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Plough Foundation at a glanceAlso receives grants: funding profile →

· Private foundation

Plough Foundation

Its FY2025 filing reports that it accepted unsolicited grant applications.

$5.3M
Granted FY2023
6
Grants FY2023
1
States reached
$2.0M
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead
01What it funds
0199% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2017 to 2023.

Human Services$18MPhilanthropy$16MReligion$15MArts & Culture$11MEducation$9.6MHealth$8.6MHousing & Shelter$3.0MFood & Nutrition$2.0MOther$0
02FY2023 · 6 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2023

  • $50k–250k2 grants · $400k
  • $250k+4 grants · $4.9M
$1,000,000
Median grant
1
States reached
$23M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
YOUTH VILLAGES$2,000,000
METROPOLITAN INTER-FAITH ASSOCIATION (MIFA)$1,500,000
MEMPHIS LIBRARY FOUNDATION$1,000,000
FACING HISTORY AND OURSELVES$400,000
MEMPHIS BROOKS MUSEUM OF ART$200,000
MEMPHIS SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA$200,000
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 (FY17–23, $12.2M) land where the poverty rate runs at 17%, against an area that typically sits at 11%. 99% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 11%GRANTMAKERS IN AGING INC: $62k → 7%GRANTMAKERS IN AGING INC: $12k → 7%GRANTMAKERS IN AGING INC: $6k → 7%GRANTMAKERS IN AGING INC: $2k → 7%KAVOD: $13k → 17%KAVOD: $7k → 17%SHELBY RESIDENTIAL AND VOCATIONAL SERVICES: $100k → 17%KAVOD: $7k → 17%KAVOD: $7k → 17%OUTMEMPHIS: $125k → 17%HOPE HOUSE: $50k → 17%FRIENDS FOR LIFE: $50k → 17%OUTMEMPHIS: $37k → 17%SERVICE OVER SELF: $40k → 17%WOMEN'S FOUNDATION FOR A GREATER MEMPHIS: $150k → 17%WOMEN'S FOUNDATION FOR A GREATER MEMPHIS: $150k → 17%COMMUNITY ALLIANCE FOR THE HOMELESS INC: $60k → 17%COMMUNITY ALLIANCE FOR THE HOMELESS INC: $60k → 17%COMMUNITY ALLIANCE FOR THE HOMELESS INC: $60k → 17%MERITAN INC: $32k → 17%METROPOLITAN INTER-FAITH ASSOCIATION (MIFA): $1.5M → 17%METROPOLITAN INTER-FAITH ASSOCIATION (MIFA): $1.4M → 17%METROPOLITAN INTER-FAITH ASSOCIATION (MIFA): $1.1M → 17%METROPOLITAN INTER-FAITH ASSOCIATION (MIFA): $1.0M → 17%METROPOLITAN INTER-FAITH ASSOCIATION (MIFA): $500k → 17%METROPOLITAN INTER-FAITH ASSOCIATION (MIFA): $490k → 17%COMMUNITY LEGAL CENTER: $35k → 17%COMMUNITY LEGAL CENTER: $35k → 17%COMMUNITY LEGAL CENTER: $32k → 17%YOUTH VILLAGES: $2.0M → 17%YOUTH VILLAGES: $2.0M → 17%YOUTH VILLAGES: $250k → 17%YOUTH VILLAGES: $250k → 17%YOUTH VILLAGES: $250k → 17%MERITAN INC: $332k → 17%MERITAN INC: $39k → 17%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.

91%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$73M · 53 repeat orgs$6.8M to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +25% since the first grant, against -4% for those funded once.

53 repeat relationships: 6 still active in FY2023, 47 since wound down.

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

53
51

Total granted

$73M
$6.8M

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+25%
-4%

Still filing today

79%
65%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2023, 100% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $0 went to new ones.

