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Herbert Simon Family Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

Herbert Simon Family 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.

$14M
Granted FY2024still arriving
4
Grants FY2024still arriving
2
States reached
$14M
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its fieldRead
04Through PlinthRead

Read this first · the figures below need context

99% of Herbert Simon Family Foundation’s FY2024 grant dollars went to Central Indiana Community Foundation Inc, not to grantees.

Its money now reaches organizations through that sponsor, which does not report who recommended each grant. FY2024 names 0 organizations directly, so a portfolio cannot be read from it.

Organizations named directly on the return

19
’20
0
’21
0
’22
0
’23
0
’24

Amber years are those where most dollars went to a sponsor.

01What it funds
0198% classified

What it funded, over time

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

Philanthropy$54MArts & Culture$1.5MEducation$958kHealth$300kFood & Nutrition$135kHuman Services$100kHousing & Shelter$30kYouth Development$26kOther$0
02FY2024 · 4 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2024

  • $50k–250k3 grants · $150k
  • $250k+1 grant · $14M
$50,000
Median grant
2
States reached
$31M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
CENTRAL INDIANA COMMUNITY FOUNDATION INC$13,548,764
Individual grant recipient$50,000
Individual grant recipient$50,000
Individual grant recipient$50,000
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 (FY20–20, $1k) land where the poverty rate runs at 16%, against an area that typically sits at 12%. 100% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 12%100 BLACK MEN OF INDIANAPOLIS INC: $1k → 16%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
Central Indiana Corporate Partnership Inc

Central indiana corporate partnership (cicp) is an alliance of indiana's business and research university leaders coming together to foster long-term prosperity for the region. cicp's mission is to transform the economy of indiana in order…

Community Improvement
2
University of Indianapolis

The University of Indianapolis champions lifelong learning through relevant and innovative education that fosters experiential learning, diverse perspectives, service for impact, and a global mindset.

Education
3
Indiana University Health Foundation Inc

Indiana university health foundation leverages the power of philanthropy to support the iu health goal of making indiana one of the healthiest states in the nation.

Health
4
University Family Physicians Inc

Engage actively and continuously in medical research, education and training in the practice of medicine in conjunction with the department of family medicine of the indiana university school of medicine and indiana university…

—
5
The Indianapolis Foundation Inc

To mobilize people, ideas, and investments to make this a community where all individuals have equitable opportunity to reach their full potential - no matter place, race or identity.

Community Improvement
6
Indiana University Health West Hospital Inc

Lead the transformation of healthcare through quality, innovation & education, and make Indiana one of the nation's healthiest states.

Health
7
Enroll Indy Inc

Enroll indy helps families choose schools that meet their children's needs by providing a one-stop enrollment process, school information that is relevant and easy to understand, and data to inform school improvement in indianapolis,…

Education
8
Indiana University Health Frankfort Inc

Lead the transformation of healthcare through quality, innovation & education, and make Indiana one of the nation's healthiest states.

Health
9
Indiana University Health Care Associates Inc

To deliver preeminent medical care and service to our patients and communities through outstanding and innovative medical leadership and practice, while participating in and supporting excellence in education and research. We achieve this…

Health
10
Indiana University Health Bedford Inc

Lead the transformation of healthcare through quality, innovation & education, and make Indiana one of the nation's healthiest states.

Health
11
Indiana University Alumni Association Inc

The indiana university alumni association activates and supports the global alumni network- encouraging alumni to grow a lifelong connection with indiana university, and inspiring their ongoing generosity toward each other and the…

—
12
Indiana Institute of Technology Inc

Indiana tech is a private, independent, and non-denominational university. students are prepared for active participation in the complex, global society of the 21st century and are motivated toward a life of significance and worth. about…

Education
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Central Indiana Community Foundation Inc; the most unlike its peers is 100 Black Men of Indianapolis Inc. 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

22 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. 22 of the 43 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.

