Skip to content
Marks Family Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

Marks 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.

$3.0M
Granted FY2024still arriving
42
Grants FY2024still arriving
14
States reached
$300k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead
01What it funds
0197% classified

What it funded, over time

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

Health$5.4MArts & Culture$2.5MEducation$2.2MInternational$1.6MEnvironment$1.2MPhilanthropy$824kCommunity Improvement$701kHuman Services$291kOther$0
02FY2024 · 42 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2024

  • Under $10k8 grants · $43k
  • $10k–50k15 grants · $214k
  • $50k–250k14 grants · $1.5M
  • $250k+5 grants · $1.3M
$25,000
Median grant
14
States reached
$50M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
EAST COAST ASSISTANCE DOGS INC$300,000
THE V FOUNDATION$250,000
BERKLEE COLLEGE OF MUSIC INC$250,000
PROJECT MUSIC HEALS US INC$250,000
WE CARE SOLAR$250,000
PROJECT MUSIC HEALS US INC$200,000
TAHOE EXPEDITION ACADEMY INC$150,000
REALIZE IMPACT$150,000
EARTHENABLE$150,000
GIVE2ASIA$104,000
BLACK MUSIC ENTREPRENEURSHIP INCUBATOR$100,000
NEO PHILANTHROPY INC$100,000
COLLEGE TRACK$100,000
REALIZE IMPACT$100,000
HONEYWELL ARTS ACADEMY INC$90,000
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 (FY21–24, $1.2M) land where the poverty rate runs at 8%, against an area that typically sits at 9%. 46% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Its grants spread fairly evenly across need levels.

area typical 9%United Sommeliers Foundation: $10k → 9%BRANNAN CENTER: $25k → 9%Uplift Afghanistan: $10k → 10%Indiaspora: $50k → 10%The Viscardi Center: $300k → 6%REALIZE IMPACT: $150k → 10%Community Cancer Fund: $8k → 12%THE AASHA FOUNDATION: $50k → 10%The Viscardi Center: $300k → 6%REALIZE IMPACT: $100k → 10%FLOURISH FOUNDATION: $5k → 7%YMCA of Silicon Valley: $10k → 8%American Red Cross: $50k → 10%WOMEN MOVING MILLIONS INC: $14k → 17%Project Glimmer: $20k → 10%Project Glimmer: $10k → 10%YMCA OF SILICON VALLEY: $10k → 8%PROJECT GLIMMER: $10k → 10%American Red Cross: $50k → 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

WA
ID
MN
MI
NY
MA
NV
IN
OH
CT
RI
CA
CO
MO
VA
MD
AZ
TN
NC
DC
GA
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.

69%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$11M · 34 repeat orgs$4.7M to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +27% since the first grant, against +5% for those funded once.

34 repeat relationships: 14 still active in FY2024, 20 since wound down; 23 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

34
62

Total granted

$11M
$3.0M

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+27%
+5%

Still filing today

74%
60%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 41% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $1.7M went to new ones.

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

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

’20’21’22’23’24
Arts & CultureEducationHuman ServicesHealthInternationalPhilanthropyOther
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

  • TV
    THE V FOUNDATION
    4× · 2020–2024 · $1.6M · revenue +216%
  • AD
    ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE RESEARCH FOUNDATION
    2× · 2021–2022 · $1.5M · revenue +113%
  • WC
    WE CARE SOLAR
    4× · 2021–2024 · $1.0M · revenue +121%

Funded once

  • VF
    V Foundation - Don't ever Give Up
    one grant, 2022 · $504k
  • SS
    SPUR - SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA PLANNING AND URBAN RESEARCH ASSOCIATION
    one grant, 2023 · $250k · revenue +5%
  • RS
    Rick Sharp Alzheimers Foundation
    one grant, 2021 · $250k
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
Silicon Schools Fund Inc

The mission of the silicon schools fund is to improve education through supporting the launch of excellent new schools, improving academic instruction in existing schools, and by funding some of the boldest innovations in education…

Education
2
Academy of Television Arts and Sciences

The Television Academy is dedicated to celebrating excellence, innovation and the advancement of the telecommunications arts and sciences through recognition, education and leadership, while fostering a diverse, inclusive and accessible…

—
3
The Uc Davis Foundation

The mission of the uc davis foundation is to secure, steward and manage private gifts for uc davis.

Education
4
Ucsf Foundation Investment Company

The organization provides professional investment management services for endowed gifts and financial assets entrusted to the ucsf foundation.

Education
5
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
6
Uc Santa Barbara Foundation

The uc santa barbara foundation actively works to further the goals of the university of california, santa barbara. the foundation seeks to maintain and nurture the university's quality and distinction. on behalf of the campus, the…

Education
7
Allosource

Inspired by the gift of donation from our communities, allosource responsibly provides innovative cellular and tissue allografts to advance patient healing.