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

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

’17’18’19’20’21’22’23
Arts & CultureHuman ServicesHealthEducationHousing & ShelterCrime & LegalOther
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

  • MI
    Metropolitan Inter-Faith Association
    6× · 2017–2023 · $5.9M · revenue +33%
  • A
    ARTSMEMPHIS
    5× · 2018–2022 · $5.3M · revenue +18% · 52% of their budget
  • YOUTH VILLAGES INC
    5× · 2017–2023 · $4.8M · revenue +140%

Funded once

  • BD
    Binghampton Development Corporation
    one grant, 2017 · $600k · revenue -59%
  • CP
    CIRCUIT PLAYHOUSE INC
    one grant, 2019 · $500k · revenue -12%
  • MJ
    MEMPHIS JEWISH HOUSING DEVELOPMENT- PLOUGH TOWERS
    one grant, 2021 · $421k · revenue -4%
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
Mayor's Institute for Excellence in Government Inc

Develop and implement programs to meet major urban challenges that exist for memphis, tennessee

Public Benefit
2
Memphis Area Chamber of Commerce

To serve our members and partners by improving the quality of life through regional economic prosperity.

—
3
Memphis Center City Development Corporation

Assist private development projects

—
4
One Family Memphis
Human Services
5
Memphis Recovery Centers Inc

Memphis recovery centers, inc. (mrc) provides compassionate treatment services for youth and adults suffering from substance addiction and co-occurring disorders, utilizing professional methods to improve spiritual, physical, emotional,…

Health
6
City Leadership

City leadership's mission is to recruit, develop, and catalyze leaders for the benefit of the city of memphis. the organization was founded in order to maximize the leadership capital and potential of memphis. city leadership strives to…

Public Benefit
7
The Meadows Housing Corporation Inc

To provide housing and services to low, very low, and extremely low income families.

Housing & Shelter
8
Memphis Bioworks Foundation

The foundation is executing a strategic business plan that leverages the competitive strengths within the region while expanding the infrastructure, educational opportunities, and entrepreneur support needed to expand entrepreneurship.

Health
9
Memphis Academy of Science and Engineeri

To produce lifelong learners, critical thinkers, effective communicators, and productive members of the global community

Education
10
Mississippi Methodist Hospital Rehabilitation Center Inc

In response to the love of god, the methodist rehabilitation center, is dedicated to the restoration and enhancement of the lives of those we serve. we are committed to excellence and leadership in the delivery of comprehensive…

Health
11
Ronald McDonald House Charities of Memphis Inc

Ronald McDonald House Charities of Memphis, Inc. sees a world where every family has what they need to ensure the best health outcomes for their children. They provide essential services that remove barriers, strengthen families, and…

Health
12
Methodist Medical Center

Methodist Medical Center provides quality healthcare, in alignment with Covenant Health's mission to serve the community by improving the quality of life through better health regardless of a patient's ability to pay.

Health
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Memphis Chamber Foundation; the most unlike its peers is Common Table Health Alliance. 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

79 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. 79 of the 106 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)
18
Early backer (in before they grew)
77/79
Grantees still filing
47/79
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

TEMPLE ISRAEL: $14,666,666 · OtherTEMPLE ISRAELMEMPHIS JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTER: $4,000,000 · OtherMEMPHIS JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTERHabitat for Humanity: $1,400,000 · OtherFAMILY SAFETY CENTER: $1,212,250 · Other+51 more: $14,582,117 · Other+51 moreMEMPHIS JEWISH FEDERATION: $10,800,000 · PhilanthropyMEMPHIS JEWISH FEDE…UNITED WAY OF THE MID SOUTH: $5,000,000 · PhilanthropyUNITED WAY OF THE M…+3 more: $88,508 · PhilanthropyMetropolitan Inter-Faith Association: $5,922,774 · Human ServicesMetropolitan In…YOUTH VILLAGES INC: $4,750,000 · Human ServicesYOUTH VILLAGES …+12 more: $1,540,160 · Human Services+12 moreARTSMEMPHIS: $5,300,000 · Arts & CultureARTSMEMPHISMEMPHIS SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA INC: $1,000,000 · Arts & CultureMEMPHIS SYM…Memphis Brooks Museum of Art Inc: $1,000,000 · Arts & CultureMemphis Bro…CIRCUIT PLAYHOUSE INC: $500,000 · Arts & CultureCIRCUIT PLA…THEATRE MEMPHIS: $350,000 · Arts & CultureOPERA MEMPHIS INC: $320,000 · Arts & Culture+9 more: $762,719 · Arts & Culture+9 moreMEMPHIS LIBRARY FOUNDATION: $4,032,366 · EducationMEMPHIS LI…Rhodes College: $1,795,000 · EducationRhodes Col…UNIVERSITY OF MEMPHIS FOUNDATION: $1,000,000 · EducationUNIVERSITY…CHRISTIAN BROTHERS UNIVERSITY: $877,459 · EducationCHRISTIAN …+4 more: $500,000 · Education+4 moreB'NAI B'RITH HOME AND HOSPITAL FOR AGED INC (D/B/A MEMPHIS JEWISH HOME & REHAB): $4,001,600 · HealthLe Bonheur Children's Hospital Foundation: $1,000,000 · HealthTHE UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEEWEST INSTITUTE FOR CANCER RESEARCH: $1,000,000 · HealthCHURCH HEALTH CENTER OF MEMPHIS INC: $475,000 · HealthMethodist Healthcare Foundation: $250,000 · Health+3 more: $159,478 · HealthMID-SOUTH FOOD BANK: $2,050,000 · Food & Nutrition
Other$35,861,033Philanthropy$15,888,508Human Services$12,212,934Arts & Culture$9,232,719Education$8,204,825Health$6,886,078Food & Nutrition$2,050,000

