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Leonard J & Ethel H Smith Charitable Foundation Inc at a glance

· Private foundation

Leonard J & Ethel H Smith Charitable Foundation Inc

Its FY2024 filing reports that it accepted unsolicited grant applications.

$28k
Granted FY2024still arriving
1
Grants FY2024still arriving
1
States reached
$28k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
01What it funds
0190% classified

What it funded, over time

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

Science & Tech$110kArts & Culture$63kEducation$34kPhilanthropy$33kReligion$20kHealth$18kHousing & Shelter$15kPublic Safety & Disaster$5kOther$0
02FY2024 · 1 grant

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

$28,000
Median grant
1
States reached
$548k
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
VARIOUS CHARITIES APPROVED BY THE BOARD$28,000
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:

Dollar for dollar, its grants (FY17–24) land where the poverty rate runs at 14%, against an area that typically sits at 11%. 98% of its dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 11%SMITH COLLEGE: $4k → 12%TIERRA DEL SOL: $25k → 14%LEUKEMIA & LYMPHOMA SOCIETY: $2k → 9%SHADOWLAND THEATER: $3k → 16%NASHVILLE PUBLIC LIBRARY FOUNDATION: $2k → 14%TIERRA DEL SOL: $20k → 14%SHADOWLAND THEATER: $2k → 16%WILDWOOD: $10k → 14%SHADOWLAND THEATER: $2k → 16%WILDWOOD SCHOOL: $8k → 14%SHADOWLAND THEATER: $2k → 16%WILDWOOD SCHOOL: $8k → 14%SHADOWLAND THEATER: $2k → 16%WILDWOOD: $5k → 14%WILDWOOD SCHOOL: $5k → 14%VARIOUS CHARITIES APPROVED BY THE BOARD: $28k → 14%WALK BIKE NASHVILLE: $3k → 14%PARKINSONS COMMUNITY LA: $25k → 14%WALK BIKE NASHVILLE: $2k → 14%PARKINSONS COMMUNITY LA: $25k → 14%THE TEMPLE: $4k → 14%PARKINSONS COMMUNITY LA: $25k → 14%THE TEMPLE: $4k → 14%PARKINSONS COMMUNITY LA: $20k → 14%STAND UP 2 CANCER: $3k → 17%GORDON JCC: $3k → 14%PARKINSONS COMMUNITY LA: $15k → 14%THE TEMPLE: $3k → 14%TEMPLE SHALOM: $3k → 14%GORDON JCC: $2k → 14%GORDON JCC: $2k → 14%COUNTRY MUSIC HALL OF FAME: $5k → 14%PLANNED PARENTHOOD OF MIDDLE TN: $5k → 14%COUNTRY MUSIC HALL OF FAME: $5k → 14%FIRST ART MUSEUM: $4k → 14%COUNTRY MUSIC HALL OF FAME: $4k → 14%FIRST CENTER FOR THE ARTS: $3k → 14%COUNTRY MUSIC HALL OF FAME: $3k → 14%FIRST ART MUSEUM: $3k → 14%NASHVILLE PUBLIC RADIO: $2k → 14%COUNTRY MUSIC HALL OF FAME: $3k → 14%FIRST CENTER FOR THE ARTS: $3k → 14%GREENWAYS FOR NASHVILLE: $2k → 14%NASHVILLE SYMPHONY: $5k → 14%NASHVILLE SYMPHONY: $4k → 14%NASHVILLE SYMPHONY: $4k → 14%NASHVILLE SYMPHONY: $3k → 14%NASHVILLE SYMPHONY: $3k → 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

NY
MA
NJ
CT
CA
VA
MD
TN
TX
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.

88%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$319k · 30 repeat orgs$42k to everyone else

30 repeat relationships: 0 still active in FY2024, 30 since wound down; 1 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

30
10

Total granted

$319k
$14k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+37%
+117%

Still filing today

57%
40%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 0% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $28k went to new ones.

