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Knight Aid Fund at a glance

· Private foundation

Knight Aid Fund

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.

$455k
Granted FY2025still arriving
2
Grants FY2025still arriving
1
States reached
$418k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
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.

International$26kHealth$21kCrime & Legal$16kEnvironment$15kFood & Nutrition$13kAnimals$9kScience & Tech$9kCivil Rights$5kOther$0
02FY2025 · 2 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2025

  • $10k–50k1 grant · $37k
  • $250k+1 grant · $418k
$417,827
Median grant
1
States reached
$0
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
VANGUARD DONOR ADVISED FUND$417,827
VANGUARD DONOR ADVISED FUND$37,057
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:

Dollar for dollar, its grants (FY17–25) land where the poverty rate runs at 9%, against an area that typically sits at 11%. 10% of its dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Its grants skew toward lower-need ZIPs.

area typical 11%TUCSON COMMUNITY FOOD BANK: $1k → 15%PARTNERS IN HEALTH: $2k → 16%NATIONAL CENTER FOR SCIENCE EDUCATI: $1k → 10%PANCAN: $2k → 14%PLAN C: $2k → 14%EQUAL JUSTICE INITIATIVE: $1k → 18%WILDWOOD FARM SANCTUARY: $1k → 11%UNITE OREGON: $1k → 12%VANGUARD DONOR ADVISED FUND: $418k → 8%TUCSON COMMUNITY FOOD BANK: $1k → 15%PARTNERS IN HEALTH: $2k → 16%NATIONAL CENTER FOR SCIENCE EDUCATI: $1k → 10%PANCAN: $2k → 14%LAMBDA LEGAL: $1k → 17%OXFAM: $2k → 14%UNITE OREGON: $1k → 12%VANGUARD DONOR ADVISED FUND: $37k → 8%NATIONAL CENTER FOR SCIENCE EDUCATI: $1k → 10%PANCAN: $2k → 14%UNITE OREGON: $1k → 12%PANCAN: $2k → 14%UNITE OREGON: $1k → 12%PANCAN: $1k → 14%LAWYERS FOR GOOD GOVERNMENT: $3k → 14%PORTLAND STREET MEDICINE: $3k → 12%VIOLENCE POLICY CENTER: $3k → 14%PORTLAND STREET MEDICINE: $2k → 12%VIOLENCE POLICY CENTER: $3k → 14%VIOLENCE POLICY CENTER: $3k → 14%VIOLENCE POLICY CENTER: $2k → 14%VIOLENCE POLICY CENTER: $1k → 14%VIOLENCE POLICY CENTER: $1k → 14%UNION OF CONCERNED SCIENTISTS: $2k → 14%VIOLENCE POLICY CENTER: $1k → 14%FEEDING AMERICA SAN DIEGO: $2k → 11%UNION OF CONCERNED SCIENTISTS: $1k → 14%FEEDING AMERICA SAN DIEGO: $2k → 11%HUMANE SOCIETY OF SAN DIEGO: $2k → 11%HUMANE SOCIETY OF SAN DIEGO: $1k → 11%PLANNED PARENTHOOD: $2k → 11%PLANNED PARENTHOOD: $2k → 11%NATURE CULTURE INTL: $4k → 11%NATURE CULTURE INTL: $3k → 11%NATURE CULTURE INTL: $3k → 11%NATURE CULTURE INTL: $3k → 11%INTL RESCUE COMMITTEE: $2k → 11%INTL RESCUE COMMITTEE: $2k → 11%INTL RESCUE COMMITTEE: $2k → 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.

Which US states its grants reach

NY
MA
OR
CA
VA
MD
AZ
DC
AL
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.

21%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$122k · 25 repeat orgs$468k to everyone else

25 repeat relationships: 0 still active in FY2025, 25 since wound down; 1 grantees were first funded in FY2025 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

25
16

Total granted

$122k
$13k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+38%
+103%

Still filing today

32%
38%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2025, 0% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $455k 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
HealthInternationalAnimalsCivil RightsCrime & LegalArts & CultureOther
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

  • VP
    VIOLENCE POLICY CENTER
    8× · 2017–2024 · $15k · revenue +14%
  • MEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES USA INC
    7× · 2017–2023 · $10k · revenue +98%
  • PANCREATIC CANCER ACTION NETWORK INC
    5× · 2017–2021 · $8k · revenue +24%

Funded once

  • LAWYERS FOR GOOD GOVERNMENT INC
    one grant, 2024 · $3k · revenue 0%
  • PC
    PLAN C
    one grant, 2024 · $2k
  • IG
    Individual grant recipient
    one grant, 2017 · $1k
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
Guttmacher Institute Inc

The institute is a leading research and policy organization committed to advancing sexual and reproductive health and rights in the united states and globally.

—
2
Washington Office On Latin America

To advance human rights and social justice in the americas.

International
3
Conservation International Foundation

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

Environment
4
World Wildlife Fund Inc

Wwf's mission is to conserve nature and reduce the most pressing threats to the diversity of life on earth. (continued on schedule o)

Environment
5
The International Institute On Race Equality and Human Rights

The international institute on race, equality and human rights contributes to the promotion and defense of human rights, through training, technical assistance, advocacy, and strategic litigation conducted at the regional and international…

International
6
University of Miami

See Form 990, Part I, Line 1, Description of Organization Mission.

