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Grand Canyon University at a glanceAlso receives grants: funding profile →

· Public charity

Grand Canyon University

GCU is a missional, Christ-centered university with an innovative and adaptive spirit that addresses the world's deep needs by cultivating compassionate Christian community, empowering free and virtuous action, and serving others in ways that promote human flourishing.

$386M
Granted FY2025still arriving
4
Grants FY2025still arriving
2
States reached
$150k
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, FY2019 to 2025.

Religion$491kArts & Culture$380kHousing & Shelter$160kCommunity Improvement$67kPublic Benefit$51kEducation$35kHuman Services$27kPhilanthropy$10kOther$0
02FY2025 · 4 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

How this is measured
The 4 grants below total $262,360, the rows itemized in this filing. The $386,098,916 headline is the total grant expense on the return; the other $385,836,556 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.

By grant size · FY2025

  • $10k–50k2 grants · $37k
  • $50k–250k2 grants · $225k
$75,000
Median grant
2
States reached
$2.1B
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
Habitat for Humanity Central AZ$150,000
Naismith Mem Basketball Hall of Fame$75,000
Barry Goldwater Inst for pub pol rsrch$25,000
FIESTA EVENTS INC$12,360
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 (FY22–24, $521k) land where the poverty rate runs at 11%, against an area that typically sits at 8%. 100% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 8%19 North Community Alliance: $10k → 11%Childhelp Inc: $11k → 11%Childhelp Inc: $10k → 11%Grand Canyon University CityServe: $167k → 11%GRAND CANYON UNIVERSITY CITYSERVE: $165k → 11%Grand Canyon University CityServe: $159k → 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.
04

Where the work is directed

The same grants placed two ways: where each recipient sits, and where its stated purpose sends the money.

About 99% of Grand Canyon University’s grant dollars are earmarked for a different county than the recipient’s own address. By recipient address, 67% of the giving stays in AZ; by stated purpose, 1%.

Grand Canyon Universitylessmore of its giving
Placed by recipient address
How this is measured
Recipient view: each grant at its grantee’s ZIP, mapped to a county. Directed view: each grant at the county its stated purpose names, falling back to the recipient’s county when the purpose names no place; US grants only. A county shows only if it carries the top 95% of that view’s dollars. Purposes are read from the funder’s own 990 grant descriptions.
03Its grantees
repeat funding

Who it funds again

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

96%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$1.2M · 7 repeat orgs$50k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +10% since the first grant, against -14% for those funded once.

7 repeat relationships: 4 still active in FY2025, 3 since wound down.

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

7
6

Total granted

$1.2M
$50k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+10%
-14%

Still filing today

100%
83%

New vs renewed · share of each year

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

50%100%’19’21’22’23’24’25
RenewedFirst-time

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

’19’21’22’23’24’25
Human ServicesPublic BenefitPhilanthropyArts & CultureRecreation & SportsEducationOther
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

  • GC
    Grand Canyon University CityServe
    3× · 2022–2024 · $491k · revenue +53%
  • HF
    HABITAT FOR HUMANITY CENTRAL ARIZONA
    2× · 2021–2025 · $160k · revenue +4%
  • FE
    FIESTA EVENTS INC
    5× · 2021–2025 · $57k · revenue +20%

Funded once

  • MU
    Midwestern University
    one grant, 2021 · $10k · revenue +11%
  • GM
    GAMMA MU FOUNDATION INC
    one grant, 2022 · $10k · revenue -21%
  • 1N
    19 NORTH COMMUNITY ALLIANCE INC
    one grant, 2024 · $10k
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
Arizona Latin-American Medical Association
Unclassified
2
Center for the Future of Arizona

Bringing arizonans together to create a stronger and brighter future for our state.

Community Improvement
3
Education Forward Arizona

To advocate for high-quality education and training that aligns with career and workforce opportunities to advance the quality of life for all arizonans.

—
4
Arizona Healthiest State Foundation
—
5
Arizona Center for Law in the Public Interest

The arizona center for law in the public interest is a non-profit law firm dedicated to ensuring government accountability and protecting the legal rights of arizonans.

Civil Rights
6
Prescott College Inc

Together, we create interdisciplinary, experiential, and diverse learning environments that inspire future leaders to develop a healthy, just and sustainable world. we value our inclusive community, experiential and field-based learning, a…

—
7
Arizona Anti-Trafficking Network

Aatn is a statewide resource that exists to bring solutions to the very real problem of sex and human trafficking in arizona. creating awareness, researching, and training in the most current anti-trafficking methods is the work of aatn…

Human Services
8
Arizona Community Foundation

To lead, serve and collaborate to mobilize enduring philanthropy for a better arizona.

