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Michigan Colleges Alliance at a glanceAlso receives grants: funding profile →

· Public charity

Michigan Colleges Alliance

Michigan Colleges Alliance is a collective of excellent independent colleges and universities located throughout Michigan.

$3.5M
Granted FY2025still arriving
15
Grants FY2025still arriving
1
States reached
$1.1M
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
01What it funds
01100% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2017 to 2025.

Education$27M
02FY2025 · 15 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2025

  • $10k–50k2 grants · $84k
  • $50k–250k9 grants · $995k
  • $250k+4 grants · $2.4M
$118,311
Median grant
1
States reached
$5.7M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
Kalamazoo College$1,068,691
Hope College$683,785
Olivet College$314,761
Aquinas College$305,808
Albion College$242,826
Adrian College$152,752
University of Detroit Mercy$126,461
Spring Arbor University$118,311
Madonna University$91,032
Calvin University$70,888
Siena Heights$67,475
College for Creative Studies$62,767
Alma College$62,331
Andrews University$46,704
Hillsdale College$37,280
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 13%, against an area that typically sits at 13%. 27% of its dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Its grants skew toward lower-need ZIPs.

area typical 13%Hope College: $684k → 10%ADRIAN COLLEGE: $201k → 12%KALAMAZOO COLLEGE: $1.8M → 12%ALMA COLLEGE: $139k → 12%ALBION COLLEGE: $264k → 14%HOPE COLLEGE: $633k → 10%ADRIAN COLLEGE: $191k → 12%KALAMAZOO COLLEGE: $1.8M → 12%ALBION COLLEGE: $257k → 14%HOPE COLLEGE: $614k → 10%ADRIAN COLLEGE: $169k → 12%KALAMAZOO COLLEGE: $1.8M → 12%Albion College: $243k → 14%HOPE COLLEGE: $484k → 10%Adrian College: $153k → 12%KALAMAZOO COLLEGE: $1.7M → 12%ALBION COLLEGE: $226k → 14%HOPE COLLEGE: $422k → 10%ADRIAN COLLEGE: $147k → 12%KALAMAZOO COLLEGE: $954k → 12%ALBION COLLEGE: $202k → 14%HOPE COLLEGE: $396k → 10%ADRIAN COLLEGE: $147k → 12%KALAMAZOO COLLEGE: $786k → 12%ALBION COLLEGE: $195k → 14%HOPE COLLEGE: $279k → 10%SPRING ARBOR UNIVERSITY: $127k → 12%KALAMAZOO COLLEGE: $602k → 12%ALBION COLLEGE: $189k → 14%HOPE COLLEGE: $160k → 10%ADRIAN COLLEGE: $127k → 12%KALAMAZOO COLLEGE: $327k → 12%ALBION COLLEGE: $184k → 14%ALBION COLLEGE: $158k → 14%Aquinas College: $306k → 11%AQUINAS COLLEGE: $289k → 11%AQUINAS COLLEGE: $237k → 11%OLIVET COLLEGE: $440k → 21%AQUINAS COLLEGE: $167k → 11%OLIVET COLLEGE: $354k → 21%AQUINAS COLLEGE: $162k → 11%Olivet College: $315k → 21%OLIVET COLLEGE: $310k → 21%OLIVET COLLEGE: $304k → 21%OLIVET COLLEGE: $303k → 21%OLIVET COLLEGE: $292k → 21%OLIVET COLLEGE: $229k → 21%OLIVET COLLEGE: $184k → 21%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.
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.

100%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$24M · 13 repeat orgs$0 to everyone else

13 repeat relationships: 13 still active in FY2025, 0 since wound down.

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

13
0

Total granted

$24M
$0

Still filing today

100%
0%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2025, 100% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $0 went to new ones.

50%100%’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24’25
RenewedFirst-time
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

  • KC
    KALAMAZOO COLLEGE
    9× · 2017–2025 · $11M · revenue +41%
  • HC
    HOPE COLLEGE
    9× · 2017–2025 · $3.8M · revenue +37%
  • OLIVET COLLEGE
    9× · 2017–2025 · $2.7M · revenue +25%

Funded once

    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
    Saint Xavier University

    Saint xavier university, a catholic institution inspired by the heritage of the sisters of mercy, educates persons to search for truth, think critically, communicate effectively and serve wisely and compassionately in support of human…

    Education
    2
    Xavier University

    Xavier is a jesuit catholic university rooted in the liberal arts tradition. our mission is to educate each student intellectually, morally, and spiritually. we create learning opportunities through rigorous academic and professional…

    Education
    3
    Augustana University Association

    Inspired by lutheran scholarly tradition and the liberal arts, augustana provides an education of enduring worth that challenges the intellect, fosters integrity and integrates faith with learning and service in a diverse world.

    Education
    4
    Lyon College

    Lyon college offers a liberal arts education of superior quality in a personalized setting. a selective, independent, undergraduate, residential teaching and learning community affiliated with the presbyterian church (usa). lyon encourages…

    Education
    5
    Hilbert College

    Hilbert college is an independent institution of higher learning that embraces its catholic franciscan heritage and values. students from diverse backgrounds are educated in liberal arts and professional programs to become informed…

    Education
    6
    Wilson College

    Wilson college empowers students to be confident and critical thinkers, creative visionaries, effective communicators, honorable leaders, and agents of justice.

