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Ella West Freeman Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

Ella West Freeman Foundation

Its FY2024 filing reports that it funds preselected organizations and did not take unsolicited requests; check the foundation's own site before ruling it out.

$1.3M
Granted FY2024still arriving
1
Grants FY2024still arriving
1
States reached
$26
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead
01What it funds
0191% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2020 to 2024.

Health$582kFood & Nutrition$500kEducation$429kArts & Culture$304kCommunity Improvement$146kCrime & Legal$119kPhilanthropy$103kHousing & Shelter$88kOther$0
02FY2024 · 1 grant

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

How this is measured
The 1 grants below total $26, the rows itemized in this filing. The $1,270,026 headline is the total grant expense on the return; the other $1,270,000 is giving the schedule does not break out (grants under the $5,000 itemization floor, grants to individuals, grants on other schedules). Every figure below describes the itemized rows only.
$26
Median grant
1
States reached
$21M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
Individual grant recipient$26
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 (FY20–20, $38k) land where the poverty rate runs at 23%, against an area that typically sits at 16%. 100% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 16%BAYOU DISTRICT FOUNDATION: $13k → 23%PROPELLER: $25k → 23%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.

28%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$747k · 14 repeat orgs$1.9M to everyone else

14 repeat relationships: 1 still active in FY2024, 13 since wound down.

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

14
76

Total granted

$747k
$1.9M

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+5%
+20%

Still filing today

79%
68%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 100% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $0 went to new ones.

50%100%’20’21’22’23’24
RenewedFirst-time

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

’20’21’22’23’24
Arts & CultureEducationHuman ServicesCrime & LegalHealthCommunity ImprovementOther
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

  • OC
    OCHSNER CLINIC FOUNDATION
    2× · 2020–2021 · $400k · revenue +43%
  • AN
    Audubon Nature Institute Inc
    2× · 2020–2021 · $75k · revenue +159%
  • PH
    PRESERVATION HALL FOUNDATION INC
    2× · 2020–2021 · $40k · revenue +19%

Funded once

  • SH
    SECOND HARVEST FOOD BANK GREATER NEW ORLEANS AND ACADIANA
    one grant, 2020 · $500k · revenue -12%
  • TE
    TRINITY EPISCOPAL CHURCH
    one grant, 2021 · $200k
  • ST
    ST THOMAS COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTER INC
    one grant, 2020 · $125k · revenue +21%
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
Laura Center for Creole Heritage
Arts & Culture
2
Louisiana Alliance for Nonprofits

To strengthen, promote, and build the capacity of louisiana's nonprofit sector through education, advocacy, and member services.

Philanthropy
3
Lede New Orleans Inc

Lede New Orleans is a community media hub that trains emerging Black and Brown storytellers,produces community-centered journalism, and creates trusted spaces for civic dialogue.Founded in 2020, Lede works to advance information equity in…

Education
4
New Orleans Educational Telecommunications Consortium

Delivery of higher educational services to the public.

—
5
Lsu Research Foundation
Community Improvement
6
Louisiana Organization for Refugees and Immigrants
International
7
Nola Business Alliance

Charged by the city of new orleans with leading the economic recovery and development of orleans parish. the organization's focus is to grow the job base and secure private investment for orleans parish by attracting corporations for…

Community Improvement
8
New Orleans Museum of Art

The mission of the new orleans museum of art is to inspire the love of art; to collect, preserve, exhibit and present excellence in the visual arts; to educate, challenge and engage a diverse public.

Arts & Culture
9
University of New Orleans Research and Technology Foundation Inc

-To support any and all programs, facilities, research, and educational opportunities offered by the University of New Orleans and the University of Louisiana System.-To encourage teaching, research, scholarship, and services, and increase…

Health
10
Louisiana Charter School Alliance

The mission of GNOCCS is to strengthen and support charter schools across Greater New Orleans by fostering collaboration, building capacity, and advocating for policies that enhance student achievement. Its most significant activities…

Education
11
Invest in Louisiana

To provide sound analysis of state fiscal issues to promote economic prosperity, a rising standard of living, and the opportunity for all citizens to reach their highest potential.

