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Ralph L & Winifred E Polk Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

Ralph L & Winifred E Polk 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.

$759k
Granted FY2024still arriving
37
Grants FY2024still arriving
1
States reached
$100k
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, FY2020 to 2024.

Environment$780kArts & Culture$495kAnimals$495kHuman Services$435kEducation$353kHealth$342kYouth Development$330kFood & Nutrition$275kOther$0
02FY2024 · 37 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2024

  • Under $10k3 grants · $13k
  • $10k–50k30 grants · $496k
  • $50k–250k4 grants · $250k
$15,500
Median grant
1
States reached
$16M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
DETROIT ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY$100,000
GRAND TRAVERSE REGIONAL LAND CONSERVANCY$50,000
TRINITY HEALTH ST JOSEPH MERCY OAKLAND$50,000
THE NATURE CONSERVANCY$50,000
COLLEGE FOR CREATIVE STUDIES$25,000
CHERRYLAND HUMANE SOCIETY$25,000
MICHIGAN HUMANE SOCIETY$25,000
CRANBROOK EDUCATIONAL COMMUNITY$25,000
SAY DETROIT$20,000
MICHIGAN SCIENCE CENTER$20,000
Individual grant recipient$20,000
GLEANERS COMMUNITY FOOD BANK$20,000
CORNERSTONE SCHOOLS FOUNDATION$20,000
BOLDLI EXCEPTIONAL YOUTH SERVICES$20,000
INTERLOCHEN CENTER FOR THE ARTS$20,000
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 (FY20–24, $370k) land where the poverty rate runs at 11%, against an area that typically sits at 12%. 23% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Its grants skew toward lower-need ZIPs.

area typical 12%FATHER FRED FOUNDATION: $15k → 10%YMCA OF METROPOLITAN DETROIT: $20k → 21%FATHER FRED FOUNDATION: $15k → 10%YMCA OF METROPOLITAN DETROIT: $15k → 21%FATHER FRED FOUNDATION: $15k → 10%YMCA OF METROPOLITAN DETROIT: $15k → 21%FATHER FRED FOUNDATION: $15k → 10%YMCA OF METROPOLITAN DETROIT: $15k → 21%FATHER FRED FOUNDATION: $15k → 10%YMCA OF METROPOLITAN DETROIT: $10k → 21%STARFISH FAMILY SERVICES: $10k → 21%LEADER DOGS FOR THE BLIND: $10k → 8%LEADER DOGS FOR THE BLIND: $10k → 8%OAKLAND FAMILY SERVICES: $10k → 8%LEADER DOGS FOR THE BLIND: $10k → 8%OAKLAND FAMILY SERVICES: $10k → 8%LEADER DOGS FOR THE BLIND: $10k → 8%OAKLAND FAMILY SERVICES: $10k → 8%LEADER DOGS FOR THE BLIND: $10k → 8%OAKLAND FAMILY SERVICES: $10k → 8%ORCHARD CHILDRENS SERVICES: $10k → 8%LIGHTHOUSE OF OAKLAND COUNTY: $10k → 8%LIGHTHOUSE OF OAKLAND COUNTY: $10k → 8%LIGHTHOUSE OF OAKLAND COUNTY: $10k → 8%JUDSON CENTER: $20k → 8%JUDSON CENTER: $15k → 8%JUDSON CENTER: $15k → 8%JUDSON CENTER: $15k → 8%JUDSON CENTER: $15k → 8%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.

96%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$3.6M · 54 repeat orgs$171k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +40% since the first grant, against +16% for those funded once.

54 repeat relationships: 33 still active in FY2024, 21 since wound down; 3 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

54
14

Total granted

$3.6M
$125k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+40%
+16%

Still filing today

74%
36%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 94% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $46k 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 & CultureHuman ServicesEnvironmentEducationRecreation & SportsHealthOther
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

  • GT
    GRAND TRAVERSE REGIONAL LAND CONSERVANCY
    5× · 2020–2024 · $425k · revenue +230%
  • DZ
    DETROIT ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY
    5× · 2020–2024 · $245k · revenue +106%
  • FORGOTTEN HARVEST INC
    5× · 2020–2024 · $180k · revenue +2%

Funded once

  • CO
    COMMUNITY OPPORTUNITY CENTER
    one grant, 2022 · $15k
  • M
    MINDS
    one grant, 2020 · $10k
  • CG
    COMMON GROUNDgraduated
    one grant, 2022 · $10k · revenue +42%
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
Detroit Historical Society

The Detroit Historical Society tells Detroit's stories and why they matter through its exhibits, programs, outreach, and the preservation and dissemination of its artifacts and collections.

