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Francis T & Louis T Nichols Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

Francis T & Louis T Nichols Foundation

Its FY2024 filing reports that it accepted unsolicited grant applications.

$2.6M
Granted FY2024still arriving
88
Grants FY2024still arriving
7
States reached
$491k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its fieldRead
04Through PlinthRead
01What it funds
0192% classified

What it funded, over time

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

Philanthropy$638kHuman Services$350kHousing & Shelter$313kHealth$295kEducation$190kYouth Development$103kReligion$100kPublic Safety & Disaster$94kOther$0
02FY2024 · 88 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2024

  • Under $10k27 grants · $132k
  • $10k–50k48 grants · $1.1M
  • $50k–250k12 grants · $842k
  • $250k+1 grant · $491k
$18,000
Median grant
7
States reached
$21M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
MAINE COMMUNITY FOUNDATION$491,000
VERMONT STUDENT ASSISTANCE CORP$100,000
GEORGE STEVENS ACADEMY$90,000
HANCOCK COUNTY HABITAT FOR HUMANITY$85,000
GREEN MOUNTAIN HABITAT FOR HUMANITY$85,000
MAINE CHILDREN'S HOME$80,000
LUND FAMILY CENTER$67,000
PARTNERS FOR PEACESPRUCE RUN$65,000
STEPS TO END DOMESTIC VIOLENCE$60,000
NORTHERN LIGHT HOMECARE & HOSPICE$55,000
COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS$55,000
VERMONT COMMUNITY LOAN FUND$50,000
VERMONT CHILDREN'S TRUST FOUNDATION$50,000
PLANNED PARENTHOOD NEW ENGLAND$49,500
JOHN GRAHAM SHELTER$49,000
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 (FY24–24, $167k) land where the poverty rate runs at 9%, against an area that typically sits at 6%. 100% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 6%AMERICAN RED CROSS: $35k → 7%YMCA OF VERMONT: $14k → 9%WOMENSAFE ATRIA COLLECTIVE: $15k → 9%HOMESHARE VERMONT: $35k → 10%PATHWAYS - VERMONT: $24k → 10%SPECIAL CHILDREN'S FRIENDS: $5k → 11%SPECTRUM YOUTH & FAMILY SERVICES: $39k → 10%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 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
Vermont Humanities Council

Using the humanities, we connect with people across vermont to create just, vibrant, and resilient communities, and to inspire a lifelong love of learning.

—
2
Vermont Public Co

Vermont public informs, educates, and entertains through public service journalism and enlightening content rooted in vermont. our storytelling enriches lives and fosters community connection and understanding.

Arts & Culture
3
Vermont Electric Cooperative Inc

Vermont electric cooperative is a member owned not-for-profit whose mission is to provide safe, affordable, and reliable energy services to its members.

—
4
Cooperation Vermont

The mission of cooperation vermont is to build thriving community economic and enviromental democracy.

Community Improvement
5
Dartmouth Health Home Care Inc

We are dedicated to delivering outstanding home health and hospice services that enrich the lives of the people we serve.

—
6
Vermont Medical Society

The vermont medical society is the leading voice of physicians and physician assistants in the state and is dedicated to advancing the practice of medicine by advocating on behalf of vermonts clinicians and the patients and communities…

—
7
Alliance for a Better Vermont

Conducts and coordinates research of critical issues affecting vermonters. also conducts public opinion research.

—
8
Southeastern Vermont Community Action Inc

To enable people to cope with, and reduce the hardships of poverty; create sustainable self-sufficiency; and reduce the causes and move toward the elimination of poverty.

Human Services
9
Vermont Council On World Affairs Inc

See schedule othe mission of the vermont council on world affairs is to promote awareness and understanding of the world and its people, places and cultures through education and engagement. the future of vermont depends upon the world…

—
10
Vermont Health Care Association

Education for the improvement of health care in the state of vermont.

—
11
Cooperation Vermont Community Land Trust

The mission of cooperation vermont community land trust is to reclaim the commons.

Community Improvement
12
The Vermont Children's Alliance

To provide support services to local communities and childrens advocacy centers, to serve as a resource and to facilitate a network dedicated to coordinated and comprehensive response to child abuse.

Crime & Legal
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Champlain Valley Office of Economic Opportunity Inc; the most unlike its peers is Brooklin Volunteer Fire Company. 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

59 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. 59 of the 85 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.