Philanthropy
9
Greater Phoenix Chamber Foundation

Greater phoenix chamber foundation (gpcf), a 501c3 launched in 2016, leads the charitable and education initiatives of the greater phoenix chamber under the four pillars of education, workforce development, wellness, and research. the…

Philanthropy
10
Arizona Next Level Basketball Found
Recreation & Sports
11
Arizona's Children Association

The mission of arizona's children association is to protect children, empower youth, and strengthen families.

Human Services
12
Tucson Values Teachers

To elevate the teaching profession in southern arizona by empowering and celebrating prek-12 teacher excellence through community engagement and investment.

Employment
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Arizona; the most unlike its peers is 19 North Community Alliance Inc. Resemblance is measured on each organization’s own IRS 990 mission text; it reflects how work is described, not its quality or impact.
05the grantee network

14 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.

0
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
2
Early backer (in before they grew)
13/14
Grantees still filing
6/14
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

Grand Canyon University CityServe: $490,819 · Human ServicesGrand Canyon University CityServeCHILDHELP INC: $20,500 · Human Services+1 more: $10,000 · Human ServicesNAISMITH MEMORIAL BASKETBALL HALL OF FAME: $380,000 · Arts & CultureNAISMITH MEMORIAL BASKETBALL HALL O…HABITAT FOR HUMANITY CENTRAL ARIZONA: $160,000 · OtherHABITAT FOR HUMANI…ARIZONA EDUCATIONAL FOUNDATION INC: $25,300 · OtherARIZONA EDUCATIONA…BIG BROTHERS BIG SISTERS OF CENTRAL ARIZONA: $7,500 · OtherSTREETLIGHTUSA: $6,906 · OtherFIESTA EVENTS INC: $56,860 · Recreation & SportsBARRY GOLDWATER INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC POLICY RESEARCH: $45,000 · Public BenefitCONSCIOUS CAPITALISM ARIZONA: $5,500 · Public BenefitMidwestern University: $10,000 · EducationGAMMA MU FOUNDATION INC: $10,000 · Philanthropy
Human Services$521,319Arts & Culture$380,000Other$199,706Recreation & Sports$56,860Public Benefit$50,500Education$10,000Philanthropy$10,000

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 budgetGrand Canyon University CityServe: $490,819 over 3y, 5.0% of budgetNAISMITH MEMORIAL BASKETBALL HALL OF FAME: $380,000 over 5y, 0.8% of budgetHABITAT FOR HUMANITY CENTRAL ARIZONA: $160,000 over 2y, 0.9% of budgetFIESTA EVENTS INC: $56,860 over 5y, 0.4% of budgetBARRY GOLDWATER INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC POLICY RESEARCH: $45,000 over 2y, 0.2% of budgetARIZONA EDUCATIONAL FOUNDATION INC: $25,300 over 3y, 1.9% of budgetCHILDHELP INC: $20,500 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetMidwestern University: $10,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetGAMMA MU FOUNDATION INC: $10,000 over 1y, 2.5% of budget19 NORTH COMMUNITY ALLIANCE INC: $10,000 over 1y, 1.7% of budgetBIG BROTHERS BIG SISTERS OF CENTRAL ARIZONA: $7,500 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.

Arizona Community Fou…The Foundation for Co…BHHS Legacy FoundationThunderbirds CharitiesAmerican Express Foun…Jpmorgan Chase Founda…Vanguard Charitable E…American Online Givin…The Bank of America C…Donor Advised Charita…Fidelity Investments …Amazonsmile Foundation
Arizona Community FoundationAZ20.8× affinity8 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Arizona Community Foundation · The Foundation for Community and Health Advancement · BHHS Legacy Foundation · Thunderbirds Charities · American Express Foundation · Jpmorgan Chase Foundation · Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program · American Online Giving Foundation Inc · The Bank of America Charitable Foundation 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 Grand Canyon University funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Grand Canyon University. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 20%1%3%6%10%funder's share of their income ↑0%1%3%4%5%share of the org’s income from government →
    no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
    2get no government money at all
    4report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
    0rely on government for over half their income
    ⤢ axis zoomed · 0–5%
    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 13 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 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

    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