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Elizabeth G Danforth Charitable Fdn at a glance

· Private foundation

Elizabeth G Danforth Charitable Fdn

Its FY2025 filing reports that it funds preselected organizations and did not take unsolicited requests; check the foundation's own site before ruling it out.

$30k
Granted FY2025still arriving
2
Grants FY2025still arriving
1
States reached
$15k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
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 2025.

Education$268kEnvironment$120kYouth Development$37kReligion$30kHuman Services$20kRecreation & Sports$15kAnimals$5kFood & Nutrition$1k
02FY2025 · 2 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

$15,000
Median grant
1
States reached
$269
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
WEBSTER UNIVERSITY$15,000
MISSOURI BOTANICAL GARDEN$15,000
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:

Dollar for dollar, its grants (FY22–25) land where the poverty rate runs at 14%, against an area that typically sits at 10%. 100% of its dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 10%AMERICAN YOUTH FOUNDATION: $25k → 11%HAWTHORN LEADERSHIP SCHOOL FOR GIRLS: $5k → 21%AMERICAN YOUTH FOUNDATION: $10k → 11%FOREST PARK FOREVER INC: $5k → 21%GIRLS INCORPORATED OF STLOUIS: $1k → 11%FOREST PARK FOREVER INC: $5k → 21%GIRLS INCORPORATED OF STLOUIS: $1k → 11%FOREST PARK FOREVER INC: $5k → 21%COMMUNITY SCHOOL ASSOCIATION: $100k → 11%MISSOURI BOTANICAL GARDEN: $100k → 21%ST PETERS EPISCOPAL CHURCH: $10k → 11%MISSOURI BOTANICAL GARDEN: $15k → 21%ST PETERS EPISCOPAL CHURCH: $10k → 11%MISSOURI BOTANICAL GARDEN: $5k → 21%ST PETERS EPISCOPAL CHURCH: $10k → 11%HUMANE SOCIETY OF MISSOURI: $2k → 21%WEBSTER UNIVERSITY: $100k → 11%HUMANE SOCIETY OF MISSOURI: $2k → 21%WEBSTER UNIVERSITY: $15k → 11%HUMANE SOCIETY OF MISSOURI: $1k → 21%WEBSTER UNIVERSITY: $10k → 11%CITY ACADEMY INC: $10k → 21%WEBSTER UNIVERSITY: $10k → 11%CITY ACADEMY INC: $10k → 21%ST LOUIS CHRISTMAS CAROL ASSN: $10k → 11%CITY ACADEMY INC: $8k → 21%ST LOUIS CHRISTMAS CAROL ASSN: $10k → 11%DONALD DANFORTH PLANT SCIENCE CENTER: $1k → 11%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.
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 grantees
repeat funding

Who it funds again

Organizations funded in more than one year, against those funded once.

79%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$390k · 9 repeat orgs$106k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +11% since the first grant, against -17% for those funded once.

9 repeat relationships: 2 still active in FY2025, 7 since wound down.

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

9
3

Total granted

$390k
$106k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+11%
-17%

Still filing today

89%
100%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2025, 100% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $0 went to new ones.

50%100%’22’23’24’25
RenewedFirst-time

Where new relationships form · theme of each grantee’s first grant

’22’23’24’25
EducationEnvironmentAnimalsScience & TechRecreation & SportsYouth DevelopmentOther
How this is measured
First-time means a grantee’s first year in the filing window; renewed means funded in an earlier year too. The renewed share climbs naturally as a portfolio matures, so the signal is a year that bucks it (a wave of new grantees). The earliest year is left-censored: relationships that predate the data read as new. Theme is the grantee’s IRS cause.

Backed again, and grew

  • WU
    Webster University
    4× · 2022–2025 · $135k · revenue +11%
  • MB
    MISSOURI BOTANICAL GARDEN BOARD OF TRUSTEES
    3× · 2023–2025 · $120k · revenue +10%
  • TA
    The American Youth Foundation
    2× · 2023–2024 · $35k · revenue +24%

Funded once

  • CS
    COMMUNITY SCHOOL ASSOCIATION
    one grant, 2022 · $100k · revenue -17%
  • HL
    HAWTHORN LEADERSHIP SCHOOL FOR GIRLS
    one grant, 2022 · $5k · revenue -100%
  • DD
    DONALD DANFORTH PLANT SCIENCE CENTERgraduated
    one grant, 2022 · $1k · revenue +33%
How this is measured

Repeat means funded in two or more distinct years. Growth and survival are read from each grantee’s own subsequent IRS filings.

04Its 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
Thomas Jefferson School

Thomas jefferson school engages its students in the education necessary to live as responsible citizens of the world. through the strongest possible college-prepatory program and within a nurturing community, students develop a…

—
2
Columbia College

Columbia college improves lives by providing quality education to both traditional and nontraditional students, helping them achieve their true potential.

Education
3
The Saint Louis Zoo Association

The saint louis zoo association was established to support and enhance the saint louis zoo by providing facilities, funds, and advice. the association provides direct financial support to the zoo for renovations, new facilities, programs,…

Animals
4
St Louis Community Foundation

To promote the possibilities of charitable giving, helping charitable citizens understand how they can effectively provide for the community they love and the causes they care deeply about.

