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Meredith Corporation Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

Meredith Corporation Foundation

Its FY2025 filing reports that it accepted unsolicited grant applications.

$1.2M
Granted FY2025still arriving
22
Grants FY2025still arriving
1
States reached
$400k
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, FY2021 to 2025.

Education$2.0MArts & Culture$581kPhilanthropy$410kEnvironment$365kHousing & Shelter$328kCivil Rights$307kYouth Development$264kScience & Tech$234kOther$0
02FY2025 · 22 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2025

  • Under $10k4 grants · $14k
  • $10k–50k13 grants · $202k
  • $50k–250k3 grants · $285k
  • $250k+2 grants · $715k
$12,000
Median grant
1
States reached
$24M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
DRAKE UNIVERSITY$400,000
GREATER DES MOINES BOTANICAL GARDEN$315,000
GRAYS LAKE PLAYGROUND & SPRAYGROUND FUND$125,000
SCIENCE CENTER OF IOWA$110,000
CHILDSERVE FOUNDATION$50,000
COMMUNITY FOUNDATION OF GREATER DES MOINES$40,000
REBUILDING TOGETHER$25,000
GREATER DES MOINES HABITAT FOR HUMANITY$25,000
BOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF CENTRAL IOWA$15,000
DES MOINES ARTS FESTIVAL$15,000
PROJECT IOWA YOUTH WORKS$12,000
BLANK PARK ZOO$10,000
FOOD BANK OF IOWA$10,000
DES MOINES SYMPHONY$10,000
DES MOINES PERFORMING ARTS$10,000
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 (FY21–25, $400k) land where the poverty rate runs at 14%, against an area that typically sits at 9%. 98% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 9%WIDE HORIZONS FOR CHILDREN INC: $200 → 8%CENTRE SAFE: $250 → 16%PROJECT NIGHT NIGHT: $500 → 10%QUAKERDALE: $875 → 11%UNBOUND: $580 → 16%CORNERSTONES: $400 → 6%COMPASSIONATE CARE ALS INC: $1k → 8%PINE STREET INN: $200 → 16%BLANKET FORT HOPE: $1k → 7%UNBOUND: $530 → 16%MY FRIENDS HOUSE: $250 → 4%GUADALUPE CENTER OF IMMOKALEE INC: $500 → 10%BLANKET FORT HOPE: $1k → 7%NEXTSTEP PREGNANCY SERVICES: $2k → 9%NORTH SHORE CHILD & FAMILY GUIDANCE: $400 → 6%FATHER FRED FOUNDATION: $2k → 10%SPECIAL EQUESTRIANS INC: $500 → 7%NEXTSTEP PREGNANCY SERVICES: $600 → 9%FATHER FRED FOUNDATION: $200 → 10%BALANCE AUTISM: $500 → 10%AT HOME IN DARIEN: $250 → 9%LAST MINUTE TOY STORE: $1k → 14%INNER VISIONS HEALTH CARE: $850 → 5%GUADALUPE CENTER: $500 → 15%HOPE MINISTRIES: $1k → 10%PROJECT OPEN INC: $200 → 17%PROJECT OPEN INC: $200 → 17%NATIONAL URBAN LEAGUE: $100k → 17%INNOCENCE PROJECT: $100k → 17%INNOCENCE PROJECT: $539 → 17%HIDDEN WATER INC: $250 → 17%DES MOINES AREA RELIGIOUS COUNCIL: $4k → 10%DES MOINES AREA RELIGIOUS COUNCIL: $2k → 10%YOUNG WOMENS RESOURCE CENTER: $250 → 10%YOUNG WOMENS RESOURCE CENTER: $210 → 10%DOROTHYS HOUSE: $5k → 10%DOROTHYS HOUSE: $1k → 10%JOPPA OUTREACH: $500 → 10%PUPPY JAKE FOUNDATION: $3k → 10%PUPPY JAKE FOUNDATION: $3k → 10%CHILDSERVE FOUNDATION: $50k → 10%CHILDSERVE FOUNDATION: $50k → 10%CHILDSERVE FOUNDATION: $50k → 10%CHILDSERVE FOUNDATION: $3k → 10%OAKRIDGE NEIGHBORHOOD SERVICES: $1k → 10%ORCHARD PLACE FOUNDATION: $5k → 10%AMERICAN RED CROSS: $650 → 10%ORCHARD PLACE FOUNDATION: $525 → 10%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