1
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
3
Early backer (in before they grew)
59/59
Grantees still filing
23/59
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

VERMONT STUDENT ASSISTANCE CORP: $100,000 · OtherVERMONT STUDENT ASSISTANCE CORPHancock County Habitat For Humanity: $85,000 · OtherHancock County Habitat For HumanityGREEN MOUNTAIN HABITAT FOR HUMANITY: $85,000 · OtherGREEN MOUNTAIN HABITAT FOR HUMANITYMAINE CHILDREN'S HOME: $80,000 · OtherMAINE CHILDREN'S HOMEPARTNERS FOR PEACESPRUCE RUN: $65,000 · OtherPARTNERS FOR PEACESPRUCE RUNPLANNED PARENTHOOD NEW ENGLAND: $49,500 · OtherCOMMUNITY HEALTH & COUNSELING: $45,000 · OtherIndividual grant recipient: $38,000 · OtherVERMONT FOODBANK: $38,000 · OtherBLUE HILL HERITAGE TRUST: $38,000 · Other+41 more: $485,200 · Other+41 moreMaine Community Foundation Inc: $491,000 · PhilanthropyMaine Community Foundation…Vermont Childrens Trust Foundation: $50,000 · PhilanthropyVermont Childrens Trust Fo…HEART OF MAINE UNITED WAY: $40,850 · PhilanthropyHEART OF MAINE UNITED WAY+2 more: $31,000 · PhilanthropyLund Family Center Inc: $67,000 · Human ServicesLund Family C…STEPS TO END DOMESTIC VIOLENCE INC: $60,000 · Human ServicesSTEPS TO END …SPECTRUM YOUTH AND FAMILY SERVICES INC: $38,650 · Human ServicesSPECTRUM YOUT…American National Red Cross & Its Constituent Chapters and Branches: $35,000 · Human ServicesAmerican Nati…HOMESHARE VERMONT INC: $35,000 · Human ServicesHOMESHARE VER…PATHWAYS VERMONT INC: $24,000 · Human ServicesPATHWAYS VERM…KING STREET CENTER INC: $18,800 · Human ServicesKING STREET C…ATRIA COLLECTIVE INC: $15,000 · Human ServicesYWCA OF VERMONT INC: $14,000 · Human Services+1 more: $5,000 · Human ServicesGeorge Stevens Academy: $90,000 · EducationNAVY SEABEE FOUNDATION: $25,000 · EducationHORATIO ALGER ASSN OF DISTINGUISHED AMERICANS INC: $25,000 · EducationMENTOR Vermont Inc: $23,000 · EducationWilliams College: $22,000 · EducationBLUE HILL PUBLIC LIBRARY: $14,000 · EducationVNA Home Health & Hospice Northern Light Home Care & Hospice: $55,000 · HealthCOMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS OF BURLINGTON INC: $55,000 · HealthELLSWORTH FREE MEDICAL CLINIC: $25,000 · HealthVERMONTS CAMP TA-KUM-TA: $24,000 · HealthHOPE WORKS INC: $19,000 · HealthCommunity Health Services of Addison Cty Inc: $10,000 · HealthRONALD MCDONALD HOUSE CHARITIES OF BURLINGTON VERMONT INC: $9,000 · HealthVERMONT COMMUNITY LOAN FUND: $50,000 · Housing & ShelterThe John W Graham Emergency Shelter and Service Inc: $49,000 · Housing & ShelterCOMMITTEE ON TEMPORARY SHELTER INC: $15,000 · Housing & ShelterHUNGER FREE VERMONT INC: $40,000 · Crime & LegalIMMIGRANT LEGAL ADVOCACY PROJECT: $30,000 · Crime & LegalDismas of Vermont Inc: $5,000 · Crime & Legal
Other$1,108,700Philanthropy$612,850Human Services$312,450Education$199,000Health$197,000Housing & Shelter$114,000Crime & Legal$75,000