Philanthropy
5
Louisville Collegiate School

Louisville collegiate school inspires academic excellence, extraordinary character and global citizenship.

Education
6
St Louis Science Center Foundation

Support the st. louis science center and its comprehensive array of educational outreach programs to the community in order to increase interest, understanding and enthusiasm for stem (science, technology, engineering and mathematics).

Science & Tech
7
Capitol Hill Day School

Capitol Hill Day School is a co-educational independent school serving students from pre-kindergarten through 8th grade. Capitol Hill Day School deeply engages a diverse community of students in connecting the classroom with the larger…

Education
8
Concordia University Chicago

Steadfast in jesus christ as revealed in the holy scriptures, concordia university chicago promotes academic rigor in its liberal arts and professional programs; grounds students in objective truth, integrity, and excellence; and practices…

Education
9
Houston Botanic Garden

To enrich life through discovery, education, and the conservation of plants and the natural environment.

Environment
10
City Garden Grade School

A school inspired by Waldorf education in mid-Missouri with an intellectually rich curriculum that inspires creativity and self dicovery

—
11
Missouri Historical Society

The missouri historical society (mhs) is a missouri pro forma decree, not-for-profit corporation whose primary functions are educational and community programs; collections and conservation; library and research; and exhibitions.…

Arts & Culture
12
University of the Ozarks

True to our christian heritage, we prepare students from diverse religious, cultural, educational and economic backgrounds to live life fully.

Education
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Missouri Botanical Garden Board of Trustees; the most unlike its peers is The American Youth Foundation. 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

11 grantees tracked through their own filings, 2017–2026.

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 2026, not grant rows in a single year, so this will not match the grant count on the cover. 11 of the 12 grantees resolved in that span have returns of their own we could reconcile.

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

0
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
0
Early backer (in before they grew)
11/11
Grantees still filing
7/11
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

Webster University: $135,000 · EducationWebster UniversityCITY ACADEMY INC: $28,000 · EducationCITY ACADEMY INCCOMMUNITY SCHOOL ASSOCIATION: $100,000 · OtherCOMMUNITY SCHOOL ASSOCIATIONST PETERS EPISCOPAL CHURCH: $30,000 · OtherST PETERS EPISCOPAL CHURCHST LOUIS CHRISTMAS CAROLS ASSOCIATI: $20,000 · OtherST LOUIS CHRISTMAS CAROLS ASSOCIATI+1 more: $5,000 · OtherMISSOURI BOTANICAL GARDEN BOARD OF TRUSTEES: $120,000 · EnvironmentMISSOURI BOTANICAL GARDEN BOAR…Forest Park Forever Inc: $15,000 · EnvironmentForest Park Forever IncThe American Youth Foundation: $35,000 · Recreation & SportsHUMANE SOCIETY OF MISSOURI: $5,000 · AnimalsGIRLS INCORPORATED OF ST LOUIS: $2,000 · Youth DevelopmentDONALD DANFORTH PLANT SCIENCE CENTER: $1,000 · Science & Tech
Education$163,000Other$155,000Environment$135,000Recreation & Sports$35,000Animals$5,000Youth Development$2,000Science & Tech$1,000

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

25%50%75%100%$1.0M$10M$100Mgrantee revenue →↑ funder's share of their budgetWebster University: $135,000 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetMISSOURI BOTANICAL GARDEN BOARD OF TRUSTEES: $120,000 over 3y, 0.2% of budgetCOMMUNITY SCHOOL ASSOCIATION: $100,000 over 1y, 0.7% of budgetThe American Youth Foundation: $35,000 over 2y, 0.3% of budgetCITY ACADEMY INC: $28,000 over 3y, 0.2% of budgetST LOUIS CHRISTMAS CAROLS ASSOCIATI: $20,000 over 2y, 15% of budgetForest Park Forever Inc: $15,000 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetHUMANE SOCIETY OF MISSOURI: $5,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetHAWTHORN LEADERSHIP SCHOOL FOR GIRLS: $5,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetGIRLS INCORPORATED OF ST LOUIS: $2,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetDONALD DANFORTH PLANT SCIENCE CENTER: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% 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.

St Louis Community Fo…St Louis Community Fo…United Way of Greater…The Bank of America C…Vanguard Charitable E…Donor Advised Charita…American Online Givin…Fidelity Investments …Amazonsmile Foundation
St Louis Community Foundation IncMO17.5× affinity6 shared granteesties to 8 of 8Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: St Louis Community Foundation Inc · St Louis Community Foundation · United Way of Greater St Louis Inc · The Bank of America Charitable Foundation Inc · Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program · Donor Advised Charitable Giving Inc · American Online Giving Foundation 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 Elizabeth G Danforth Charitable Fdn funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Elizabeth G Danforth Charitable Fdn. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%1%4%8%15%funder's share of their income ↑0%10%20%30%40%share of the org’s income from government →
    no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
    0get no government money at all
    3report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
    0rely on government for over half their income
    ⤢ axis zoomed · 0–40%
    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.

    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 12 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-PF e-file return for fiscal year 2025, released 2025. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

    Source object · view filing

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    More from the funding graph

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    The regranting layer
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    The endowment market
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