach to identify, train and hire talent. the traditional credentials-based focus must evolve to give all qualified job seekers a chance to prove…

—
5
Springboard Collaborative

Springboard collaborative combines targeted student instruction with parent training in an incentivized system that closes the literacy gap, by transferring the summer from a barrier into a springboard for financially disadvantaged…

Human Services
6
Big Brothers-Big Sisters of Metropolitan Chicago

Create and support one-to-one mentoring relationships that ignite and empower the promise of youth. we nurture children, strengthen communities and believe that inherent in every child is the ability to succeed and thrive in life.

—
7
Friends of the Children- New York

Friends of the children - new york has a mission of impacting generational change by empowering youth who are facing the greatest obstacles through relationships with professional mentors - 12+ years, no matter what. 92% go on to enroll in…

Crime & Legal
8
New Futures

Mission: to create educational opportunities for rewarding careers. the organization provides a practical yet innovative program of scholarships, career education services, and support to low-income dc-area young people pursuing…

Human Services
9
Greenwood Project

Greenwood's mission is to create career pathways in the financial services industry for black and latino college students. we partner with companies to find equitable and inclusive solutions for recruitment, retention, and advancement. our…

Human Services
10
Breakthrough New York Inc

Breakthrough new york empowers motivated students from low-income backgrounds to graduate from college and pursue a fulfilling career. our ten-year, tuition-free program provides students with the opportunities, resources, and…

Education
11
Friends of the Children-Portland

Friends - portland commits to standing alongside our community's youth as they work to overcome barriers to their success. each child receives 1:1 support and guidance from a salaried, professional mentor (called a friend), from…

Youth Development
12
Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Triangle Inc

Create and support one-to-one mentoring relationships that ignite the power and promise of youth. the organization's vision is that all youth achieve their full potential.

Youth Development
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is The Bottom Line Inc; the most unlike its peers is Npower Inc. Resemblance is measured on each organization’s own IRS 990 mission text; it reflects how work is described, not its quality or impact.
04the grantee network

21 grantees tracked through their own filings, 2017–2025.

Each grant beside the grantee’s revenue from every source, year by year.

How this is measured

Counted here: distinct organizations funded across 2017 to 2025, not grant rows in a single year, so this will not match the grant count on the cover.

Each grantee is resolved to its own IRS returns. Association, dated; never a causal claim.

1
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
2
Early backer (in before they grew)
21/21
Grantees still filing
10/21
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

FRIENDS OF THE CHILDREN: $50,000 · Youth DevelopmentFRIENDS OF THE CHILDR…1000 Generations Inc: $50,000 · Youth Development1000 Generations IncFound Village: $50,000 · Youth DevelopmentFound VillageBERNIE'S BOOK BANK: $35,000 · Youth DevelopmentBERNIE'S BOOK BANKGATEKEEPERS CORPORATION: $120,000 · Crime & LegalGATEKEEPERS CO…NURSE-FAMILY PARTNERSHIP: $60,000 · HealthNURSE-FAMILY…BRIGID'S PATH INC: $50,000 · HealthBRIGID'S PAT…THE JOSEPH PROJECT A MILWAUKEE CORP: $35,000 · EmploymentTHE JOSEPH P…WOMEN'S BEAN PROJECT: $25,000 · EmploymentWOMEN'S BEAN…PER SCHOLAS INC: $25,000 · EmploymentPER SCHOLAS …INNER-CITY COMPUTER STARS FOUNDATION: $25,000 · EmploymentINNER-CITY C…THE BOTTOM LINE INC: $50,000 · Community ImprovementTHE BOTTOM …NPOWER INC: $50,000 · Community ImprovementNPOWER INCWISCONSIN INMATE EDUCATION ASSOCIATION INC: $90,000 · ReligionWISCONSIN …MERIT AMERICA: $50,000 · Human ServicesMERIT AME…Corner To Corner: $30,000 · Human ServicesCorner To…FUTURE FORWARD INC: $50,000 · OtherFUTURE FORWARD INCDOWNTOWN BOXING GYM YOUTH PROGRAM: $50,000 · OtherDOWNTOWN BOXING GYM …FAMILY PROMISE OF GRAND RAPIDS: $50,000 · OtherFAMILY PROMISE OF GR…SUNY IMPACT FOUNDATION INC: $25,000 · OtherSUNY IMPACT FOUNDATI…
Youth Development$185,000Crime & Legal$120,000Health$110,000Employment$110,000Community Improvement$100,000Religion$90,000Human Services$80,000Other$175,000