Health
8
Association of California School Administrators

The association serves its members by creating resources that enable california school administrators to develop and apply creative leadership and management skills and in turn, improve the educational process for all students.

—
9
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…

—
10
The Common Application Inc

The common application is a not-for-profit membership organization of over 1,100 colleges and universities across the globe committed to access, equity, and integrity in the college admission process. every year, over 1.5 million students…

Education
11
Uc Riverside Foundation

To support educational, research and public functions and programs of the riverside campus of the university of california.

Education
12
The Water Research Foundation

The purpose of the water research foundation (wrf) is a definitive research organization to advance the science of all things water to better meet the evolving needs of its subscribers and the water sector. to engage exclusively in…

Environment
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is New Venture Fund; the most unlike its peers is Black Music Entrepreneurship Incubator. 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

89 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. 89 of the 123 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.

6
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
8
Early backer (in before they grew)
88/89
Grantees still filing
48/89
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

ECAD: $1,025,000 · OtherECADV Foundation - Don't ever Give Up: $503,776 · OtherV Foundation - Don't ever Give UpAERIAL RECOVERY: $460,000 · OtherAERIAL RECOVERYSPUR - SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA PLANNING AND URBAN RESEARCH ASSOCIATION: $250,000 · OtherRick Sharp Alzheimers Foundation: $250,000 · OtherBusinesses United in Investing (BUILD): $250,000 · OtherBoston Conservatory At Berklee: $210,000 · OtherBusiness United in Invest Lending & Dev: $200,000 · Other+51 more: $1,771,258 · Other+51 moreTHE V FOUNDATION: $1,601,500 · HealthTHE V FOUNDATIONALZHEIMER'S DISEASE RESEARCH FOUNDATION: $1,500,000 · HealthALZHEIMER'S DISEASE RESEARCH FO…WE CARE SOLAR: $1,003,000 · HealthWE CARE SOLARRICK SHARP ALZ FOUNDATION: $250,000 · HealthRICK SHARP ALZ FOUNDATION+6 more: $80,000 · HealthJUILLIARD SCHOOL: $807,906 · EducationJUILLIARD SCHOO…COLLEGE TRACK: $400,000 · EducationCOLLEGE TRACKEAST COAST ASSISTANCE DOGS INC: $300,000 · EducationEAST COAST ASSI…BERKLEE COLLEGE OF MUSIC INC: $250,000 · EducationBERKLEE COLLEGE…TAHOE EXPEDITION ACADEMY INC: $150,000 · EducationTAHOE EXPEDITIO…THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE LELAND STANFORD JUNIOR UNIVERSITY: $100,000 · Education+8 more: $144,300 · Education+8 morePROJECT MUSIC HEALS US INC: $950,000 · Arts & CulturePROJECT MUS…CLASSICAL RECORDING FOUNDATION INC: $191,341 · Arts & CultureCLASSICAL R…THE HONEYWELL ARTS ACADEMY INC: $180,000 · Arts & CultureTHE HONEYWE…SUN VALLEY SUMMER SYMPHONY INC: $125,000 · Arts & CultureSUN VALLEY …+10 more: $135,400 · Arts & Culture+10 moreTHE VISCARDI CENTER INC: $600,000 · Human ServicesRealize Impact: $250,000 · Human ServicesAmerican National Red Cross & Its Constituent Chapters and Branches: $100,000 · Human ServicesINDIASPORA: $50,000 · Human ServicesTHE AASHA FOUNDATION: $50,000 · Human ServicesPROJECT GLIMMER: $40,000 · Human Services+7 more: $91,546 · Human ServicesVITAL VOICES GLOBAL PARTNERSHIP INC: $750,000 · InternationalEARTHENABLE INC: $150,000 · InternationalGIVE2ASIA: $104,000 · InternationalTHE JUNIPER FUND: $100,000 · International+3 more: $65,000 · InternationalTHE HONEYWELL FOUNDATION INC: $150,000 · PhilanthropyCELESTA FOUNDATION: $50,000 · PhilanthropyTIPPING POINT COMMUNITY: $40,000 · PhilanthropyDCM FOUNDATION: $10,000 · PhilanthropyEL DORADO FOUNDATION INC: $10,000 · PhilanthropyClayton Education Foundation: $10,000 · Philanthropy
Other$4,920,034Health$4,434,500Education$2,152,206Arts & Culture$1,581,741Human Services$1,181,546International$1,169,000Philanthropy$270,000