Arts & Culture
2
Michigan Enviromental Council

Informing and educating the public and decision makers about environmental issues.

Environment
3
Business Leaders for Michigan

Business leaders for michigan is a nonprofit, nonpartisan statewide organization driven by ceos from the state's leading employers, all working toward a shared goal: making michigan a top 10 state for jobs, talent and a thriving economy.…

—
4
Business Leaders for Michigan Foundation

Business leaders for michigan is a nonprofit, nonpartisan statewide organization driven by ceos from the state's leading employers, all working toward a shared goal: making michigan a top 10 state for jobs, talent and a thriving economy.…

Community Improvement
5
Michigan Legacy Art Park

Inspire awareness, appreciation and passion for michigan's history and stories, culture and environment through the arts.

Arts & Culture
6
Detroit Economic Growth Corporation

Promotion of activities to spur economic growth and revitalization in the city of detroit

—
7
Detroit Athletic Club

To create life-enriching experiences that build meaningful relations, foster personal and professional growth, and celebrate culture in the heart of detroit.

—
8
Michigan Chamber of Commerce

To promote conditions favorable to job creation and business success in michigan.

—
9
The Center for Michigan

For all state residents, diverse civic stakeholders and philanthropy, the center for michigan (the center) and its nonprofit newsrooms - bridge michigan and bridgedetroit - make michigan better through high-quality, nonpartisan journalism…

Public Benefit
10
Detroit Regional Chamber

The chamber is the voice for business and works to power the economy for southeast michigan through public policy, advocacy and leading regional economic development and talent initiatives.

—
11
The Northern Michigan University Foundation

The nmu foundation will establish and foster relationships to generate resources that benefit the strategic goals of northern michigan university.

Education
12
Community Education Commission

CEC works with diverse stakeholders across Detroit to develop critical resources and system-level solutions that address common challenges faced by Detroit families in accessing quality education.

Education
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Detroit Public Media; the most unlike its peers is Friends of Peninsula Community Library. 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

51 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. 51 of the 73 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)
9
Early backer (in before they grew)
49/51
Grantees still filing
40/51
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

THE NATURE CONSERVANCY: $165,000 · OtherTHE NATURE CONSERVANCYIndividual grant recipient: $82,000 · OtherIndividual grant recipient: $65,000 · OtherDETROIT INSTITUTE FOR CHILDREN: $100,000 · OtherDETROIT INSTITUTE FOR CHILDRENTRINITY HEALTH - MICHIGAN: $100,000 · OtherTRINITY HEALTH - MICHIGANMICHIGAN SCIENCE CENTER: $90,000 · OtherMICHIGAN SCIENCE CENTERCOLLEGE FOR CREATIVE STUDIES: $80,000 · OtherSAY DETROIT: $100,000 · OtherSAY DETROITTHE MIDNIGHT GOLF PROGRAM: $85,000 · Other+31 more: $735,500 · Other+31 moreGRAND TRAVERSE REGIONAL LAND CONSERVANCY: $425,000 · EnvironmentGRAND TRAVERSE R…THE GREENING OF DETROIT: $75,000 · EnvironmentTHE GREENING OF …INTERNATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE ALLIANCE: $25,000 · Environment+3 more: $35,000 · Environment+3 moreDETROIT ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY: $245,000 · AnimalsDETROIT ZOOLO…MICHIGAN HUMANE SOCIETY: $175,000 · AnimalsMICHIGAN HUMA…CHERRYLAND HUMANE SOCIETY: $65,000 · AnimalsCHERRYLAND HU…The Great Lakes Childrens Museum: $67,500 · Arts & CultureThe Great L…DETROIT PUBLIC MEDIA: $60,000 · Arts & CultureDETROIT PUB…INTERLOCHEN CENTER FOR THE ARTS: $60,000 · Arts & CultureINTERLOCHEN…DETROIT OPERA: $50,000 · Arts & CultureDETROIT OPE…AUTOMOTIVE HALL OF FAME INC: $50,000 · Arts & CultureAUTOMOTIVE …SPHINX ORGANIZATION INC: $30,000 · Arts & CultureSPHINX ORGA…MUSEUM OF AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY: $30,000 · Arts & CultureMUSEUM OF A…Birmingham Bloomfield Art Ctr Inc: $20,000 · Arts & Culture+2 more: $20,000 · Arts & CultureJUDSON CENTER INC: $80,000 · Human ServicesJUDSON CEN…FATHER FRED FOUNDATION: $75,000 · Human ServicesFATHER FRE…YMCA of Metropolitan Detroit: $75,000 · Human ServicesYMCA of Me…LEADER DOGS FOR THE BLIND: $50,000 · Human ServicesLEADER DOG…OAKLAND FAMILY SERVICES: $40,000 · Human ServicesOAKLAND FA…LIGHTHOUSE OF OAKLAND COUNTY: $30,000 · Human ServicesLIGHTHOUSE…+2 more: $20,000 · Human Services+2 moreRACQUET UP DETROIT: $180,000 · Recreation & SportsDETROIT RIVERFRONT CONSERVANCY INC: $65,000 · Recreation & SportsSPECIAL OLYMPICS MICHIGAN INC: $30,000 · Recreation & Sports+1 more: $5,000 · Recreation & SportsFORGOTTEN HARVEST INC: $180,000 · Food & NutritionGLEANERS COMMUNITY FOOD BANK OF SOUTHEASTERN MICHIGAN: $95,000 · Food & Nutrition
Other$1,602,500Environment$560,000Animals$485,000Arts & Culture$387,500Human Services$370,000Recreation & Sports$280,000Food & Nutrition$275,000