Education
7
National Geographic Society

To increase and diffuse geographic knowledge in the broadest sense, using the power of science, exploration, education and storytelling to illuminate and protect the wonder of the world.

Education
8
International Bridges to Justice

In recognition of the fundamental principles of the universal declaration of human rights, international bridges to justice (ibj) is dedicated to protecting the basic legal rights of ordinary citizens in developing countries. specifically,…

Crime & Legal
9
Civil Liberties Defense Center

CIVIL LIBERTIES DEFENSE CENTER (CLDC) educates the general public about their rights and privileges under the US Constitution and provides free legal support to climate and social justice activists.

Civil Rights
10
Defenders of Wildlife

Defenders of Wildlife is a national, nonprofit membership organization dedicated to the protection of all native animals and plants in their natural communities.

Animals
11
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
12
The International Dark-Sky Association Inc

Darksky international restores the nighttime environment and protects communities from the harmful effects of light pollution through outreach, advocacy, and conservation.

—
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Equal Justice Initiative; the most unlike its peers is Partners in Health a Nonprofit Corporation. 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

15 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. 15 of the 42 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)
4
Early backer (in before they grew)
14/15
Grantees still filing
11/15
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

VANGUARD DONOR ADVISED FUND: $454,884 · OtherVANGUARD DONOR ADVISED FUND+31 more: $78,181 · Other+31 morePANCREATIC CANCER ACTION NETWORK INC: $8,385 · HealthPORTLAND STREET MEDICINE: $5,500 · HealthPARTNERS IN HEALTH A NONPROFIT CORPORATION: $4,000 · HealthMEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES USA INC: $9,500 · InternationalInternational Rescue Committee INC: $6,500 · InternationalVIOLENCE POLICY CENTER: $15,000 · Crime & LegalLAWYERS FOR GOOD GOVERNMENT INC: $3,000 · Community ImprovementNational Center for Science Education: $3,000 · Science & TechCENTER FOR BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY INC: $1,000 · AnimalsWILDWOOD FARM SANCTUARY & PRESERVE: $1,000 · Animals
Other$533,065Health$17,885International$16,000Crime & Legal$15,000Community Improvement$3,000Science & Tech$3,000Animals$2,000

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 budgetVIOLENCE POLICY CENTER: $15,000 over 8y, 0.2% of budgetMEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES USA INC: $9,500 over 7y, 0.0% of budgetPANCREATIC CANCER ACTION NETWORK INC: $8,385 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetInternational Rescue Committee INC: $6,500 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetPORTLAND STREET MEDICINE: $5,500 over 3y, 0.2% of budgetPARTNERS IN HEALTH A NONPROFIT CORPORATION: $4,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetLAWYERS FOR GOOD GOVERNMENT INC: $3,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetNational Center for Science Education: $3,000 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetCENTER FOR BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY INC: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetLAMBDA LEGAL DEFENSE & EDUCATION FUND INC: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetWILDWOOD FARM SANCTUARY & PRESERVE: $1,000 over 1y, 1.2% of budgetEQUAL JUSTICE INITIATIVE: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetOCEANSIDE MUSEUM OF ART: $741 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetLUX ART INSTITUTE: $645 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetQUAIL BOTANICAL GARDENS FOUNDATION: $300 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 VIOLENCE POLICY CENTER ↗
  • Who funds MEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES USA INC ↗
  • Who funds PANCREATIC CANCER ACTION NETWORK INC ↗
  • Who funds International Rescue Committee INC ↗
  • Who funds PORTLAND STREET MEDICINE ↗
  • Who funds PARTNERS IN HEALTH A NONPROFIT CORPORATION ↗
  • Who funds LAWYERS FOR GOOD GOVERNMENT INC ↗
  • Who funds National Center for Science Education ↗
  • Who funds CENTER FOR BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY INC ↗
  • Who funds LAMBDA LEGAL DEFENSE & EDUCATION FUND INC ↗
  • Who funds WILDWOOD FARM SANCTUARY & PRESERVE ↗
  • Who funds EQUAL JUSTICE INITIATIVE ↗
  • Who funds OCEANSIDE MUSEUM OF ART ↗
  • Who funds LUX ART INSTITUTE ↗
  • Who funds QUAIL BOTANICAL GARDENS FOUNDATION ↗

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 San Diego Foundat…National Philanthropi…Vanguard Charitable E…Donor Advised Charita…American Online Givin…Fidelity Investments …Amazonsmile Foundation
The San Diego FoundationCA13.1× affinity4 shared granteesties to 6 of 6Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: The San Diego Foundation · National Philanthropic Trust · Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program · Donor Advised Charitable Giving Inc · American Online Giving Foundation 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 Knight Aid Fund funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Knight Aid Fund. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 10%0%1%3%5%funder's share of their income ↑0%10%20%30%40%share of the org’s income from government →median 32%
  • Portland Street Medicine: 32% of income from government
  • Partners in Health a Nonprofit Corporation: 0% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
1get no government money at all
1report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
0rely on government for over half their income
⤢ axis zoomed · 0–40%
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 42 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

Play a game based on Knight Aid’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