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Ladera Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

Ladera 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.

$1.0M
Granted FY2023
2
Grants FY2023
2
States reached
$1.0M
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 2023.

Education$1.5MPublic Benefit$455kArts & Culture$154kPhilanthropy$134kHealth$84kEnvironment$28kFood & Nutrition$20kAnimals$6kOther$0
02FY2023 · 2 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2023

  • Under $10k1 grant · $510
  • $250k+1 grant · $1.0M
$1,015,000
Median grant
2
States reached
$7.6M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
Individual grant recipient$1,015,000
Individual grant recipient$510
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 (FY18–19, $20k) land where the poverty rate runs at 17%, against an area that typically sits at 10%. 100% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 10%HEALTHNETWORK FOUNDATION: $10k → 17%HEALTHNETWORK FOUNDATION: $10k → 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

AK
ME
WA
NY
MA
OH
CA
VA
MD
AR
DC
AL
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.

64%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$2.1M · 37 repeat orgs$1.2M to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +63% since the first grant, against +27% for those funded once.

37 repeat relationships: 1 still active in FY2023, 36 since wound down; 1 grantees were first funded in FY2023 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

37
27

Total granted

$2.1M
$186k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+63%
+27%

Still filing today

78%
67%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2023, 0% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $1.0M went to new ones.

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

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

’17’18’19’20’21’22’23
EducationArts & CultureEnvironmentHealthAnimalsPublic BenefitOther
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

  • PI
    PIONEER INSTITUTE INC
    5× · 2017–2021 · $467k · revenue +117%
  • IW
    Independent Women's Forum
    2× · 2018–2020 · $450k · revenue +106%
  • MA
    MUSIC ACADEMY OF THE WEST
    2× · 2017–2018 · $110k · revenue +18%

Funded once

  • UO
    UNIVERSITY OF ARKANSAS FOUNDATION INCgraduated
    one grant, 2020 · $50k · revenue +52%
  • UO
    UNIVERSITY OF ARKANSAS MEDICAL CENTER
    one grant, 2019 · $50k
  • SU
    STANFORD UNIVERSITY DEVELOPMENT
    one grant, 2020 · $25k
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
Boston Architectural College

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

—
2
United States Naval Institute

Provide an independent forum for those who dare to read, think, speak, and write to advance the professional, literary, and scientific understanding of sea power and other issues critical to global security.

—
3
Massachusetts Institute of Technology

The mission of mit is to advance knowledge and educate students in science, technology, and other areas of scholarship that will best serve the nation and the world in the 21st century.

Education
4
Rhode Island School of Design

The mission of rhode island school of design, through its college and museum,is to educate its students and the public in the creation and (see schedule o)appreciation of works of art and design, to discover and transmit knowledge and to…

Education
5
President and Trustees of Bates College

Bates is a college of the liberal arts and sciences, and is a coeducational, nonsectarian, residential college with special commitments to academic rigor, and to assuring in all of its efforts the dignity of each individual, and access to…

Education
6
Saint Anselm College

Saint anselm is a catholic, benedictine college providing all of its students a distinctive liberal arts education that incorporates opportunities for professional and career preparation. it does so in a learning community that encourages…

Education
7
Harvard Conservation Trust

To preserve the unique character and natural resources of harvard.

Environment
8
Wentworth Institute of Technology Inc

Wentworth institute of technology is a nationally recognized private coeducational and residential university of higher education with a mission to empower, inspire and innovate through experiential learning with a core purpose of career…

Education
9
Northeast College of Health Sciences

Northeast college of health sciences (the college) is committed to academic excellence, leadership, and professional best practices in the health sciences.

Education
10
Trustees of Dartmouth College

Dartmouth College educates the most promising students and prepares them for a lifetime of learning and of responsible leadership, through a faculty dedicated to teaching and the creation of knowledge.

Education
11
Massachusetts Higher Education Assistance Corporation

The organization's primary exempt purpose is to provide access to and conduct activities in furtherance of higher education.

—
12
University of New Haven

The University of New Haven is a student-centered comprehensive university with an emphasis on excellence in liberal arts and professional education. Our mission is to prepare our students to lead purposeful and fulfilling lives in a…

Education
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is The Heritage Foundation; the most unlike its peers is The Right Turn 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

50 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. 50 of the 67 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)
15
Early backer (in before they grew)
49/50
Grantees still filing
39/50
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

Individual grant recipient: $1,015,000 · OtherIndividual grant recipientIndividual grant recipient: $907,510 · OtherIndividual grant recipient+33 more: $182,085 · Other+33 moreTHE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE LELAND STANFORD JUNIOR UNIVERSITY: $823,458 · EducationTHE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE LELAND S…PIONEER INSTITUTE INC: $467,000 · EducationPIONEER INSTITUTE INCUNIVERSITY OF ARKANSAS FOUNDATION INC: $50,000 · Education+13 more: $80,100 · Education+13 moreIndependent Women's Forum: $450,000 · Civil RightsIndependent…MUSIC ACADEMY OF THE WEST: $110,000 · Arts & CultureOld Dartmouth Historical Society: $13,000 · Arts & CultureZEITERION THEATRE INC: $5,000 · Arts & CultureFOUNDATION FOR CULTURAL REVIEW: $5,000 · Arts & Culture+3 more: $1,800 · Arts & CultureFIDELITY INVESTMENTS CHARITABLE GIFT FUND: $129,242 · Community Improvement+1 more: $850 · Community ImprovementSONOMA LAND TRUST: $10,000 · EnvironmentNAPA COUNTY LAND TRUST: $10,000 · EnvironmentChannel Islands Restoration: $4,000 · Environment+2 more: $1,250 · EnvironmentCALIFORNIA AGRICULTURAL LEADERSHIP FOUND: $20,000 · Food & Nutrition
Other$2,104,595Education$1,420,558Civil Rights$450,000Arts & Culture$134,800Community Improvement$130,092Environment$25,250Food & Nutrition$20,000

