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Grass Family Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

Grass Family Foundation

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.

$540k
Granted FY2025still arriving
2
Grants FY2025still arriving
2
States reached
$500k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead
01What it funds
0194% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2017 to 2024.

Education$2.4MArts & Culture$732kHealth$569kPhilanthropy$500kFood & Nutrition$80kCommunity Improvement$50kReligion$49kSocial Science$35kOther$0
02FY2025 · 2 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2025

  • $10k–50k1 grant · $40k
  • $250k+1 grant · $500k
$500,000
Median grant
2
States reached
$691k
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
JEWISH FEDERATION OF GREATER HARRIS$500,000
BOCA RATON MUSEUM OF ART$39,500
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 (FY21–21, $1k) land where the poverty rate runs at 17%, against an area that typically sits at 11%. 100% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 11%BRAVER ANGELS: $1k → 17%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
NY
PA
NJ
MD
AZ
SC
DC
AL
GA
TX
FL
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.

91%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$4.4M · 19 repeat orgs$427k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +52% since the first grant, against +15% for those funded once.

19 repeat relationships: 2 still active in FY2025, 17 since wound down.

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

19
32

Total granted

$4.4M
$427k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+52%
+15%

Still filing today

53%
59%

New vs renewed · share of each year

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

50%100%’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24’25
RenewedFirst-time

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

’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24’25
Arts & CultureEducationInternationalEnvironmentHealthFood & NutritionOther
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

  • TC
    The Children's School
    5× · 2018–2022 · $920k · revenue +0%
  • UO
    University of Miami
    2× · 2017–2018 · $500k · revenue +96%
  • JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY
    2× · 2017–2018 · $279k · revenue +64%

Funded once

  • NM
    NEW MILK BANK
    one grant, 2020 · $70k
  • TP
    THE PARK SCHOOL OF BALTIMORE INCgraduated
    one grant, 2017 · $50k · revenue +34%
  • PA
    PIEDMONT ATLANTA TOWER CAP CAMPAIGN
    one grant, 2019 · $50k
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
Museum of Modern Art

The Museum of Modern Art is a private, non-profit institution chartered by the State of New York Department of Education in 1929 to foster public awareness of modern and contemporary art. (Continued in Schedule O)

Arts & Culture
2
Manhattan School of Music

Manhattan school of music is deeply committed to excellence in education, performance, and creative activity; to the humanity of the school's environment; and to the cultural enrichment of the larger community. a premiere international…

Arts & Culture
3
Boston Architectural College

The bac is committed to provide excellence in design education grounded in practice and accessible to diverse communities.

—
4
Barnard College

Barnard college aims to provide the highest quality liberal arts education to promising and high-achieving young women, offering the unparalleled advantages of an outstanding residential college in partnership with a major research…

Education
5
Sarah Lawrence College

At sarah lawrence college, our mission is to graduate citizens of the world who are diverse in every definition of the word, who take intellectual and creative risks, and who are able to focus exceptional intellectual discipline (continued…

Education
6
Chicago Opera Theater

Chicago opera theater expands the tradition of opera as a living art form by engaging lovers of music and storytelling through innovative experiences, predominantly of new and rarely performed works.

Arts & Culture
7
The Brooklyn Institute of Arts and Sciences

The mission of the brooklyn institute of arts and sciences, d/b/a brooklyn museum (the "museum") is to bring people together through art and experiences that inspire celebration, compassion, courage, and the will to act. (see schedule o).

Arts & Culture
8
The Pierpont Morgan Library

The Morgan Library & Museum celebrates and shares the history and process of human creativity from antiquity to the present day through the preservation, study, and interpretation of a dynamic and growing collection.

Education
9
Columbia College Chicago

The organization's mission is to educate students for creative occupations in diverse fields of arts and media.

Education
10
Manhattanville University

To educate students to be ethical and socially responsible leaders in a global community.

Education
11
Women's Project & Productions Inc

Wp theater is the nation's oldest and largest theater company dedicated to developing, producing, and promoting the work of women+ at every stage of their careers. for over four decades we have served as leaders of a global movement…

Arts & Culture
12
The Trustees of the Smith College

Smith college educates women of promise for lives of distinction and purpose. a college of and for the world, smith college links the power of the liberal arts to excellence in research and scholarship, developing leaders for society's…

Education
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is The Children's School; the most unlike its peers is The National Museum of Women in the Arts. 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

30 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. 30 of the 52 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)
5
Early backer (in before they grew)
30/30
Grantees still filing
21/30
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

