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Harvey and Ellen Knell Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

Harvey and Ellen Knell 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.

$585k
Granted FY2024still arriving
62
Grants FY2024still arriving
8
States reached
$150k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
01What it funds
0195% classified

What it funded, over time

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

Arts & Culture$1.9MScience & Tech$1.5MHealth$1.3MPhilanthropy$259kReligion$170kEnvironment$67kHuman Services$52kAnimals$41kOther$0
02FY2024 · 62 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2024

  • Under $10k50 grants · $82k
  • $10k–50k9 grants · $148k
  • $50k–250k3 grants · $355k
$1,500
Median grant
8
States reached
$4.9M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
MUSEIQUE$150,000
JEWISH FEDERATION$105,000
PASADENA PLAYHOUSE$100,000
CENTER THEATRE GROUP$30,000
HUNTINGTON LIBRARY$25,000
CANCER SUPPORT COMMUNITY$22,000
PASADENA JEWISH TEMPLE AND CENTER$15,500
PASADENA HERITAGE$15,000
HEAR NOW MUSIC FESTIVAL$10,000
RONALD REAGAN PRESIDENTIAL FOUNDATION AND INSTITUTE$10,000
AMERICAN FRIENDS OF BEIT ISSIE SHAPERO$10,000
ARMORY CENTER FOR THE ARTS$10,000
GREATER LOS ANGELES ZOO ASSOCIATION$8,100
BIRTHRIGHT ISRAEL FOUNDATION$6,000
ADL$5,000
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 (FY18–23, $23k) land where the poverty rate runs at 16%, against an area that typically sits at 9%. 100% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 9%BLUE LIVES MATTER: $72 → 11%FOOTHILL FAMILY: $5k → 14%FOOTHILL FAMILY: $3k → 14%AMERICAN FRIENDS OF BEIT ISSI SHAPIRO: $10k → 17%AMERICAN FRIENDS OF BEIT ISSI SHAPIRO: $2k → 17%UNION STATION FOUNDATION: $2k → 14%UNION STATION HOMELESS SERVICES: $350 → 14%UNION STATION HOMELESS SERVICES: $350 → 14%UNION STATION HOMELESS SERVICES: $350 → 14%GUIDE DOGS FOR THE BLIND: $250 → 14%GUIDE DOGS FOR THE BLIND: $250 → 14%PASADENA SENIOR CENTER: $100 → 14%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

VT
MN
IL
NY
MA
OR
IN
OH
PA
NJ
CT
CA
CO
NE
VA
MD
AR
DC
AL
GA
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.

95%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$5.4M · 115 repeat orgs$292k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +51% since the first grant, against +34% for those funded once.

115 repeat relationships: 45 still active in FY2024, 70 since wound down; 15 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

115
77

Total granted

$5.4M
$257k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+51%
+34%

Still filing today

69%
49%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 94% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $35k went to new ones.

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

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

’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24
Arts & CultureEnvironmentInternationalAnimalsHealthHuman ServicesOther
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

  • AC
    AMERICAN COMMITTEE FOR THE WEIZMANN INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE INC
    3× · 2018–2023 · $715k · revenue +187%
  • M
    MuseIque
    8× · 2017–2024 · $625k · revenue +58%
  • TP
    THE PASADENA PLAYHOUSE STATE THEATRE OF CALIFORNIA INC
    6× · 2017–2024 · $282k · revenue +129%

Funded once

  • IG
    Individual grant recipient
    one grant, 2022 · $155k
  • TC
    THE CALTECH Ygraduated
    one grant, 2020 · $10k · revenue +42%
  • PH
    Pasadena Hospital Association Ltd
    one grant, 2020 · $10k · revenue +17%
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
Conservation International Foundation

Ci works to spotlight and secure the critical benefits that nature provides to humanity.

Environment
2
The Union of Concerned Scientists Inc

The union of concerned scientists puts rigorous, independent science into action, developing solutions and advocating for a healthy, safe, and just future.

International
3
Asociacion Interamericana Para La Defensa Del Ambiente

To strenghten people's ability to guarantee their individual and collective right to a healthy environment, via the development, implementation, and effective enforcement of national and international law.