Public Benefit
12
New Orleans Startup Fund Inc

The new orleans startup fund is a seed capital fund established by the greater new orleans businesses and financial leaders to accelerate the growth of early-stage, innovative businesses into venture-ready companies. the startup funds'…

Community Improvement
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Kid Smart; the most unlike its peers is Poydras Home. 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

65 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. 65 of the 90 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)
13
Early backer (in before they grew)
63/65
Grantees still filing
39/65
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

TRINITY EPISCOPAL CHURCH: $200,000 · OtherTRINITY EPISCOPAL CHURCHThe Louisiana Museum Foundation: $55,000 · OtherThe Louisiana Museum FoundationNew Orleans & Justice Fdn.: $50,000 · OtherAudubon Nature Institute Inc: $75,000 · OtherAudubon Nature Institute IncGRACE AT THE GREEN LIGHT INC: $55,000 · OtherGRACE AT THE GREEN LIGHT INCSON OF A SAINT: $35,000 · Other+50 more: $547,350 · Other+50 moreOCHSNER CLINIC FOUNDATION: $400,000 · HealthOCHSNER CLINIC FOUNDATIO…ST THOMAS COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTER INC: $125,000 · HealthST THOMAS COMMUNITY HEAL…BRIDGE HOUSE CORPORATION: $30,000 · Health+1 more: $13,000 · HealthSECOND HARVEST FOOD BANK GREATER NEW ORLEANS AND ACADIANA: $500,000 · Food & NutritionSECOND HARVEST FOOD B…PRESERVATION HALL FOUNDATION INC: $40,000 · Arts & CultureNEW ORLEANS CENTER FOR CREATIVE ARTS FOUNDATION: $35,000 · Arts & CultureGREATER NEW ORLEANS EDUCATIONAL TELEVISION FOUNDATION: $20,000 · Arts & CultureFriends of Beauregard-Keyes House Inc: $15,600 · Arts & CultureRadio for the Blind & Print Handicapped: $15,000 · Arts & CultureFRIENDS OF WWOZ INC: $12,500 · Arts & CultureKID SMART: $12,500 · Arts & CultureContemporary Arts Center: $8,000 · Arts & CultureArts Council of New Orleans: $7,000 · Arts & Culture+4 more: $18,000 · Arts & CultureLOYOLA UNIVERSITY: $25,000 · EducationUniversity of New Orleans Foundation: $23,000 · EducationSTART THE ADVENTURE IN READING INC: $22,500 · EducationRENEW - REINVENTING EDUCATION: $15,000 · EducationXAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA: $15,000 · Education826 NEW ORLEANS: $15,000 · EducationAntenna: $15,000 · EducationCOLLEGE TRACK: $13,500 · EducationTeach for America Inc: $13,000 · EducationEDUCARE NEW ORLEANS: $10,000 · Education+1 more: $2,500 · EducationPRESERVATION ALLIANCE OF NEW ORLEANS IN: $85,000 · Community ImprovementTHE IDEA VILLAGE INC: $15,000 · Community Improvement+2 more: $4,500 · Community ImprovementUNITED WAY OF SOUTHEAST LOUISIANA: $100,000 · Philanthropy
Other$1,017,350Health$568,000Food & Nutrition$500,000Arts & Culture$183,600Education$169,500Community Improvement$104,500Philanthropy$100,000