JEWISH FEDERATION OF GREATER HARRIS: $1,000,000 · OtherJEWISH FEDERATION OF GREATER HARRISThe Children's School: $920,000 · OtherThe Children's SchoolPIEDMONT HEALTH CARE FOUNDATION: $240,000 · OtherPIEDMONT HEALTH CARE FOUNDATIONIndividual grant recipient: $238,000 · OtherIndividual grant recipientIndividual grant recipient: $160,000 · OtherIndividual grant recipient+24 more: $410,720 · Other+24 moreUniversity of Miami: $500,000 · EducationUniversity of MiamiTHE TRUSTEES OF COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK: $385,000 · EducationTHE TRUSTEES OF COLUMBIA UNIVE…JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY: $279,000 · EducationJOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITYSWARTHMORE COLLEGE: $160,000 · EducationSWARTHMORE COLLEGETHE PARK SCHOOL OF BALTIMORE INC: $50,000 · Education+3 more: $39,500 · EducationBOCA RATON MUSEUM OF ART: $346,623 · Arts & CultureBOCA RATON MUSEU…NEW YORK LIVE ARTS INC: $223,000 · Arts & CultureNEW YORK LIVE AR…ORIGINAL MUSIC WORKSHOP INC: $116,500 · Arts & CultureORIGINAL MUSIC W…THE TAKI ALSOP CONDUCTING FELLOWSHIP INC: $33,000 · Arts & Culture+5 more: $50,085 · Arts & Culture+5 moreGAUDENZIA INC: $70,000 · HealthFOOD BANK FOR NEW YORK CITY: $10,200 · Community ImprovementWomen for Afghan Women Inc: $5,000 · InternationalRAZOM INC: $5,000 · InternationalNATIONAL NETWORK OF ABORTION FUNDS LILITH FUND: $5,000 · EnvironmentClinic Access Support Network: $3,000 · Environment
Other$2,968,720Education$1,413,500Arts & Culture$769,208Health$70,000Community Improvement$10,200International$10,000Environment$8,000

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 budgetThe Children's School: $920,000 over 5y, 3.0% of budgetUniversity of Miami: $500,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetTHE TRUSTEES OF COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK: $385,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetBOCA RATON MUSEUM OF ART: $346,623 over 9y, 0.8% of budgetJOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY: $279,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetNEW YORK LIVE ARTS INC: $223,000 over 5y, 0.9% of budgetSWARTHMORE COLLEGE: $160,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetORIGINAL MUSIC WORKSHOP INC: $116,500 over 4y, 1.7% of budgetGAUDENZIA INC: $70,000 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetTHE PARK SCHOOL OF BALTIMORE INC: $50,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetTHE TAKI ALSOP CONDUCTING FELLOWSHIP INC: $33,000 over 1y, 2.3% of budgetVILLA MONTESSORI INC: $24,500 over 2y, 0.2% of budgetTHE CLASSICAL THEATRE OF HARLEM INC: $23,000 over 3y, 0.5% of budgetACCESSIBLE CONTEMPORARY MUSIC: $13,015 over 1y, 2.5% of budgetFOOD BANK FOR NEW YORK CITY: $10,200 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTHE CAPITAL REGION LITERACY COUNCIL: $10,000 over 1y, 15% of budgetHARRISBURG COMMUNITY THEATRE THEATRE HARRISBURG: $10,000 over 1y, 1.8% of budgetWOODSTOCK DAY SCHOOL: $5,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetWomen for Afghan Women Inc: $5,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetRAZOM INC: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetJANE'S DUE PROCESS INC: $5,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetNATIONAL NETWORK OF ABORTION FUNDS LILITH FUND: $5,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetNana Grants Inc: $5,000 over 1y, 1.5% of budgetThe Weekend of Chamber Music Inc: $4,000 over 1y, 6.6% of budgetKARAM FOUNDATION: $3,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetClinic Access Support Network: $3,000 over 1y, 0.8% of budgetTHE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF WOMEN IN THE ARTS: $2,500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetBraver AngelsInc: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetBOCA HELPING HANDS INC: $105 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetMETROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART: $70 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.

  • Who funds The Children's School ↗
  • Who funds University of Miami ↗
  • Who funds THE TRUSTEES OF COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK ↗
  • Who funds BOCA RATON MUSEUM OF ART ↗
  • Who funds JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY ↗
  • Who funds NEW YORK LIVE ARTS INC ↗
  • Who funds SWARTHMORE COLLEGE ↗
  • Who funds ORIGINAL MUSIC WORKSHOP INC ↗
  • Who funds GAUDENZIA INC ↗
  • Who funds THE PARK SCHOOL OF BALTIMORE INC ↗
  • Who funds THE TAKI ALSOP CONDUCTING FELLOWSHIP INC ↗
  • Who funds VILLA MONTESSORI INC ↗
  • Who funds THE CLASSICAL THEATRE OF HARLEM INC ↗
  • Who funds ACCESSIBLE CONTEMPORARY MUSIC ↗
  • Who funds FOOD BANK FOR NEW YORK CITY ↗
  • Who funds THE CAPITAL REGION LITERACY COUNCIL ↗
  • Who funds HARRISBURG COMMUNITY THEATRE THEATRE HARRISBURG ↗
  • Who funds WOODSTOCK DAY SCHOOL ↗
  • Who funds Women for Afghan Women Inc ↗
  • Who funds RAZOM INC ↗
  • Who funds JANE'S DUE PROCESS INC ↗
  • Who funds NATIONAL NETWORK OF ABORTION FUNDS LILITH FUND ↗

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.

Jewish Communal FundThe Bank of America C…National Philanthropi…Morgan Stanley Global…Paypal Charitable Giv…Vanguard Charitable E…American Online Givin…Donor Advised Charita…Fidelity Investments …Amazonsmile Foundation
Jewish Communal FundNY10.5× affinity4 shared granteesties to 9 of 9Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Jewish Communal Fund · The Bank of America Charitable Foundation Inc · National Philanthropic Trust · Morgan Stanley Global Impact Funding Trust Inc · Paypal Charitable Giving Fund · Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program · American Online Giving 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 Grass Family Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Grass Family Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 30%0%1%3%5%funder's share of their income ↑0%5%10%15%20%share of the org’s income from government →median 12%
  • Johns Hopkins University: 12% of income from government
  • University of Miami: 5% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
3get 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 · 0–20%
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 Grass Family Foundation?

Find your warmest path to Grass Family 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 52 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

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