Crime & Legal
4
American Humane Association

Founded in 1877, american humane association, dba american humane society (american humane) is committed to ensuring the safety, welfare and well-being of animals. our leadership programs are first to serve in promoting and nurturing the…

Animals
5
Friends of the Earth

Friends of the earth strives for a more healthy and just world by defendng the environment and human health while advancing social and economic justice by conducting research and education, transforming the economy so it protects the…

Environment
6
American Museum of Natural History

The museum's mission statement is: "to discover, interpret, and disseminate - through scientific research and education - knowledge about human cultures, the natural world, and the universe."

Arts & Culture
7
Project Drawdown

Project drawdown's mission is to drive meaningful climate action by advancing science-based solutions and strategies. project drawdown's work is focused on three pillars: science - advancing science-based climate solutions and strategies;…

Education
8
American Association for the Advancement of Science

Advance science, engineering, and innovation throughout the world for the benefit of all. the world's largest multidisciplinary scientific society and a leading publisher of cutting-edge research through its science family of journals,…

Science & Tech
9
Rainforest Trust

Rainforest trust saves endangered wildlife and protects our planet by creating rainforest reserves through partnerships, community engagement, and donor support.

International
10
World Animal Protection

World animal protection is a global organization working to end factory farming and wildlife exploitation. we expose cruel systems, promote animal-friendly alternatives, and influence policy change. for over 75 years, we've been rewriting…

Animals
11
Los Angeles World Affairs Council and Town Hall

The organization is a non-partisan, membership based speakers' forum that connects business leaders, community members, and engaged individuals with shared interest in local, national, and global affairs. it provides an open and accessible…

International
12
Los Angeles Conservancy

The los angeles conservancy is a nonprofit membership organization that works through education and advocacy to recognize, preserve, and revitalize the historic architectural and cultural resources of los angeles county.

Arts & Culture
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History Foundation; the most unlike its peers is BNai Simcha Jewish Community Preschool. 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

135 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. 135 of the 210 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)
25
Early backer (in before they grew)
132/135
Grantees still filing
105/135
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

CANCER SUPPORT COMMUNITY: $1,153,224 · OtherCANCER SUPPORT COMMUNITYWEIZMANN INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE: $825,000 · OtherWEIZMANN INSTITUTE OF SCIENCEJEWISH FEDERATION: $194,000 · OtherJEWISH FEDERATIONIndividual grant recipient: $155,000 · OtherPASADENA JEWISH TEMPLE AND CENTER: $122,622 · Other+118 more: $515,351 · Other+118 moreMuseIque: $625,100 · Arts & CultureMuseIqueTHE PASADENA PLAYHOUSE STATE THEATRE OF CALIFORNIA INC: $282,175 · Arts & CultureTHE PASADENA PLAYHOUSE STATE THEATR…Pasadena Conservatory of Music: $280,250 · Arts & CulturePasadena Conservatory of MusicHENRY E HUNTINGTON LIBRARY AND ART GALLERY: $177,030 · Arts & CultureHENRY E HUNTINGTON LIBRARY AND ART …CENTER THEATRE GROUP OF LOS ANGELES: $113,940 · Arts & CultureCENTER THEATRE GROUP OF LOS ANGELESPASADENA HERITAGE: $93,993 · Arts & CultureARMORY CENTER FOR THE ARTS: $69,750 · Arts & CultureHEAR NOW MUSIC FESTIVAL: $63,000 · Arts & Culture+19 more: $117,189 · Arts & Culture+19 moreAMERICAN COMMITTEE FOR THE WEIZMANN INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE INC: $714,906 · InternationalAMERICAN COMMI…+13 more: $17,620 · InternationalPasadena Child Development Associates Inc doing business as PCDA: $83,540 · Youth DevelopmentBoys & Girls Club of Greater Conejo Valley Inc: $5,000 · Youth DevelopmentWORLD WILDLIFE FUND INC: $27,690 · EnvironmentLOS ANGELES ARBORETUM FOUNDATION INC: $14,100 · EnvironmentTREEPEOPLE INC: $6,280 · EnvironmentENVIRONMENTAL DEFENSE FUND INCORPORATED: $1,850 · Environment+11 more: $5,360 · EnvironmentTHE RONALD REAGAN PRESIDENTIAL FOUNDATION AND INSTITUTE: $28,000 · EducationTHE CALTECH Y: $10,000 · EducationBNai Simcha Jewish Community Preschool: $4,500 · EducationFAMILIES FORWARD LEARNING CENTER: $4,200 · EducationJEWISH WORLD WATCH: $2,300 · Education+2 more: $2,585 · EducationAFRICAN WILDLIFE FOUNDATION INC: $20,000 · AnimalsGREATER LOS ANGELES ZOOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION: $8,100 · AnimalsNATIONAL WILDLIFE FEDERATION: $5,025 · Animals+9 more: $3,415 · Animals
Other$2,965,197Arts & Culture$1,822,427International$732,526Youth Development$88,540Environment$55,280Education$51,585Animals$36,540

