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Ruth Asawa Fund at a glance

· Public charity

Ruth Asawa Fund

Mission statement: to support education in the performing and visual arts in non-profit private and public elementary and secondary schools in san francisco, california

$122k
Granted FY2025still arriving
5
Grants FY2025still arriving
1
States reached
$56k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead
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.

Arts & Culture$340kYouth Development$5kHuman Services$2k
02FY2025 · 5 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

How this is measured
The 5 grants below total $116,633, the rows itemized in this filing. The $121,633 headline is the total grant expense on the return; the other $5,000 is giving the schedule does not break out (grants under the $5,000 itemization floor, grants to individuals, grants on other schedules). Every figure below describes the itemized rows only.

By grant size · FY2025

  • Under $10k1 grant · $6k
  • $10k–50k3 grants · $55k
  • $50k–250k1 grant · $56k
$20,000
Median grant
1
States reached
$789k
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
RUTH ASAWA SCHOOL OF THE ARTS$56,133
FRIENDS OF SCRAP INC$25,000
CANTOR ARTS CENTER AT STANFORD$20,000
SAN JOSE MUSEUM OF ART$10,000
JAMES LICK MIDDLE SCHOOL - PTSA$5,500
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 (FY18–21, $12k) land where the poverty rate runs at 10%, against an area that typically sits at 11%. 0% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Its grants skew toward lower-need ZIPs.

area typical 11%THE ARC OF SAN FRANCISCO: $2k → 10%YOUTH ARTS EXCHANGE TIDE CENTER: $5k → 10%YOUTH ART EXCHANGE: $5k → 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.
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.
04

Where the work is directed

The same grants placed two ways: where each recipient sits, and where its stated purpose sends the money.

About 6% of Ruth Asawa Fund’s grant dollars are earmarked for a different county than the recipient’s own address. By recipient address, 95% of the giving stays in CA; by stated purpose, 100%.

Ruth Asawa Fundlessmore of its giving
Placed by recipient address
How this is measured
Recipient view: each grant at its grantee’s ZIP, mapped to a county. Directed view: each grant at the county its stated purpose names, falling back to the recipient’s county when the purpose names no place; US grants only. A county shows only if it carries the top 95% of that view’s dollars. Purposes are read from the funder’s own 990 grant descriptions.
03Its grantees
repeat funding

Who it funds again

Organizations funded in more than one year, against those funded once.

57%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$182k · 5 repeat orgs$135k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +53% since the first grant, against +46% for those funded once.

5 repeat relationships: 2 still active in FY2025, 3 since wound down; 2 grantees were first funded in FY2025 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

5
12

Total granted

$182k
$69k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+53%
+46%

Still filing today

100%
75%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2025, 32% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $66k went to new ones.

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

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

’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’25
Arts & CultureEnvironmentHuman ServicesEducationRecreation & SportsOther
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

  • FO
    Friends of SCRAP Inc
    9× · 2017–2025 · $150k · revenue +143%
  • SF
    San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Company
    2× · 2018–2019 · $6k · revenue +631%
  • CM
    COMMUNITY MUSIC CENTER
    2× · 2018–2021 · $6k · revenue +53%

Funded once

  • CC
    CHINESE CULTURE FOUNDATION OF SAN FRANCISCO
    one grant, 2023 · $15k · revenue -29%
  • A
    ARTSMARTgraduated
    one grant, 2020 · $10k · revenue +148%
  • SM
    STAVANGER MUSEUM
    one grant, 2023 · $8k
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
San Francisco High School of the Arts

San Francisco Arts and Science Academy (ASA) provides TK5 grade students with a strong foundation in the arts, language, math, and science, fostering creativity, curiosity, and character development. Our bilingual, hands-on curriculum…

Education
2
Art Foundation
Arts & Culture
3
California Institute of Contemporary Art
—
4
San Francisco Art Studio Foundation
—
5
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art

See schedule osfmoma believes the art of our time is vital and shares it with passion and purpose, and that art and the creative process can open minds and help build a better world. for that reason, we assemble unparalleled collections,…

Arts & Culture
6
San Francisco Jazz Organization

The san francisco jazz organization (the organization) is a recognized international leader in jazz creation, presentation, and education. the organization explores the full spectrum of jazz, from the music's origins in the african…

Arts & Culture
7
San Francisco Filipino Cultural Center
Arts & Culture
8
Young Audiences of Northern California

Young audiences creates art experiences that inspire young people, expand learning, and enliven communities.