Each grantee by its size and the funder’s share of it; top left is load-bearing

25%50%75%100%$1.0M$10Mgrantee revenue →↑ funder's share of their budgetGATEKEEPERS CORPORATION: $120,000 over 1y, 35% of budgetWISCONSIN INMATE EDUCATION ASSOCIATION INC: $90,000 over 1y, 11% of budgetNURSE-FAMILY PARTNERSHIP: $60,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetTHE BOTTOM LINE INC: $50,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetFRIENDS OF THE CHILDREN: $50,000 over 1y, 0.3% of budget1000 Generations Inc: $50,000 over 1y, 3.9% of budgetFUTURE FORWARD INC: $50,000 over 1y, 1.9% of budgetDOWNTOWN BOXING GYM YOUTH PROGRAM: $50,000 over 1y, 0.8% of budgetBRIGID'S PATH INC: $50,000 over 1y, 1.4% of budgetMERIT AMERICA: $50,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetNPOWER INC: $50,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetFAMILY PROMISE OF GRAND RAPIDS: $50,000 over 1y, 1.1% of budgetFound Village: $50,000 over 1y, 2.9% of budgetTHE JOSEPH PROJECT A MILWAUKEE CORP: $35,000 over 1y, 20% of budgetBERNIE'S BOOK BANK: $35,000 over 1y, 0.6% of budgetCorner To Corner: $30,000 over 1y, 1.1% of budgetWOMEN'S BEAN PROJECT: $25,000 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetPER SCHOLAS INC: $25,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetSUNY IMPACT FOUNDATION INC: $25,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetINNER-CITY COMPUTER STARS FOUNDATION: $25,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budget
Grantee by grantee: a decade per organization, before and after funding

A decade per grantee: revenue shaded, grants as bars, all rows on one timeline.

Co-funders

Grantmakers whose grantees overlap with this funder’s far more than size alone predicts. Closer means stronger alignment; arcs show where they also fund each other. Here they form a tightly interlocked group: most of these funders back each other's grantees too.

Charities Aid Foundat…National Philanthropi…The Blackbaud Giving …American Endowment Fo…American Online Givin…Natl Christian Charit…Donor Advised Charita…Fidelity Investments …Amazonsmile Foundation
Charities Aid Foundation AmericaVA11.4× affinity6 shared granteesties to 8 of 8Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Charities Aid Foundation America · National Philanthropic Trust · The Blackbaud Giving Fund · American Endowment Foundation · American Online Giving Foundation Inc · Natl Christian Charitable Fdn Inc · Donor Advised Charitable Giving Inc · Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund · Amazonsmile Foundation

How this is measured
Affinity is a Gamma-Poisson posterior co-funding rate, re-centered on the typical rate, so thin evidence shrinks toward no signal. Overlap is association, not proof of shared intent.

How much its grantees rely on government

Each dot is one organization American Idea Foundation Inc funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from American Idea Foundation Inc. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%3%10%23%40%funder's share of their income ↑0%19%38%56%75%share of the org’s income from government →median 13%
  • Gatekeepers Corporation: 13% of income from government
  • The Bottom Line Inc: 0% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
0get no government money at all
6report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
0rely on government for over half their income
⤢ axis zoomed · 0–75%
typical government reliance, FY20–25
How this is measured
Government income is each org’s traced federal awards (USASpending grants and contracts) plus state payments (open checkbooks) as a share of its total revenue (IRS Form 990); the self-reported government-grant line (990 line 1e) is carried for cross-check: a grantee that reports government grants we could not trace to a source is left off the chart rather than shown as receiving none. An association, not a claim that a grant caused the public funding. Coverage is precision-first, a floor rather than a census; state records exist for 9 states, so a grantee outside them shows no state figure (dimmed) rather than a false zero. Federal award amounts are obligations, which can span years, so a single-year share is indicative. 990 filings lag 12 to 24 months.
04Through Plinth

Warm introductions · Powered by PlinthPlus

How do I get to American Idea Foundation Inc?

Find your warmest path to American Idea Foundation Inc through trustees and officers whose names appear on both boards. Search for your organization and Plinth traces the shortest route it can evidence.

Each link is a name appearing on two organizations’ public IRS 990 filings, matched on that name and, where the filings support it, on location. A same-state match has geographic support, which is a second matching feature rather than confirmation that the two are one person; a cross-state one is the likeliest to be two people who share a name. Every hop shows its tier, low-confidence and distant paths are held back rather than guessed, and it is worth confirming the person before you use the introduction.

On method. Every financial figure here is read from IRS e-file XML, the funder’s own 990/990-PF, and from the multi-year returns of the 20 grantees we resolved, each linked to its source. Grantee outcomes are each organization’s own program-service reporting (Form 990, Part III), read as association with funding, never as caused by it. Low-confidence name matches are suppressed rather than guessed. How we build these →

How this is measured
Each figure carries one of six labels. Filed is what the funder reported on its return. Official is another government record about an organization, such as a federal award or a charity register, joined by name where no shared identifier exists. Resolved is an identity we worked out where the filing named a recipient without an EIN, kept only above a measured confidence threshold. Computed is arithmetic over those, like themes, portfolio clusters and co-funder strength. Context is a statistic about a place rather than about an organization, which is what the need overlay is: it describes the area a grantee’s address sits in, not where its work lands. Inferred is drawn by a model from text, like the partnerships read out of public news and organization websites. Each is labeled where it appears.

Generated from the IRS Form 990 e-file return for fiscal year 2024, released 2024. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

Source object · view filing

Play a game based on American Idea’s filings →

More from the funding graph

The unnamed billions
grants reported with no recipient in the public record
The regranting layer
51% of grant dollars land in the regranting layer
The DAF merry-go-round
$9.7B circulates between donor-advised funds
The endowment market
who holds foundation money, and what just moved
The camps
funders cluster by geography, not ideology
By state
where grant money is based, and what stays home