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 budgetGRAND TRAVERSE REGIONAL LAND CONSERVANCY: $425,000 over 5y, 1.4% of budgetDETROIT ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY: $245,000 over 5y, 0.2% of budgetFORGOTTEN HARVEST INC: $180,000 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetRACQUET UP DETROIT: $180,000 over 5y, 2.4% of budgetMICHIGAN HUMANE SOCIETY: $175,000 over 5y, 0.2% of budgetTHE NATURE CONSERVANCY: $165,000 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetDETROIT INSTITUTE FOR CHILDREN: $100,000 over 4y, 1.1% of budgetTRINITY HEALTH - MICHIGAN: $100,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetSAY DETROIT: $100,000 over 5y, 0.9% of budgetGLEANERS COMMUNITY FOOD BANK OF SOUTHEASTERN MICHIGAN: $95,000 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetMICHIGAN SCIENCE CENTER: $90,000 over 5y, 0.5% of budgetTHE MIDNIGHT GOLF PROGRAM: $85,000 over 5y, 0.9% of budgetJUDSON CENTER INC: $80,000 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetCOLLEGE FOR CREATIVE STUDIES: $80,000 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetFATHER FRED FOUNDATION: $75,000 over 5y, 0.8% of budgetTHE GREENING OF DETROIT: $75,000 over 5y, 0.5% of budgetYMCA of Metropolitan Detroit: $75,000 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetThe Great Lakes Childrens Museum: $67,500 over 5y, 5.8% of budgetCHERRYLAND HUMANE SOCIETY: $65,000 over 5y, 0.7% of budgetDETROIT RIVERFRONT CONSERVANCY INC: $65,000 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetDETROIT PUBLIC MEDIA: $60,000 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetINTERLOCHEN CENTER FOR THE ARTS: $60,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetLEADER DOGS FOR THE BLIND: $50,000 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetDETROIT OPERA: $50,000 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetBEAUMONT HEALTH FOUNDATION: $50,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetAUTOMOTIVE HALL OF FAME INC: $50,000 over 5y, 1.6% of budgetCOMMUNITY HOUSE FOUNDATION: $40,000 over 4y, 1.8% of budgetOAKLAND FAMILY SERVICES: $40,000 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetCRANBROOK EDUCATIONAL COMMUNITY: $40,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetCOTS: $35,000 over 3y, 0.2% of budgetREACH OUT AND READ INC: $30,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetSPHINX ORGANIZATION INC: $30,000 over 3y, 0.3% of budgetMUSEUM OF AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY: $30,000 over 3y, 0.2% of budgetSPECIAL OLYMPICS MICHIGAN INC: $30,000 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetDETROIT REGIONAL CHAMBER FOUNDATION INC: $30,000 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetLIGHTHOUSE OF OAKLAND COUNTY: $30,000 over 3y, 18% of budgetINTERNATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE ALLIANCE: $25,000 over 5y, 1.2% of budgetBirmingham Bloomfield Art Ctr Inc: $20,000 over 2y, 0.8% of budgetTHREE PILLARS AN EDUCATIONAL SERVICE PROVIDER: $20,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetHumble Design Inc: $15,500 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetSEVEN PONDS RESERVE FUND: $15,000 over 3y, 55% of budgetFRIENDS OF PENINSULA COMMUNITY LIBRARY: $15,000 over 5y, 13% of budgetINLAND SEAS EDUCATION ASSOCIATION: $10,000 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetCOMMON GROUND: $10,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetMICHIGAN THANKSGIVING PARADE FOUNDATION: $10,000 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetTHE DETROIT INSTITUTE OF ARTS: $10,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetSEVEN PONDS NATURE CENTER INC: $10,000 over 2y, 0.9% of budgetSTARFISH FAMILY SERVICES INC: $10,000 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.