ME
VT
NH
WA
ID
MT
MN
IL
WI
MI
NY
MA
OR
NV
WY
SD
IA
IN
OH
PA
NJ
CT
RI
CA
UT
CO
NE
MO
KY
VA
MD
DE
AZ
NM
KS
AR
TN
NC
SC
DC
HI
OK
AL
GA
TX
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.

72%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$3.8M · 216 repeat orgs$1.5M to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +23% since the first grant, against +16% for those funded once.

216 repeat relationships: 15 still active in FY2025, 201 since wound down; 6 grantees were first funded in FY2025 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

216
707

Total granted

$3.8M
$1.3M

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+23%
+16%

Still filing today

76%
61%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2025, 84% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $183k went to new ones.

50%100%’21’22’23’24’25
RenewedFirst-time

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

’21’22’23’24’25
EducationHuman ServicesHealthArts & CultureAnimalsInternationalOther
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

  • DRAKE UNIVERSITY
    5× · 2021–2025 · $1.5M · revenue +4%
  • GD
    GREATER DES MOINES BOTANICAL GARDEN
    4× · 2021–2025 · $341k · revenue +294%
  • HS
    HOYT SHERMAN PLACE FOUNDATION
    4× · 2021–2025 · $208k · revenue +125%

Funded once

  • CF
    COMMUNITY FOUNDATION GREATER DES MO
    one grant, 2021 · $155k
  • BG
    BOYS GIRLS CLUB
    one grant, 2021 · $103k
  • EQUAL JUSTICE INITIATIVE
    one grant, 2021 · $102k · revenue -45%
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
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
2
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
3
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.

—
4
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…

—
5
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
6
Allosource

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

Health
7
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
8
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
9
Augustana College

Rooted in the liberal arts & sciences & lutheran expression of the christian faith, & is committed to offering a challenging education that develops qualities of mind, spirit, & body necessary for a rewarding life of leadership & service…

Education
10
Boston Architectural College

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

—
11
Midwest Dairy Association

Midwest dairy works with others to give consumers an excellent dairy experience increasing sales, fostering innovation, and inspiring consumer confidence of dairy products and practices.

—
12
Internet Society Foundation

At the internet society foundation, we focus on funding initiatives that strengthen the internet in function and reach so that it can effectively serve all people. our work advances the vision of the internet society (isoc): the internet…

International
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Childserve Foundation Inc; the most unlike its peers is Boys Girls Club. 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

624 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. 624 of the 945 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.

1
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
109
Early backer (in before they grew)
616/624
Grantees still filing
431/624
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

