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Opus Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

Opus 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.

$615k
Granted FY2018
12
Grants FY2018
5
States reached
$225k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead

Read this first · the figures below need context

80% of Opus Foundation’s FY2024 grant dollars went to Brown University, not to grantees.

Its money now reaches organizations through that sponsor, which does not report who recommended each grant. FY2024 names 1 organization directly, so a portfolio cannot be read from it. Everything below is therefore FY2018, the last year Opus Foundation named its own grantees at scale: 10 organizations, $615k. It is dated, not current.

Organizations named directly on the return

6
’17
10
’18
7
’19
4
’20
1
’21
1
’22
1
’23
1
’24

Amber years are those where most dollars went to a sponsor.

01What it funds
0198% classified

What it funded, over time

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

Education$5.2MArts & Culture$485kRecreation & Sports$450kEnvironment$105kYouth Development$81kHealth$15kHuman Services$3kOther$0
02FY2018 · 12 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2018

  • Under $10k3 grants · $7k
  • $10k–50k6 grants · $148k
  • $50k–250k3 grants · $460k
$25,000
Median grant
5
States reached
$627k
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
UCI FOUNDATION$225,000
PACIFIC SYMPHONY$135,000
YOSEMITE CONSERVANCY$100,000
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY$35,000
RHODE ISLAND SCHOOL OF DESIGN$25,000
ST MARGARET'S EPISCOPAL SCHOOL$25,000
BROWN UNIVERSITY$23,494
ORANGEWOOD FOUNDATION$20,000
DARTMOUTH COLLEGE$20,000
MISSION HOSPITAL$5,000
CHILDHELP$1,000
BOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF CYPRESS$1,000
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 (FY17–19, $3k) land where the poverty rate runs at 11%, 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%CHILDHELP: $1k → 11%CHILDHELP: $1k → 11%CHILDHELP: $930 → 11%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.

86%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$2.4M · 7 repeat orgs$401k to everyone else

7 repeat relationships: 6 still active in FY2018, 1 since wound down; 6 grantees were first funded in FY2018 (too recent to call). Read against FY2018, the last year this funder named its own grantees directly; its giving has since run through a sponsor, which reports no donor behind each grant.

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

7
3

Total granted

$2.4M
$50k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+40%
+155%

Still filing today

86%
67%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 100% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $0 went to new ones.

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

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

’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24
EducationRecreation & SportsHealthArts & CultureEnvironmentHuman ServicesOther
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

  • RHODE ISLAND SCHOOL OF DESIGN
    6× · 2017–2022 · $1.3M · revenue +42%
  • PS
    Pacific Symphony
    4× · 2017–2020 · $485k · revenue +87%
  • IM
    International Mountain Bicycling Association
    3× · 2020–2024 · $450k · revenue +40%

Funded once

  • PU
    PRINCETON UNIVERSITY - THE PARENTS FUND
    one grant, 2017 · $25k
  • SA
    SAMUELI ACADEMYgraduated
    one grant, 2017 · $20k · revenue +155%
  • OI
    OCEANA INC
    one grant, 2017 · $5k · revenue -28%
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
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
2
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
3
Pacific University

A diverse and sustainable learning community dedicated to discovery and excellence in teaching, scholarship and practice, pacific university inspires students to think, care, create and pursue justice in our world.

Education
4
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
5
Boston Architectural College

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

—
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
University of the Pacific

To provide a superior, student-centered learning experience integrating liberal arts and professional education and preparing individuals for lasting achievement and responsible leadership in their careers and communities.

Education
8
University of Southern California

The central mission of the university of southern california is the development of human beings and society as a whole through the cultivation and enrichment of the human mind and spirit. the principal means by which our mission is…

Education
9
Stony Brook Ophthalmology University Faculty Practice Corporation

Provide clinical instruction to and supervision of medical school students, interns and residents and, incident thereto, rendering professional services.

Health
10
The Uc Davis Foundation

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

Education
11
University of Redlands

We welcome, educate, and empower a diverse community of learners for lives of meaning, impact, and joy.

Education
12
Stony Brook Urology University Faculty Practice Corporation

Provide clinical instruction to and supervision of medical school students, interns and residents and, incident thereto, rendering professional services.

Health
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is University of California Irvine Foundation; the most unlike its peers is Cure GM1 Incorporated. 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

16 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. 16 of the 19 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)
0
Early backer (in before they grew)
16/16
Grantees still filing
14/16
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

Trustees of Dartmouth College: $1,520,000 · EducationTrustees of Dartmouth CollegeRHODE ISLAND SCHOOL OF DESIGN: $1,301,364 · EducationRHODE ISLAND SCHOOL OF DESIGNUNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA IRVINE FOUNDATION: $225,000 · EducationUNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA IRVINE FOUNDATION+3 more: $100,620 · EducationBROWN UNIVERSITY: $2,025,629 · Community ImprovementBROWN UNIVERSITYInternational Mountain Bicycling Association: $450,000 · Recreation & SportsInternati…YOSEMITE FOUNDATION: $100,000 · Recreation & SportsYOSEMITE …Pacific Symphony: $485,000 · Arts & CultureST MARGARETS EPISCOPAL SCHOOL: $70,000 · OtherPRINCETON UNIVERSITY - THE PARENTS FUND: $25,000 · OtherIndividual grant recipient: $10,000 · OtherOCEANA INC: $5,000 · Other+2 more: $3,930 · OtherORANGEWOOD FOUNDATION: $60,000 · Crime & LegalCURE GM1 INCORPORATED: $10,000 · HealthMISSION HOSPITAL REGIONAL MEDICAL CENTER: $5,000 · Health
Education$3,146,984Community Improvement$2,025,629Recreation & Sports$550,000Arts & Culture$485,000Other$113,930Crime & Legal$60,000Health$15,000

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 budgetBROWN UNIVERSITY: $2,025,629 over 7y, 0.1% of budgetTrustees of Dartmouth College: $1,520,000 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetRHODE ISLAND SCHOOL OF DESIGN: $1,301,364 over 6y, 0.5% of budgetPacific Symphony: $485,000 over 4y, 0.7% of budgetInternational Mountain Bicycling Association: $450,000 over 3y, 4.9% of budgetUNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA IRVINE FOUNDATION: $225,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetYOSEMITE FOUNDATION: $100,000 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetORANGEWOOD FOUNDATION: $60,000 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetThe Trustees of Princeton University: $60,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetUCLA FOUNDATION: $20,620 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetSAMUELI ACADEMY: $20,000 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetCURE GM1 INCORPORATED: $10,000 over 1y, 2.7% of budgetOCEANA INC: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetMISSION HOSPITAL REGIONAL MEDICAL CENTER: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCHILDHELP INC: $2,930 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetBOYS & GIRLS CLUBS OF GREATER ANAHEIM-CYPRESS: $1,000 over 1y, 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.

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.

Morgan Stanley Global…Fidelity Investments …Amazonsmile Foundation
Morgan Stanley Global Impact Funding Trust IncIN10× affinity4 shared granteesties to 2 of 2Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Morgan Stanley Global Impact Funding Trust Inc · Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund · Amazonsmile 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 Opus Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Opus Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%0%1%3%5%funder's share of their income ↑0%13%25%38%50%share of the org’s income from government →median 11%
  • The Trustees of Princeton University: 11% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
0get no government money at all
4report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
0rely on government for over half their income
⤢ axis zoomed · 0–50%
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 Opus Foundation?

Find your warmest path to Opus 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 19 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 2018, released 2018. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

Source object · view filing

Play a game based on Opus’ 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