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

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

’17’18’19’20’21’24
EducationArts & CultureHealthPublic Safety & DisasterPhilanthropyAnimalsOther
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

  • WS
    WILDWOOD SCHOOL INC
    3× · 2019–2021 · $20k · revenue +39%
  • CM
    COUNTRY MUSIC FOUNDATION INC
    5× · 2017–2021 · $19k · revenue +98%
  • NS
    Nashville Symphony Association
    5× · 2017–2021 · $19k · revenue +29%

Funded once

  • PP
    PLANNED PARENTHOOD OF MIDDLE TN
    one grant, 2020 · $5k
  • SU
    STAND UP 2 CANCER
    one grant, 2021 · $3k
  • TF
    THISTLE FARMS INCgraduated
    one grant, 2020 · $1k · revenue +117%
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
National Public Radio Inc

National public radio, inc. ("npr") works collaboratively with member public radio station licensees ("member stations") to create a more informed public, one that is challenged and invigorated by a deeper understanding and appreciation of…

Arts & Culture
2
Npr Foundation

The npr foundation ("foundation") is organized and operated exclusively for the benefit of its sole supported organization, national public radio, inc. ("npr inc."). the foundation supports npr inc. through various activities such as…

—
3
Furman University

The primary mission of furman as a liberal arts institution is to provide a distinctive education in fine arts, humanities, social sciences, mathematics and the sciences, as well as selected professional disciplines.

Education
4
Vanderbilt University

See Disclosure Above.

Education
5
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.

—
6
Federation of State Medical Boards of the United States Inc

The fsmb serves as the voice for state medical boards, supporting them through education, assessment, research and advocacy while providing services and initiatives that promote patient safety, quality health care and regulatory best…

Health
7
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
8
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
9
National Association of College and University Attorneys

To advance the practice of higher education attorneys for the benefit of the institutions they serve.

—
10
Eastern National

Eastern national promotes the public's understanding and support of america's national parks and other public trust partners by providing quality educational experiences, products and services.

Recreation & Sports
11
United States Telecom Association

See schedule oustelecom exists to ensure members can compete, grow and thrive to build a world where families, enterprises and communities are connected through the power of broadband.our member companies have committed a considerable…

—
12
Jewelers of America Inc

Jewelers of america, the most trusted and influential voice of the jewelry industry, empowers and unites its members through expert guidance and advocacy, driving excellence, integrity, and success in an ever-changing marketplace.

—
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee Inc; the most unlike its peers is Rock Hill Volunteer Ambulance Corp. 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

23 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. 23 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.

0
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
5
Early backer (in before they grew)
23/23
Grantees still filing
21/23
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

Individual grant recipient: $110,000 · OtherIndividual grant recipientIndividual grant recipient: $45,000 · OtherIndividual grant recipientVARIOUS CHARITIES APPROVED BY THE BOARD: $28,000 · OtherVARIOUS CHARITIES APPROVED BY THE BOARDWILDWOOD: $15,000 · OtherWILDWOODTHE TEMPLE: $11,650 · OtherSHADOWLAND THEATER: $9,000 · Other+19 more: $47,065 · Other+19 moreCOUNTRY MUSIC FOUNDATION INC: $19,150 · Arts & CultureCOUNTRY MUSIC …Nashville Symphony Association: $18,500 · Arts & CultureNashville Symp…FRIST ART MUSEUM: $6,900 · Arts & CultureFRIST ART MUSE…NASHVILLE PUBLIC RADIO: $2,550 · Arts & CultureNASHVILLE PUBL…WILDWOOD SCHOOL INC: $20,000 · EducationWILDWOOD …THE TRUSTEES OF THE SMITH COLLEGE: $4,800 · EducationTHE TRUST…NASHVILLE PUBLIC LIBRARY FOUNDATION: $3,275 · EducationNASHVILLE…RUTGERS PREPARATORY SCHOOL: $1,200 · Education+1 more: $1,000 · EducationSTAND UP TO CANCER: $5,100 · PhilanthropyJEWISH FEDERATION OF NASHVILLE AND MIDDLE TENNESSEE: $2,750 · PhilanthropyTHE COMMUNITY FOUNDATION OF MIDDLE TENNESSEE INC: $1,000 · PhilanthropyWALK BIKE NASHVILLE INC: $4,000 · Public Safety & DisasterTHE BREAST CANCER RESEARCH FOUNDATION INC: $1,200 · Public Safety & DisasterBLOOD CANCER UNITED INC: $3,000 · HealthAmerican Heart Association Inc: $900 · HealthROCK HILL VOLUNTEER AMBULANCE CORP: $150 · HealthGREENWAYS FOR NASHVILLE INC: $3,750 · Recreation & Sports
Other$265,715Arts & Culture$47,100Education$30,275Philanthropy$8,850Public Safety & Disaster$5,200Health$4,050Recreation & Sports$3,750