Showing the 200 largest grantees by grant value.

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 budgetAMERICAN COMMITTEE FOR THE WEIZMANN INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE INC: $714,906 over 3y, 0.5% of budgetMuseIque: $625,100 over 8y, 4.6% of budgetTHE PASADENA PLAYHOUSE STATE THEATRE OF CALIFORNIA INC: $282,175 over 6y, 1.0% of budgetPasadena Conservatory of Music: $280,250 over 8y, 4.9% of budgetHENRY E HUNTINGTON LIBRARY AND ART GALLERY: $177,030 over 8y, 0.1% of budgetCENTER THEATRE GROUP OF LOS ANGELES: $113,940 over 7y, 0.1% of budgetPASADENA HERITAGE: $93,993 over 7y, 2.3% of budgetPasadena Child Development Associates Inc doing business as PCDA: $83,540 over 5y, 0.5% of budgetARMORY CENTER FOR THE ARTS: $69,750 over 5y, 1.1% of budgetHEAR NOW MUSIC FESTIVAL: $63,000 over 7y, 11% of budgetFULCRUM ARTS: $52,500 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetTHE RONALD REAGAN PRESIDENTIAL FOUNDATION AND INSTITUTE: $28,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetWORLD WILDLIFE FUND INC: $27,690 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetFAMILIES FORWARD: $27,000 over 7y, 0.1% of budgetTHE LOS ANGELES CHAMBER ORCHESTRA SOCIETY INC: $26,870 over 4y, 0.2% of budgetAFRICAN WILDLIFE FOUNDATION INC: $20,000 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetSIERRA MADRE PLAYHOUSE: $16,859 over 7y, 2.4% of budgetPASADENA ART ALLIANCE: $16,100 over 4y, 1.6% of budgetLOS ANGELES ARBORETUM FOUNDATION INC: $14,100 over 2y, 0.2% of budgetSIMON WIESENTHAL CENTER INC: $12,000 over 7y, 0.0% of budgetAMERICAN FRIENDS OF BEIT ISSIE SHAPIRO INC: $11,800 over 2y, 0.5% of budgetWORLD JEWISH CONGRESS (AMERICAN SECTION) INC: $10,500 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetSharsheret Inc: $10,460 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetTHE CALTECH Y: $10,000 over 1y, 1.2% of budgetPasadena Hospital Association Ltd: $10,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTHE THEATRE AT BOSTON COURT: $9,500 over 2y, 0.6% of budgetSKIRBALL CULTURAL CENTER: $9,375 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetPasadena Showcase House For The Arts: $8,230 over 5y, 0.3% of budgetGREATER LOS ANGELES ZOOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION: $8,100 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTHE TOLEDO MUSEUM OF ART: $7,500 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetFoothill Family Service: $7,500 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetPASADENA EDUCATIONAL FOUNDATION: $6,500 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetTHE NATURE CONSERVANCY: $6,400 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetTREEPEOPLE INC: $6,280 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetBIRTHRIGHT ISRAEL FOUNDATION: $6,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetHILLEL THE FOUNDATION FOR JEWISH CAMPUS LIFE: $5,500 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetGO2 For Lung Cancer: $5,500 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetNATIONAL WILDLIFE FEDERATION: $5,025 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetINNOVATE PASADENA: $5,000 over 1y, 2.3% of budgetBoys & Girls Club of Greater Conejo Valley Inc: $5,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetFriends of the Castle Green: $5,000 over 1y, 4.5% of budgetBNai Simcha Jewish Community Preschool: $4,500 over 2y, 0.4% of budgetFAMILIES FORWARD