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 V FOUNDATION: $1,601,500 over 4y, 3.4% of budgetALZHEIMER'S DISEASE RESEARCH FOUNDATION: $1,500,000 over 2y, 2.8% of budgetWE CARE SOLAR: $1,003,000 over 4y, 6.0% of budgetPROJECT MUSIC HEALS US INC: $950,000 over 4y, 93% of budgetJUILLIARD SCHOOL: $807,906 over 4y, 0.3% of budgetVITAL VOICES GLOBAL PARTNERSHIP INC: $750,000 over 2y, 1.6% of budgetTHE VISCARDI CENTER INC: $600,000 over 2y, 5.8% of budgetAERIAL RECOVERY: $460,000 over 2y, 14% of budgetCOLLEGE TRACK: $400,000 over 4y, 0.4% of budgetEAST COAST ASSISTANCE DOGS INC: $300,000 over 1y, 5.6% of budgetSPUR - SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA PLANNING AND URBAN RESEARCH ASSOCIATION: $250,000 over 1y, 4.0% of budgetBERKLEE COLLEGE OF MUSIC INC: $250,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetRealize Impact: $250,000 over 1y, 1.1% of budgetRICK SHARP ALZ FOUNDATION: $250,000 over 1y, 47% of budgetCLASSICAL RECORDING FOUNDATION INC: $191,341 over 3y, 23% of budgetTHE HONEYWELL ARTS ACADEMY INC: $180,000 over 1y, 26% of budgetTAHOE EXPEDITION ACADEMY INC: $150,000 over 1y, 1.5% of budgetEARTHENABLE INC: $150,000 over 1y, 3.3% of budgetTHE HONEYWELL FOUNDATION INC: $150,000 over 1y, 1.5% of budgetPOPULATION SERVICES INTERNATIONAL: $138,962 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetSUN VALLEY SUMMER SYMPHONY INC: $125,000 over 4y, 1.0% of budgetTHE HEAD ROYCE SCHOOL: $110,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetGIVE2ASIA: $104,000 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetNEO Philanthropy Inc: $100,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetSIMISLEIGHS FOUNDATION INC: $100,000 over 2y, 74% of budgetTHE JUNIPER FUND: $100,000 over 2y, 18% of budgetTHE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE LELAND STANFORD JUNIOR UNIVERSITY: $100,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetAmerican National Red Cross & Its Constituent Chapters and Branches: $100,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetEducation Bridge: $60,000 over 3y, 8.8% of budgetANGEL FLIGHT WEST INC: $50,000 over 4y, 0.2% of budgetCELESTA FOUNDATION: $50,000 over 1y, 100% of budgetINDIASPORA: $50,000 over 1y, 1.4% of budgetTHE AASHA FOUNDATION: $50,000 over 1y, 30% of budgetPROJECT GLIMMER: $40,000 over 3y, 0.2% of budgetTIPPING POINT COMMUNITY: $40,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetCOMMUNITY-WORD PROJECT INC: $40,000 over 4y, 0.7% of budgetPIANOSONOMA MUSIC FESTIVAL INC: $30,000 over 1y, 15% of budgetBRANNAN CENTER: $25,000 over 1y, 1.2% of budgetSOLAR SISTER INC: $25,000 over 1y, 1.0% of budgetWORLD CENTRAL KITCHEN INC: $25,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetThe Rand Corporation: $25,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetNEW VENTURE FUND: $25,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCAMP RAINBOW GOLD INC: $20,346 over 3y, 1.6% of budgetAMERICAN RIVERS INC: $20,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetDONORSCHOOSEORG: $20,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTROOPS FIRST FOUNDATION INCORPORATED: $20,000 over 2y, 0.4% of budgetYOUNG MEN'S CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATION OF SILICON VALLEY: $20,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetWESTERLIES MUSIC INC: $20,000 over 1y, 7.3% 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.

Jewish Community Fede…Silicon Valley Commun…Spur Community Founda…The San Francisco Fou…Bright Funds Foundati…Marin Community Found…Gs Donor Advised Phil…The Springcreek Found…National Philanthropi…Argyros Family Founda…Clif Family FoundationThe California Wellne…
Jewish Community Federation of San Francisco the Peninsula Marin & SonomaCA23.5× affinity11 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Jewish Community Federation of San Francisco the Peninsula Marin & Sonoma · Silicon Valley Community Foundation · Spur Community Foundation Inc · The San Francisco Foundation · Bright Funds Foundation · Marin Community Foundation · Gs Donor Advised Philanthropy Fund for Wealth Management Inc · The Springcreek Foundation · National Philanthropic Trust · Argyros Family Foundation · Clif Family Foundation · The California Wellness 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 Marks Family Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Marks Family Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 50%6%25%56%100%funder's share of their income ↑0%23%45%68%90%share of the org’s income from government →median 3%
  • From the Top Inc: 6% of income from government
  • Western Connecticut Youth Orchestra Inc: 3% of income from government
  • Project Music Heals Us Inc: 2% of income from government
  • Berklee College of Music Inc: 1% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
5get no government money at all
17report 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 Marks Family Foundation?

Find your warmest path to Marks 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 123 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 Marks 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