REBUILDING TOGETHER: $288,500 · OtherREBUILDING TOGETHERIOWA STATE UNIVERSITY: $210,865 · OtherIOWA STATE UNIVERSITYUNITED WAY OF CENTRAL IOWA: $180,000 · OtherUNITED WAY OF CENTRAL IOWACOMMUNITY FOUNDATION GREATER DES MO: $155,207 · OtherCOMMUNITY FOUNDATION GREATER DES MOGRAYS LAKE PLAYGROUND & SPRAYGROUND FUND: $125,000 · OtherGRAYS LAKE PLAYGROUND & SPRAYGROUND FUNDBOYS GIRLS CLUB: $102,600 · OtherNAACP LEGAL DEFENSE AND EDUCATION F: $101,200 · OtherBOYS & GIRLS CLUB: $100,000 · OtherNAACP: $100,000 · Other+110 more: $578,035 · Other+110 moreDRAKE UNIVERSITY: $1,512,875 · EducationDRAKE UNIVERSITY+28 more: $86,985 · Education+28 moreSCIENCE CENTER OF IOWA: $230,000 · Arts & CultureSCIENCE CENTER …HOYT SHERMAN PLACE FOUNDATION: $207,725 · Arts & CultureHOYT SHERMAN PL…MAINFRAME STUDIOS: $100,000 · Arts & CultureMAINFRAME STUDI…DES MOINES COMMUNITY PLAYHOUSE: $34,195 · Arts & CultureDES MOINES SYMPHONY ASSOCIATION: $31,154 · Arts & CultureDES MOINES METRO OPERA INC: $30,500 · Arts & CultureDES MOINES FILM SOCIETY: $25,250 · Arts & Culture+10 more: $37,700 · Arts & Culture+10 moreCHILDSERVE FOUNDATION INC: $152,500 · Human ServicesTHE INNOCENCE PROJECT INC: $100,539 · Human ServicesNATIONAL URBAN LEAGUE INC: $100,052 · Human Services+13 more: $44,390 · Human ServicesGREATER DES MOINES BOTANICAL GARDEN: $340,950 · Environment+6 more: $18,225 · EnvironmentCOMMUNITY FDN OF GREATER DES MOINES F/K/A GREATER DES MOINES COMMUNITY FDN: $45,000 · PhilanthropyDES MOINES ARTS FESTIVAL INC: $35,000 · PhilanthropyDES MOINES PUBLIC LIBRARY FOUNDATION: $13,725 · PhilanthropyWorld Food Prize Foundation: $10,000 · PhilanthropyTHE CLEAR FUND: $7,200 · PhilanthropyBRANFORD COMMUNITY FOUNDATION: $5,000 · PhilanthropyGARDEN GATE RANCH INC: $4,567 · Philanthropy+3 more: $5,876 · PhilanthropyEQUAL JUSTICE INITIATIVE: $102,001 · Civil Rights+1 more: $1,125 · Civil Rights
Other$1,941,407Education$1,599,860Arts & Culture$696,524Human Services$397,481Environment$359,175Philanthropy$126,368Civil Rights$103,126

Showing the 200 largest grantees by grant value.