  • Who funds GRAND TRAVERSE REGIONAL LAND CONSERVANCY ↗
  • Who funds DETROIT ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY ↗
  • Who funds FORGOTTEN HARVEST INC ↗
  • Who funds RACQUET UP DETROIT ↗
  • Who funds MICHIGAN HUMANE SOCIETY ↗
  • Who funds THE NATURE CONSERVANCY ↗
  • Who funds DETROIT INSTITUTE FOR CHILDREN ↗
  • Who funds TRINITY HEALTH - MICHIGAN ↗
  • Who funds SAY DETROIT ↗
  • Who funds GLEANERS COMMUNITY FOOD BANK OF SOUTHEASTERN MICHIGAN ↗
  • Who funds MICHIGAN SCIENCE CENTER ↗
  • Who funds THE MIDNIGHT GOLF PROGRAM ↗
  • Who funds JUDSON CENTER INC ↗
  • Who funds COLLEGE FOR CREATIVE STUDIES ↗
  • Who funds FATHER FRED FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds THE GREENING OF DETROIT ↗
  • Who funds YMCA of Metropolitan Detroit ↗
  • Who funds The Great Lakes Childrens Museum ↗
  • Who funds CHERRYLAND HUMANE SOCIETY ↗
  • Who funds DETROIT RIVERFRONT CONSERVANCY INC ↗
  • Who funds DETROIT PUBLIC MEDIA ↗
  • Who funds INTERLOCHEN CENTER FOR THE ARTS ↗
  • Who funds LEADER DOGS FOR THE BLIND ↗
  • Who funds DETROIT OPERA ↗
  • Who funds BEAUMONT HEALTH FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds AUTOMOTIVE HALL OF FAME INC ↗
  • Who funds COMMUNITY HOUSE FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds OAKLAND FAMILY SERVICES ↗
  • Who funds CRANBROOK EDUCATIONAL COMMUNITY ↗
  • Who funds COTS ↗
  • Who funds REACH OUT AND READ INC ↗
  • Who funds SPHINX ORGANIZATION 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.

DTE Energy FoundationCommunity Foundation …The Kresge FoundationFord PhilanthropyUnited Way for Southe…The Carls FoundationThe Fred & Barbara Er…The Barton Malow Foun…Ethel and James Flinn…United Jewish Foundat…WK Kellogg FoundationWorld Heritage Founda…
DTE Energy FoundationMI42.8× affinity19 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: DTE Energy Foundation · Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan · The Kresge Foundation · Ford Philanthropy · United Way for Southeastern Michigan · The Carls Foundation · The Fred & Barbara Erb Family Foundation · The Barton Malow Foundation · Ethel and James Flinn Foundation · United Jewish Foundation · WK Kellogg Foundation · World Heritage 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 Ralph L & Winifred E Polk Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Ralph L & Winifred E Polk Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%4%15%34%60%funder's share of their income ↑0%25%50%75%100%share of the org’s income from government →median 9%
  • Reach Out and Read Inc: 9% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
0get 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
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 73 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 Ralph L & Winifred E Polk’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