LEARNING CENTER: $4,200 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetUNION STATION HOMELESS SERVICES: $3,310 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetPasadena Community Foundation: $2,800 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetAMERICAN FRIENDS OF MAGEN DAVID ADOM: $2,775 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetTHE GAMBLE HOUSE CONSERVANCY: $2,500 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetPASADENA HISTORICAL MUSEUM INC: $2,500 over 2y, 0.1% 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 AMERICAN COMMITTEE FOR THE WEIZMANN INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE INC ↗
  • Who funds MuseIque ↗
  • Who funds THE PASADENA PLAYHOUSE STATE THEATRE OF CALIFORNIA INC ↗
  • Who funds Pasadena Conservatory of Music ↗
  • Who funds HENRY E HUNTINGTON LIBRARY AND ART GALLERY ↗
  • Who funds CENTER THEATRE GROUP OF LOS ANGELES ↗
  • Who funds PASADENA HERITAGE ↗
  • Who funds Pasadena Child Development Associates Inc doing business as PCDA ↗
  • Who funds ARMORY CENTER FOR THE ARTS ↗
  • Who funds HEAR NOW MUSIC FESTIVAL ↗
  • Who funds FULCRUM ARTS ↗
  • Who funds THE RONALD REAGAN PRESIDENTIAL FOUNDATION AND INSTITUTE ↗
  • Who funds WORLD WILDLIFE FUND INC ↗
  • Who funds FAMILIES FORWARD ↗
  • Who funds THE LOS ANGELES CHAMBER ORCHESTRA SOCIETY INC ↗
  • Who funds AFRICAN WILDLIFE FOUNDATION INC ↗
  • Who funds SIERRA MADRE PLAYHOUSE ↗
  • Who funds PASADENA ART ALLIANCE ↗
  • Who funds LOS ANGELES ARBORETUM FOUNDATION INC ↗
  • Who funds SIMON WIESENTHAL CENTER INC ↗
  • Who funds AMERICAN FRIENDS OF BEIT ISSIE SHAPIRO INC ↗
  • Who funds WORLD JEWISH CONGRESS (AMERICAN SECTION) INC ↗
  • Who funds Sharsheret Inc ↗
  • Who funds THE CALTECH Y ↗
  • Who funds Pasadena Hospital Association Ltd ↗

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.

Pasadena Community Fo…California Community …The Ahmanson Foundati…The Ralph M Parsons F…Ann Peppers FoundationPasadena Showcase Hou…The Green FoundationThe Rose Hills Founda…Pasadena Tournament o…Gail G Ellis Foundati…Jerry & Terri Kohl Fa…Perenchio Foundation
Pasadena Community FoundationCA52.9× affinity24 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Pasadena Community Foundation · California Community Foundation · The Ahmanson Foundation · The Ralph M Parsons Foundation · Ann Peppers Foundation · Pasadena Showcase House For The Arts · The Green Foundation · The Rose Hills Foundation · Pasadena Tournament of Roses Foundation · Gail G Ellis Foundation Inc · Jerry & Terri Kohl Family Foundation · Perenchio 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 Harvey and Ellen Knell Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Harvey and Ellen Knell Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 20%1%4%8%15%funder's share of their income ↑0%25%50%75%100%share of the org’s income from government →median 0%
  • Sharsheret Inc: 4% of income from government
  • Americares Foundation Inc: 0% of income from government
  • Partners in Health a Nonprofit Corporation: 0% of income from government
  • Oxfam-America Inc: 0% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
2get no government money at all
28report 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.

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 210 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 Harvey and Ellen Knell’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