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 budgetWILDWOOD SCHOOL INC: $20,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetCOUNTRY MUSIC FOUNDATION INC: $19,150 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetNashville Symphony Association: $18,500 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetFRIST ART MUSEUM: $6,900 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetTHE TRUSTEES OF THE SMITH COLLEGE: $4,800 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetWALK BIKE NASHVILLE INC: $4,000 over 2y, 0.4% of budgetORT AMERICA INC: $3,900 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetGREENWAYS FOR NASHVILLE INC: $3,750 over 2y, 0.5% of budgetNASHVILLE PUBLIC LIBRARY FOUNDATION: $3,275 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetBLOOD CANCER UNITED INC: $3,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetJEWISH FEDERATION OF NASHVILLE AND MIDDLE TENNESSEE: $2,750 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetNASHVILLE PUBLIC RADIO: $2,550 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetFISHER HOUSE FOUNDATION INC: $1,700 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetTHISTLE FARMS INC: $1,300 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTHE BREAST CANCER RESEARCH FOUNDATION INC: $1,200 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetRUTGERS PREPARATORY SCHOOL: $1,200 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetNASHVILLE HUMANE ASSOCIATION AKA NASHVILLE HUMANE SOCIETY: $1,050 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetBelmont University: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTHE EQUITY ALLIANCE: $1,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetTHE COMMUNITY FOUNDATION OF MIDDLE TENNESSEE INC: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetAmerican Heart Association Inc: $900 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetROCK HILL VOLUNTEER AMBULANCE CORP: $150 over 1y, 0.2% 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 WILDWOOD SCHOOL INC ↗
  • Who funds COUNTRY MUSIC FOUNDATION INC ↗
  • Who funds Nashville Symphony Association ↗
  • Who funds FRIST ART MUSEUM ↗
  • Who funds STAND UP TO CANCER ↗
  • Who funds THE TRUSTEES OF THE SMITH COLLEGE ↗
  • Who funds WALK BIKE NASHVILLE INC ↗
  • Who funds ORT AMERICA INC ↗
  • Who funds GREENWAYS FOR NASHVILLE INC ↗
  • Who funds NASHVILLE PUBLIC LIBRARY FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds BLOOD CANCER UNITED INC ↗
  • Who funds JEWISH FEDERATION OF NASHVILLE AND MIDDLE TENNESSEE ↗
  • Who funds NASHVILLE PUBLIC RADIO ↗
  • Who funds FISHER HOUSE FOUNDATION INC ↗
  • Who funds THISTLE FARMS INC ↗
  • Who funds THE BREAST CANCER RESEARCH FOUNDATION INC ↗
  • Who funds RUTGERS PREPARATORY SCHOOL ↗
  • Who funds NASHVILLE HUMANE ASSOCIATION AKA NASHVILLE HUMANE SOCIETY ↗
  • Who funds Belmont University ↗
  • Who funds THE EQUITY ALLIANCE ↗
  • Who funds THE COMMUNITY FOUNDATION OF MIDDLE TENNESSEE INC ↗
  • Who funds American Heart Association Inc ↗

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 Joel C & Bernice …Hca Healthcare Founda…Sandra Schatten Found…The Wade-Buntin Famil…The Steven & Laurie E…Dorothy Cate and Thom…Vanderbilt UniversityThe Community Foundat…Eden FoundationThe Annette & Irwin E…James R Meadows Jr Fo…The Blum Family Found…
The Joel C & Bernice W Gordon Family FoundationTN17.9× affinity6 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: The Joel C & Bernice W Gordon Family Foundation · Hca Healthcare Foundation · Sandra Schatten Foundation · The Wade-Buntin Family Foundation · The Steven & Laurie Eskind Family Foundation · Dorothy Cate and Thomas F Frist Foundation · Vanderbilt University · The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee Inc · Eden Foundation · The Annette & Irwin Eskind Family Foundation · James R Meadows Jr Foundation · The Blum Family 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 Leonard J & Ethel H Smith Charitable Foundation Inc funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Leonard J & Ethel H Smith Charitable Foundation Inc. 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%19%38%56%75%share of the org’s income from government →median 1%
  • The Trustees of the Smith College: 1% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
1get no government money at all
6report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
0rely on government for over half their income
⤢ axis zoomed · 0–75%
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 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 Leonard J & Ethel H Smith’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