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 budgetDRAKE UNIVERSITY: $1,512,875 over 5y, 0.2% of budgetGREATER DES MOINES BOTANICAL GARDEN: $340,950 over 4y, 2.7% of budgetSCIENCE CENTER OF IOWA: $230,000 over 4y, 1.6% of budgetHOYT SHERMAN PLACE FOUNDATION: $207,725 over 4y, 2.7% of budgetUNITED WAY OF CENTRAL IOWA: $180,000 over 2y, 0.4% of budgetCHILDSERVE FOUNDATION INC: $152,500 over 3y, 1.8% of budgetEQUAL JUSTICE INITIATIVE: $102,001 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetTHE INNOCENCE PROJECT INC: $100,539 over 2y, 0.3% of budgetNATIONAL URBAN LEAGUE INC: $100,052 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetMAINFRAME STUDIOS: $100,000 over 1y, 6.5% of budgetWESLEYLIFE: $50,000 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetCOMMUNITY FDN OF GREATER DES MOINES F/K/A GREATER DES MOINES COMMUNITY FDN: $45,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetFOOD BANK OF IOWA: $42,937 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetDES MOINES ARTS FESTIVAL INC: $35,000 over 3y, 1.1% of budgetDES MOINES COMMUNITY PLAYHOUSE: $34,195 over 3y, 0.7% of budgetDES MOINES SYMPHONY ASSOCIATION: $31,154 over 3y, 0.4% of budgetDES MOINES METRO OPERA INC: $30,500 over 4y, 0.2% of budgetBLANK PARK ZOO FOUNDATION INC: $30,025 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetDES MOINES PERFORMING ARTS: $26,515 over 3y, 0.3% of budgetDES MOINES FILM SOCIETY: $25,250 over 1y, 6.3% of budgetGREATER DES MOINES HABITAT FOR HUMANITY INC: $25,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetCYSTIC FIBROSIS FOUNDATION: $17,350 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetIOWA STATE FAIR FOUNDATION: $16,045 over 2y, 0.4% of budgetBOYS & GIRLS CLUBS OF CENTRAL IOWA: $15,000 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetDES MOINES PUBLIC LIBRARY FOUNDATION: $13,725 over 3y, 1.0% of budgetEdmundson Art Foundation Inc: $10,250 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetGREATER DES MOINES MUSIC COALITION: $10,200 over 1y, 1.4% of budgetBELLARMINE UNIVERSITY INCORPORATED: $10,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetTREES FOREVER INC: $10,000 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetWorld Food Prize Foundation: $10,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetTEACH RWANDA: $10,000 over 2y, 3.8% of budgetNATIONAL RAMAH COMMISSION INC: $8,730 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetPAN-MASSACHUSETTS CHALLENGE INC: $7,850 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetDES MOINES CHRISTIAN SCHOOLS: $7,500 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetTHE CLEAR FUND: $7,200 over 2y, 0.0% of budget1 Shine Youth: $7,000 over 2y, 5.0% of budgetDES MOINES AREA RELIGIOUS COUNCIL: $6,750 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetSCKIC Inc: $6,000 over 2y, 0.8% of budgetHOPE MINISTRIES: $5,840 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetORCHARD PLACE FOUNDATION: $5,525 over 2y, 0.2% of budgetPUPPY JAKE FOUNDATION: $5,500 over 2y, 0.4% of budgetDMACC FOUNDATION: $5,300 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetBALLET DES MOINES: $5,300 over 1y, 0.9% of budgetBOYS GIRLS CLUB: $5,100 over 1y, 41% of budgetElon University: $5,050 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetBRANFORD COMMUNITY FOUNDATION: $5,000 over 1y, 1.4% of budgetEMMA WILLARD SCHOOL: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetGREENWICH COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL INC: $5,000 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.

Prairie Meadows Race …The Merchants Bonding…EMC Insurance Foundat…Ita Group FoundationCommunity Fdn of Grea…The West Bancorporati…Bookey Family Foundat…Golf Charitable Found…Gartner Family Founda…Wt and Edna M Dahl Tr…United Way of Central…Kyle J & Sharon Kraus…
Prairie Meadows Race Track and Casino IncIA87.8× affinity60 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Prairie Meadows Race Track and Casino Inc · The Merchants Bonding Company Foundation · EMC Insurance Foundation · Ita Group Foundation · Community Fdn of Greater Des Moines F/K/A Greater Des Moines Community Fdn · The West Bancorporation Foundation Inc · Bookey Family Foundation · Golf Charitable Foundation of Greater Des Moines · Gartner Family Foundation % Michael G Gartner · Wt and Edna M Dahl Trust · United Way of Central Iowa · Kyle J & Sharon Krause 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 Meredith Corporation Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Meredith Corporation Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 140%3%13%28%50%funder's share of their income ↑0%25%50%75%100%share of the org’s income from government →median 4%
  • Mercy Corps: 47% of income from government
  • Local Motion Inc: 19% of income from government
  • Connecticut Science Center Inc: 14% of income from government
  • Vermont Foodbank: 13% of income from government
  • Richmond Land Trust Inc: 10% of income from government
  • Best Buddies International Inc: 4% of income from government
  • Shelburne Farms: 3% of income from government
  • Wesleyan University: 1% of income from government
  • Golda Och Academy: 0% of income from government
  • Pan-Massachusetts Challenge Inc: 0% of income from government
  • Food for the Poor Inc: 0% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
14get no government money at all
34report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
0rely on government for over half their income
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 Meredith Corporation Foundation?

Find your warmest path to Meredith Corporation 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 945 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 Meredith’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