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 budgetMEMPHIS JEWISH FEDERATION: $10,800,000 over 6y, 87% of budgetMetropolitan Inter-Faith Association: $5,922,774 over 6y, 16% of budgetARTSMEMPHIS: $5,300,000 over 5y, 52% of budgetUNITED WAY OF THE MID SOUTH: $5,000,000 over 2y, 23% of budgetYOUTH VILLAGES INC: $4,750,000 over 5y, 0.7% of budgetMEMPHIS LIBRARY FOUNDATION: $4,032,366 over 3y, 59% of budgetB'NAI B'RITH HOME AND HOSPITAL FOR AGED INC (D/B/A MEMPHIS JEWISH HOME & REHAB): $4,001,600 over 4y, 6.1% of budgetMEMPHIS JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTER: $4,000,000 over 3y, 16% of budgetMID-SOUTH FOOD BANK: $2,050,000 over 3y, 3.2% of budgetRhodes College: $1,795,000 over 3y, 0.6% of budgetHabitat for Humanity: $1,400,000 over 3y, 65% of budgetLe Bonheur Children's Hospital Foundation: $1,000,000 over 2y, 2.6% of budgetUNIVERSITY OF MEMPHIS FOUNDATION: $1,000,000 over 4y, 1.2% of budgetMEMPHIS SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA INC: $1,000,000 over 5y, 5.9% of budgetTHE UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEEWEST INSTITUTE FOR CANCER RESEARCH: $1,000,000 over 2y, 25% of budgetMEMPHIS UNION MISSON: $1,000,000 over 2y, 6.7% of budgetMemphis Brooks Museum of Art Inc: $1,000,000 over 5y, 2.6% of budgetMEMPHISSHELBY CRIME COMMISSION: $891,666 over 5y, 13% of budgetCHRISTIAN BROTHERS UNIVERSITY: $877,459 over 6y, 0.3% of budgetAGAPE CHILD AND FAMILY SERVICES INC: $650,000 over 5y, 2.0% of budgetBinghampton Development Corporation: $600,000 over 1y, 15% of budgetCIRCUIT PLAYHOUSE INC: $500,000 over 1y, 17% of budgetCHURCH HEALTH CENTER OF MEMPHIS INC: $475,000 over 3y, 0.8% of budgetMEMPHIS JEWISH HOUSING DEVELOPMENT- PLOUGH TOWERS: $421,000 over 1y, 22% of budgetMERITAN INC: $403,307 over 3y, 2.1% of budgetLITERACY MID-SOUTH INC: $375,000 over 4y, 21% of budgetTHEATRE MEMPHIS: $350,000 over 1y, 6.8% of budgetMEMPHIS CHAMBER FOUNDATION: $350,000 over 3y, 46% of budgetOPERA MEMPHIS INC: $320,000 over 1y, 18% of budgetHARWOOD CENTER INC: $300,000 over 1y, 15% of budgetPORTER-LEATH: $300,000 over 1y, 0.7% of budgetWOMEN'S FOUNDATION FOR A GREATER MEMPHIS: $300,000 over 2y, 12% of budgetWOLF RIVER CONSERVANCY INC: $270,000 over 3y, 7.7% of budgetBAPTIST MEMORIAL COLLEGE OF HEALTH SCIENCES INC: $250,000 over 1y, 1.3% of budgetDixon Gallery and Gardens: $250,000 over 3y, 1.5% of budgetGERMANTOWN PERFORMING ARTS CENTER: $250,000 over 1y, 10% of budgetMEMPHIS BOTANIC GARDEN FOUNDATION INC: $250,000 over 1y, 6.1% of budgetKNOWLEDGE QUEST INC: $250,000 over 1y, 17% of budgetMethodist Healthcare Foundation: $250,000 over 1y, 4.1% of budgetBRIDGES USA INC: $200,000 over 2y, 3.1% of budgetCOMMUNITY ALLIANCE FOR THE HOMELESS: $180,000 over 3y, 3.8% of budgetSouthern College of Optometry: $175,000 over 2y, 0.3% of budgetOUTMEMPHIS: $162,000 over 2y, 15% of budgetNEW MEMPHIS INSTITUTE: $150,000 over 2y, 3.7% of budgetBALLET MEMPHIS CORPORATION: $150,000 over 2y, 0.9% of budgetMEMPHIS TOMORROW: $150,000 over 3y, 4.3% of budgetTHE CAMPBELL FOUNDATION: $119,000 over 1y, 4.2% of budgetThe Works Inc: $108,517 over 1y, 30% 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 MEMPHIS JEWISH FEDERATION ↗
  • Who funds Metropolitan Inter-Faith Association ↗
  • Who funds ARTSMEMPHIS ↗