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

25%50%75%100%$100k$1.0M$10M$100Mgrantee revenue →↑ funder's share of their budgetSECOND HARVEST FOOD BANK GREATER NEW ORLEANS AND ACADIANA: $500,000 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetOCHSNER CLINIC FOUNDATION: $400,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetST THOMAS COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTER INC: $125,000 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetUNITED WAY OF SOUTHEAST LOUISIANA: $100,000 over 1y, 0.7% of budgetPRESERVATION ALLIANCE OF NEW ORLEANS IN: $85,000 over 1y, 7.5% of budgetAudubon Nature Institute Inc: $75,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetGRACE AT THE GREEN LIGHT INC: $55,000 over 2y, 3.8% of budgetThe Louisiana Museum Foundation: $55,000 over 1y, 4.2% of budgetPRESERVATION HALL FOUNDATION INC: $40,000 over 2y, 0.8% of budgetSON OF A SAINT: $35,000 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetNEW ORLEANS CENTER FOR CREATIVE ARTS FOUNDATION: $35,000 over 2y, 1.4% of budgetBRIDGE HOUSE CORPORATION: $30,000 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetSOCIAL ENTREPRENEURS OF NEW ORLEANS: $25,000 over 1y, 1.1% of budgetVERA INSTITUTE OF JUSTICE INC: $25,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetLOYOLA UNIVERSITY: $25,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetUniversity of New Orleans Foundation: $23,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetSTART THE ADVENTURE IN READING INC: $22,500 over 2y, 3.3% of budgetBUREAU OF GOVERNMENTAL RESEARCH INC: $20,000 over 2y, 0.7% of budgetGREATER NEW ORLEANS EDUCATIONAL TELEVISION FOUNDATION: $20,000 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetCLOVER NOLA INC: $20,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetFriends of Beauregard-Keyes House Inc: $15,600 over 2y, 2.5% of budgetRAINTREE SERVICES INC: $15,000 over 1y, 0.7% of budgetTHE PROMISE OF JUSTICE INITIATIVE: $15,000 over 2y, 0.6% of budgetRENEW - REINVENTING EDUCATION: $15,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetXAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA: $15,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetLOUISIANA BUCKET BRIGADE: $15,000 over 1y, 1.6% of budgetTeaching Responsible Earth Education TREE: $15,000 over 1y, 3.9% of budgetRadio for the Blind & Print Handicapped: $15,000 over 2y, 2.4% of budgetCOMMUNITY SAILING NEW ORLEANS: $15,000 over 1y, 1.4% of budget826 NEW ORLEANS: $15,000 over 1y, 1.5% of budgetPUBLIC AFFAIRS RESEARCH COUNCIL OF ICIC A: $15,000 over 1y, 1.2% of budgetTHE IDEA VILLAGE INC: $15,000 over 1y, 1.6% of budgetEDEN CENTERS: $15,000 over 1y, 3.6% of budgetAntenna: $15,000 over 1y, 1.2% of budgetCOLLEGE TRACK: $13,500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetPROJECT LAZARUS: $13,000 over 1y, 1.4% of budgetTeach for America Inc: $13,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetFRIENDS OF WWOZ INC: $12,500 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetBAYOU DISTRICT FOUNDATION: $12,500 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetKID SMART: $12,500 over 1y, 0.8% of budgetLOUISIANA GREEN CORPS INC: $10,000 over 1y, 0.9% of budgetPOYDRAS HOME: $10,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetNEW ORLEANS VIDEO ACCESS CENTER INC: $10,000 over 1y, 1.5% of budgetINNOCENCE PROJECT NEW ORLEANS: $10,000 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetEDUCARE NEW ORLEANS: $10,000 over 1y, 1.6% of budgetNATIONAL WILDLIFE FEDERATION: $10,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetNEW ORLEANS WOMEN & CHILDREN'S SHELTER INC: $10,000 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetContemporary Arts Center: $8,000 over 1y, 0.3% 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.

The Greater New Orlea…Baptist Community Min…Keller Family Foundat…Goldring Family Found…Eugenie & Joseph Jone…The Usdin-Weil Founda…Gustaf Westfeldt McIl…The Almar Foundationd…The Helis FoundationEntergy Charitable Fo…United Way of Southea…Shell USA Company Fou…
The Greater New Orleans FoundationLA90× affinity46 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: The Greater New Orleans Foundation · Baptist Community Ministries · Keller Family Foundation · Goldring Family Foundation · Eugenie & Joseph Jones Family Foundation · The Usdin-Weil Foundation · Gustaf Westfeldt McIlhenny Family Founda · The Almar Foundationdba The Alden and Margaret Laborde Foundation · The Helis Foundation · Entergy Charitable Foundation · United Way of Southeast Louisiana · Shell USA Company 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 Ella West Freeman Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Ella West Freeman Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%0%1%3%5%funder's share of their income ↑0%25%50%75%100%share of the org’s income from government →
    no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
    0get no government money at all
    13report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
    0rely on government for over half their income
    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.
    05Through Plinth

    Warm introductions · Powered by PlinthPlus

    How do I get to Ella West Freeman Foundation?

    Find your warmest path to Ella West Freeman Foundation 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 90 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 2024, released 2024. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

    Source object · view filing

    Play a game based on Ella West Freeman’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