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 budgetMaine Community Foundation Inc: $491,000 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetGeorge Stevens Academy: $90,000 over 1y, 1.6% of budgetHancock County Habitat For Humanity: $85,000 over 1y, 55% of budgetGREEN MOUNTAIN HABITAT FOR HUMANITY: $85,000 over 1y, 1.8% of budgetLund Family Center Inc: $67,000 over 1y, 0.6% of budgetSTEPS TO END DOMESTIC VIOLENCE INC: $60,000 over 1y, 1.6% of budgetVNA Home Health & Hospice Northern Light Home Care & Hospice: $55,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetCOMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS OF BURLINGTON INC: $55,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetVERMONT COMMUNITY LOAN FUND: $50,000 over 1y, 1.3% of budgetVermont Childrens Trust Foundation: $50,000 over 1y, 3.7% of budgetThe John W Graham Emergency Shelter and Service Inc: $49,000 over 1y, 2.3% of budgetHEART OF MAINE UNITED WAY: $40,850 over 1y, 1.7% of budgetHUNGER FREE VERMONT INC: $40,000 over 1y, 2.7% of budgetSPECTRUM YOUTH AND FAMILY SERVICES INC: $38,650 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetVERMONT FOODBANK: $38,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetBLUE HILL HERITAGE TRUST: $38,000 over 1y, 1.8% of budgetAmerican National Red Cross & Its Constituent Chapters and Branches: $35,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetHOMESHARE VERMONT INC: $35,000 over 1y, 2.3% of budgetPENINSULA AMBULANCE CORPS: $30,000 over 1y, 1.6% of budgetIMMIGRANT LEGAL ADVOCACY PROJECT: $30,000 over 1y, 0.9% of budgetDowneast Family Young Mens Christian Association: $28,000 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetMaine Maritime Museum: $26,500 over 5y, 0.3% of budgetNAVY SEABEE FOUNDATION: $25,000 over 1y, 1.6% of budgetELLSWORTH FREE MEDICAL CLINIC: $25,000 over 1y, 17% of budgetHORATIO ALGER ASSN OF DISTINGUISHED AMERICANS INC: $25,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetPATHWAYS VERMONT INC: $24,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetVERMONTS CAMP TA-KUM-TA: $24,000 over 1y, 1.6% of budgetMENTOR Vermont Inc: $23,000 over 1y, 2.0% of budgetWilliams College: $22,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetPREVENT CHILD ABUSE VERMONT: $20,000 over 1y, 1.5% of budgetCHAMPLAIN VALLEY OFFICE OF ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY INC: $20,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetPOLARIS PROJECT: $20,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetBOYS AND GIRLS CLUB OF BURLINGTON INC: $20,000 over 1y, 0.7% of budgetVERMONT WORKS FOR WOMEN INC: $19,000 over 1y, 1.4% of budgetHOPE WORKS INC: $19,000 over 1y, 2.6% of budgetKING STREET CENTER INC: $18,800 over 1y, 0.7% of budgetTHE VERMONT COMMUNITY FOUNDATION: $16,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetATRIA COLLECTIVE INC: $15,000 over 1y, 1.8% of budgetBrooklin Volunteer Fire Company: $15,000 over 1y, 13% of budgetCOMMITTEE ON TEMPORARY SHELTER INC: $15,000 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetUNITED WAY OF ADDISON COUNTY INC: $15,000 over 1y, 0.8% of budgetBLUE HILL PUBLIC LIBRARY: $14,000 over 1y, 0.9% of budgetYWCA OF VERMONT INC: $14,000 over 1y, 1.2% of budgetSARA M HOLBROOK COMMUNITY CENTER INC: $10,000 over 1y, 1.0% of budgetCommunity Health Services of Addison Cty Inc: $10,000 over 1y, 1.0% of budgetTHE DREAM PROGRAM INC: $10,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetHOME INC: $10,000 over 1y, 0.6% of budgetBLUE HILL SOCIETY FOR AID TO CHILDREN INC: $9,000 over 1y, 2.9% 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 Vermont Community…Agnes M Lindsay TrustBen & Jerry's Foundat…National Life Group C…Fanny Allen Corporati…United Way of Northwe…Maine Community Found…Peoples United Commun…George W Mergens Foun…Mascoma Bank Foundati…The Kelsey TrustThe University of Ver…
The Vermont Community FoundationVT53.6× affinity27 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: The Vermont Community Foundation · Agnes M Lindsay Trust · Ben & Jerry's Foundation Inc · National Life Group Charitable Foundation Inc · Fanny Allen Corporation · United Way of Northwest Vermont Inc · Maine Community Foundation Inc · Peoples United Community Foundation · George W Mergens Foundation · Mascoma Bank Foundation · The Kelsey Trust · The University of Vermont Medical Center

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 Francis T & Louis T Nichols Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Francis T & Louis T Nichols Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 60%4%15%34%60%funder's share of their income ↑0%25%50%75%100%share of the org’s income from government →median 32%
  • The Dream Program Inc: 100% of income from government
  • Atria Collective Inc: 96% of income from government
  • Vermont Adult Learning Inc: 78% of income from government
  • Steps to End Domestic Violence Inc: 71% of income from government
  • Pathways Vermont Inc: 65% of income from government
  • Prevent Child Abuse Vermont: 58% of income from government
  • Mentor Vermont Inc: 58% of income from government
  • Vermont Works for Women Inc: 52% of income from government
  • Committee On Temporary Shelter Inc: 52% of income from government
  • Hope Works Inc: 49% of income from government
  • King Street Center Inc: 43% of income from government
  • Dismas of Vermont Inc: 39% of income from government
  • Lund Family Center Inc: 34% of income from government
  • Homeshare Vermont Inc: 32% of income from government
  • Hunger Free Vermont Inc: 24% of income from government
  • Champlain Valley Office of Economic Opportunity Inc: 23% of income from government
  • Community Health Centers of Burlington Inc: 17% of income from government
  • Boys and Girls Club of Burlington Inc: 16% of income from government
  • Vermont Community Loan Fund: 14% of income from government
  • Vermont Foodbank: 13% of income from government
  • United Way of Addison County Inc: 12% of income from government
  • Vermont Childrens Trust Foundation: 8% of income from government
  • Mystic Seaport Museum Inc: 5% of income from government
  • Lake Champlain Maritime Museum at Basin Harbor Inc: 2% of income from government
  • Ywca of Vermont Inc: 0% of income from government
  • The Vermont Community Foundation: 0% of income from government
  • Williams College: 0% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
6get no government money at all
16report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
9rely 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.
04Through Plinth

Warm introductions · Powered by PlinthPlus

How do I get to Francis T & Louis T Nichols Foundation?

Find your warmest path to Francis T & Louis T Nichols 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 85 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 Francis T & Louis T Nichols’ 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