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 BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE LELAND STANFORD JUNIOR UNIVERSITY: $823,458 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetPIONEER INSTITUTE INC: $467,000 over 5y, 6.6% of budgetIndependent Women's Forum: $450,000 over 2y, 6.2% of budgetFIDELITY INVESTMENTS CHARITABLE GIFT FUND: $129,242 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetMUSIC ACADEMY OF THE WEST: $110,000 over 2y, 0.7% of budgetUNIVERSITY OF ARKANSAS FOUNDATION INC: $50,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetST LAWRENCE UNIVERSITY: $30,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetCALIFORNIA AGRICULTURAL LEADERSHIP FOUND: $20,000 over 2y, 0.6% of budgetHEALTHNETWORK FOUNDATION FKA HEALTH NET FOUNDATION INC: $20,000 over 2y, 0.2% of budgetHANDS ACROSS THE SEA INC: $17,500 over 2y, 2.0% of budgetTHE INTERNATIONAL MUSEUM OF WORLD WAR II INC: $15,000 over 1y, 2.1% of budgetOld Dartmouth Historical Society: $13,000 over 2y, 0.2% of budgetALMA DEL MAR FOUNDATION INC: $10,000 over 2y, 0.3% of budgetSONOMA LAND TRUST: $10,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetNAPA COUNTY LAND TRUST: $10,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetTRUSTEES OF PHILLIPS ACADEMY: $10,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetOJAI VALLEY SCHOOL: $6,500 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetMIDLAND SCHOOL CORPORATION: $6,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetZEITERION THEATRE INC: $5,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetMONICA ROS SCHOOL INC: $5,000 over 2y, 0.2% of budgetHumane Society of Napa County & SPCA INC: $5,000 over 2y, 0.2% of budgetThe Mustique Charitable Foundation: $5,000 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetChannel Islands Restoration: $4,000 over 2y, 0.2% of budgetHarvey Mudd College: $4,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetTENACITY INC: $3,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetSANTA CATALINA SCHOOL: $3,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetTHE HERITAGE FOUNDATION: $3,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetSTUDENTS FOR LIBERTY INC: $3,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetENGENDERHEALTH INC: $2,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetOUR SISTERS SCHOOL: $2,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetCATO INSTITUTE: $2,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetArt Museum New Bedford Inc: $1,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetHumane World for Animals Inc: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetDARTMOUTH NATURAL RESOURCES TRUST INC: $750 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetAMERICAN KIDNEY FUND INC: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetLIGHT BOSTON INC: $500 over 2y, 1.6% of budgetProject Ride Inc: $400 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetROTCH-JONES-DUFF HOUSE AND GARDEN MUSEUM INC: $300 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetEVANGELISM ALIVE INTERNATIONAL INC: $200 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetRB FOUNDATION INC: $200 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetCENTER FOR HEARING AND COMMUNICATION: $200 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetMARINE CORPS SCHOLARSHIP FOUNDATION INC: $200 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCYSTIC FIBROSIS FOUNDATION: $200 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetBERWICK ACADEMY: $200 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.

Boston Foundation IncSouthcoast Community …Highland Street Conne…Santa Barbara Foundat…Bny Mellon Charitable…Greater HorizonsCalifornia Community …The Ayco Charitable F…Vanguard Charitable E…National Philanthropi…American Endowment Fo…Morgan Stanley Global…
Boston Foundation IncMA21.2× affinity10 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Boston Foundation Inc · Southcoast Community Foundation Inc · Highland Street Connection and Subsidiaries · Santa Barbara Foundation · Bny Mellon Charitable Gift Fund · Greater Horizons · California Community Foundation · The Ayco Charitable Foundation · Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program · National Philanthropic Trust · American Endowment Foundation · Morgan Stanley Global Impact Funding Trust 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 Ladera Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Ladera Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 110%1%3%6%10%funder's share of their income ↑0%23%45%68%90%share of the org’s income from government →median 2%
  • Buzzards Bay Coalition: 37% of income from government
  • Zeiterion Theatre Inc: 4% of income from government
  • Old Dartmouth Historical Society: 2% of income from government
  • Rotch-Jones-Duff House and Garden Museum Inc: 1% of income from government
  • Our Sisters School: 0% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
11get no government money at all
7report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
0rely on government for over half their income
⤢ axis zoomed · 0–90%
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 Ladera Foundation?

Find your warmest path to Ladera 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 67 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 2023, released 2023. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

Possibly out of date. A more recent filing (FY2024) is on record and reports no grant expense, so the figures above are from FY2023, the most recent year this funder made grants.

Source object · view filing

Play a game based on Ladera’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