    Education
    7
    LaGrange College

    Education - lagrange college challenges the minds and inspires the souls of its students. founded in 1831 and committed to its relationship with the united methodist church and its wesleyan and liberal arts traditions, the college supports…

    Education
    8
    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
    9
    Albright College

    As a diverse community of learners, we cultivate integrity, curiosity, connection and resilience.

    Education
    10
    Simpson College

    Through innovative learning opportunities, individual student attention, and an unwavering commitment to inclusive educational access, simpson college cultivates a diverse community of learners to lead lives of meaning and purpose.

    Education
    11
    Boston Architectural College

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

    —
    12
    Lehigh University

    The university's goal in the coming decade is to advance learning through the integration of teaching, research and service to others. the core of this goal is to prepare graduates to engage with the world and lead lives of meaning. to do…

    Education
    How this is measured
    The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Madonna University; the most unlike its peers is Hillsdale College. 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.

    Each grantee is resolved to its own IRS returns. Association, dated; never a causal claim.

    0
    Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
    0
    Early backer (in before they grew)
    15/15
    Grantees still filing
    14/15
    Grew since first funded

    Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

    KALAMAZOO COLLEGE: $10,787,061 · EducationKALAMAZOO COLLEGEHOPE COLLEGE: $3,759,406 · EducationHOPE COLLEGEOLIVET COLLEGE: $2,731,128 · EducationOLIVET COLLEGEALBION COLLEGE: $1,917,032 · EducationALBION COLLEGEAquinas College: $1,413,446 · EducationADRIAN COLLEGE: $1,369,212 · Education+9 more: $4,732,775 · Education+9 more
    Education$26,710,060

    Each grantee by its size and the funder’s share of it; top left is load-bearing

    25%50%75%100%$100Mgrantee revenue →↑ funder's share of their budgetKALAMAZOO COLLEGE: $10,787,061 over 9y, 1.6% of budgetHOPE COLLEGE: $3,759,406 over 9y, 0.3% of budgetOLIVET COLLEGE: $2,731,128 over 9y, 1.1% of budgetALBION COLLEGE: $1,917,032 over 9y, 0.3% of budgetAquinas College: $1,413,446 over 9y, 0.5% of budgetADRIAN COLLEGE: $1,369,212 over 9y, 0.2% of budgetALMA COLLEGE: $754,857 over 9y, 0.2% of budgetUNIVERSITY OF DETROIT MERCY: $681,878 over 9y, 0.1% of budgetCALVIN UNIVERSITY: $669,068 over 9y, 0.1% of budgetMadonna University: $618,811 over 9y, 0.2% of budgetSpring Arbor University: $590,233 over 9y, 0.2% of budgetANDREWS UNIVERSITY: $524,915 over 9y, 0.1% of budgetSIENA HEIGHTS UNIVERSITY: $450,297 over 9y, 0.1% of budgetHILLSDALE COLLEGE: $356,640 over 9y, 0.0% of budgetCOLLEGE FOR CREATIVE STUDIES: $86,076 over 2y, 0.1% 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 KALAMAZOO COLLEGE ↗
    • Who funds HOPE COLLEGE ↗
    • Who funds OLIVET COLLEGE ↗
    • Who funds ALBION COLLEGE ↗
    • Who funds Aquinas College ↗
    • Who funds ADRIAN COLLEGE ↗
    • Who funds ALMA COLLEGE ↗
    • Who funds UNIVERSITY OF DETROIT MERCY ↗
    • Who funds CALVIN UNIVERSITY ↗
    • Who funds Madonna University ↗
    • Who funds Spring Arbor University ↗
    • Who funds ANDREWS UNIVERSITY ↗
    • Who funds SIENA HEIGHTS UNIVERSITY ↗
    • Who funds HILLSDALE COLLEGE ↗
    • Who funds COLLEGE FOR CREATIVE STUDIES ↗

    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.

    Myer & Lois Franklin …The VombergTrumley Fo…Robert B Westfall Fou…The Gerber FoundationCommunity Foundation …Consumers Energy Foun…Community Foundation …The Pfizer Foundation…National Philanthropi…Raymond James Charita…Charities Aid Foundat…Morgan Stanley Global…
    Myer & Lois Franklin Charitable TrMI17.9× affinity6 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

    Open a dossier: Myer & Lois Franklin Charitable Tr · The VombergTrumley Foundation · Robert B Westfall Foundation · The Gerber Foundation · Community Foundation for Muskegon County · Consumers Energy Foundation · Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan · The Pfizer Foundation Inc · National Philanthropic Trust · Raymond James Charitable Endowment Fund · Charities Aid Foundation America · 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 Michigan Colleges Alliance funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Michigan Colleges Alliance. Bigger dots raise more.

    2025
    ’20’21’22’23’24’25
    no gov · 00%0%1%3%5%funder's share of their income ↑0%4%8%11%15%share of the org’s income from government →
      no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
      0get no government money at all
      3report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
      0rely on government for over half their income
      ⤢ axis zoomed · 0–15%
      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 15 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 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 Michigan Colleges Alliance’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