2
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
3
Early backer (in before they grew)
22/22
Grantees still filing
14/22
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

Central Indiana Community Foundation Inc: $52,812,206 · PhilanthropyCentral Indiana Community Foundation Inc+4 more: $774,000 · PhilanthropyCOMMUNITY KITCHEN INC: $125,000 · OtherJAKKS CARES FOUNDATION: $100,000 · OtherIndividual grant recipient: $50,000 · OtherIndividual grant recipient: $50,000 · OtherIndividual grant recipient: $50,000 · OtherIndividual grant recipient: $50,000 · OtherIndividual grant recipient: $50,000 · OtherIndividual grant recipient: $50,000 · OtherIndividual grant recipient: $50,000 · OtherIndividual grant recipient: $50,000 · OtherIndividual grant recipient: $50,000 · OtherIndividual grant recipient: $50,000 · OtherIndividual grant recipient: $50,000 · OtherIndividual grant recipient: $50,000 · OtherIndividual grant recipient: $50,000 · OtherIndividual grant recipient: $50,000 · OtherIndividual grant recipient: $40,000 · Other+9 more: $121,500 · OtherIndiana University Foundation: $755,000 · EducationBRENTWOOD SCHOOL: $100,000 · Education+2 more: $7,500 · EducationThe Children's Museum of Indianapolis Inc: $650,000 · Arts & CultureKURT VONNEGUT MEMORIAL LIBRARY INC: $100,000 · Arts & Culture+2 more: $15,000 · Arts & CultureEskenazi Health Foundation Inc: $300,000 · HealthAMERICAN FRIENDS OF HEBREW UNIVERSITY INC: $100,000 · InternationalUNITED STATES FUND FOR UNICEF: $12,500 · InternationalBig Green: $10,000 · Food & Nutrition
Philanthropy$53,586,206Other$1,086,500Education$862,500Arts & Culture$765,000Health$300,000International$112,500Food & Nutrition$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 budgetCentral Indiana Community Foundation Inc: $52,812,206 over 5y, 28% of budgetIndiana University Foundation: $755,000 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetThe Children's Museum of Indianapolis Inc: $650,000 over 1y, 2.6% of budgetJewish Federation of Greater Indianapolis Inc: $500,000 over 1y, 5.2% of budgetEskenazi Health Foundation Inc: $300,000 over 1y, 2.3% of budgetCommunity Foundation of Northern Nevada: $250,000 over 1y, 1.9% of budgetCOMMUNITY KITCHEN INC: $125,000 over 1y, 96% of budgetBRENTWOOD SCHOOL: $100,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetAMERICAN FRIENDS OF HEBREW UNIVERSITY INC: $100,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetKURT VONNEGUT MEMORIAL LIBRARY INC: $100,000 over 1y, 13% of budgetWFYI Foundation Inc: $20,000 over 1y, 6.0% of budgetRIGHTFIT INC: $15,000 over 1y, 11% of budgetUNITED STATES FUND FOR UNICEF: $12,500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetNewfields Inc: $10,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetBig Green: $10,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetSimon Youth Foundation Inc: $5,000 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetBIG CAR MEDIA INC: $5,000 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetGIRLS ON THE RUN - SIERRAS: $5,000 over 1y, 2.4% of budgetUNITED WAY INC: $4,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetWILKES UNIVERSITY: $2,500 over 1y, 0.0% of budget100 BLACK MEN OF INDIANAPOLIS INC: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetHUMANE SOCIETY OF INDIANAPOLIS: $500 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.

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.

Lilly Endowment IncDorsey Foundation IncLumina Foundation for…Nicholas H Noyes Jr M…Strada Education Foun…The Indianapolis Foun…Central Indiana Commu…Madeira Fund IncMaurer Family Foundat…Eugene & Marilyn Glic…Griffith Family Found…Hubbard Family Founda…
Lilly Endowment IncIN20.7× affinity8 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Lilly Endowment Inc · Dorsey Foundation Inc · Lumina Foundation for Education Inc · Nicholas H Noyes Jr Memorial Foundation · Strada Education Foundation Inc · The Indianapolis Foundation Inc · Central Indiana Community Foundation Inc · Madeira Fund Inc · Maurer Family Foundation Inc · Eugene & Marilyn Glick Foundation · Griffith Family Foundation Inc · Hubbard Family Foundation Inc

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 Herbert Simon Family Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Herbert Simon Family Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%6%25%56%100%funder's share of their income ↑0%3%5%8%10%share of the org’s income from government →
    no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
    0get 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 · 0–10%
    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 Herbert Simon Family Foundation?

    Find your warmest path to Herbert Simon 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 43 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 Herbert Simon Family’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