  • Who funds UNITED WAY OF THE MID SOUTH ↗
  • Who funds YOUTH VILLAGES INC ↗
  • Who funds MEMPHIS LIBRARY FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds B'NAI B'RITH HOME AND HOSPITAL FOR AGED INC (D/B/A MEMPHIS JEWISH HOME & REHAB) ↗
  • Who funds MEMPHIS JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTER ↗
  • Who funds MID-SOUTH FOOD BANK ↗
  • Who funds Rhodes College ↗
  • Who funds Habitat for Humanity ↗
  • Who funds Le Bonheur Children's Hospital Foundation ↗
  • Who funds UNIVERSITY OF MEMPHIS FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds MEMPHIS SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA INC ↗
  • Who funds THE UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEEWEST INSTITUTE FOR CANCER RESEARCH ↗
  • Who funds MEMPHIS UNION MISSON ↗
  • Who funds Memphis Brooks Museum of Art Inc ↗
  • Who funds MEMPHISSHELBY CRIME COMMISSION ↗
  • Who funds CHRISTIAN BROTHERS UNIVERSITY ↗
  • Who funds AGAPE CHILD AND FAMILY SERVICES INC ↗
  • Who funds Binghampton Development Corporation ↗
  • Who funds CIRCUIT PLAYHOUSE INC ↗
  • Who funds CHURCH HEALTH CENTER OF MEMPHIS INC ↗
  • Who funds MEMPHIS JEWISH HOUSING DEVELOPMENT- PLOUGH TOWERS ↗
  • Who funds MERITAN INC ↗
  • Who funds LITERACY MID-SOUTH INC ↗
  • Who funds THEATRE MEMPHIS ↗
  • Who funds MEMPHIS CHAMBER FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds OPERA MEMPHIS INC ↗
  • Who funds HARWOOD CENTER 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.

Community Foundation …Christian Community F…Jr Hyde III Family Fo…Thomas W Briggs Found…The Kemmons Wilson Fa…United Way of the Mid…The Assisi Foundation…Belz FoundationThe Urban Child Insti…Self FoundationJewish Foundation of …Rose Montgomery Johns…
Community Foundation of Greater Memphis IncTN90.4× affinity53 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Community Foundation of Greater Memphis Inc · Christian Community Foundation of Memphis · Jr Hyde III Family Foundation · Thomas W Briggs Foundation Inc · The Kemmons Wilson Family Foundation · United Way of the Mid South · The Assisi Foundation of Memphis Inc · Belz Foundation · The Urban Child Institute · Self Foundation · Jewish Foundation of Memphis · Rose Montgomery Johnston 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 Plough Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Plough Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%6%25%56%100%funder's share of their income ↑0%25%50%75%100%share of the org’s income from government →
    no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
    0get no government money at all
    26report 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 Plough Foundation?

    Find your warmest path to Plough 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 106 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 2023, released 2023. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

    Possibly out of date. A more recent filing (FY2025) is on record but names no grant recipient in the published copy, so the figures above are from FY2023, the most recent year this funder’s grantee list reached the public record.

    Source object · view filing

    Play a game based on Plough’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