Arts & Culture
9
San Francisco Ballet Association

Sf ballet's mission is to shape ballet's future by creating works of (see sch. o) uncompromising excellence, identifying and developing extraordinary talent, and serving as a catalys for cultural transformation. we blend innovation with…

Arts & Culture
10
Los Gatos Museum Association

Engaging community at the intersection of art, history and education through innovative, locally connected and globally relevant exhibits, programs and experiences.

—
11
Oakland Museum of California

The museum's mission is to inspire all californians to create a more vibrant future for themselves and their communities. through collections, exhibitions, education programs, and public dialogue, we inspire people of all ages and…

Arts & Culture
12
Oakland Ballet Company

Oakland Ballet Company's mission is to inspire the community by keeping the tradition of ballet exciting, vibrant and accessible.

Arts & Culture
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is San Francisco Youth Theatre; the most unlike its peers is James Lick Middle School Ptsa. Resemblance is measured on each organization’s own IRS 990 mission text; it reflects how work is described, not its quality or impact.
05the grantee network

19 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. 19 of the 21 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)
5
Early backer (in before they grew)
19/19
Grantees still filing
13/19
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

Friends of SCRAP Inc: $150,000 · EnvironmentFriends of SCRAP IncPTA CALIFORNIA CONGRESS OF PARENTS TEACHERS & STUDENTS INC: $56,133 · OtherPTA CALIFORNIA CONGRESS OF PA…James Lick Middle School PTSA: $10,200 · OtherJames Lick Middle School PTSASTAVANGER MUSEUM: $8,000 · OtherSTAVANGER MUSEUMYERBA BUENA CENTER RAPID RELIEF FUND: $5,000 · OtherYERBA BUENA CENTER RAPID RELI…PTA CALIFORNIA CONGRESS OF PTA ALVARADO SCHOOL: $5,000 · OtherPTA CALIFORNIA CONGRESS OF PT…Individual grant recipient: $5,000 · OtherIndividual grant recipientCHINESE CULTURE FOUNDATION OF SAN FRANCISCO: $15,000 · Arts & CultureCHINESE CULTURE FOUNDA…ARTSMART: $10,000 · Arts & CultureARTSMARTPerforming Arts Workshop Inc: $10,000 · Arts & CulturePerforming Arts Worksh…SAN JOSE MUSEUM OF ART ASSOCIATION: $10,000 · Arts & CultureSAN JOSE MUSEUM OF ART…San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Company: $6,088 · Arts & CultureSan Francisco Bay Area…COMMUNITY MUSIC CENTER: $6,000 · Arts & CultureCOMMUNITY MUSIC CENTERSAN FRANCISCO YOUTH THEATRE: $5,000 · Arts & CultureSAN FRANCISCO YOUTH TH…AMERICAN CONSERVATORY THEATRE FOUNDATION: $5,000 · Arts & CultureAMERICAN CONSERVATORY …ODC: $2,500 · Arts & CultureTHE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE LELAND STANFORD JUNIOR UNIVERSITY: $20,000 · EducationSPARK SF PUBLIC SCHOOLS: $1,150 · EducationTIDES CENTER: $10,000 · Human ServicesTHE ARC SAN FRANCISCO: $2,448 · Human ServicesDestiny Arts Center: $5,000 · Recreation & Sports
Environment$150,000Other$89,333Arts & Culture$69,588Education$21,150Human Services$12,448Recreation & Sports$5,000

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 budgetFriends of SCRAP Inc: $150,000 over 9y, 5.5% of budgetCHINESE CULTURE FOUNDATION OF SAN FRANCISCO: $15,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetJames Lick Middle School PTSA: $10,200 over 3y, 6.1% of budgetARTSMART: $10,000 over 1y, 2.5% of budgetTIDES CENTER: $10,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetPerforming Arts Workshop Inc: $10,000 over 2y, 0.2% of budgetSAN JOSE MUSEUM OF ART ASSOCIATION: $10,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetSan Francisco Bay Area Theatre Company: $6,088 over 2y, 1.5% of budgetCOMMUNITY MUSIC CENTER: $6,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetSAN FRANCISCO YOUTH THEATRE: $5,000 over 1y, 2.1% of budgetPTA CALIFORNIA CONGRESS OF PTA ALVARADO SCHOOL: $5,000 over 1y, 1.2% of budgetAMERICAN CONSERVATORY THEATRE FOUNDATION: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetDestiny Arts Center: $5,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetODC: $2,500 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetTHE ARC SAN FRANCISCO: $2,448 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetSPARK SF PUBLIC SCHOOLS: $1,150 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.

The San Francisco Fou…Walter and Elise Haas…Silicon Valley Commun…The Morris Stulsaft F…The Zellerbach Family…McNabb FoundationThe William & Flora H…Jewish Community Fede…Marin Community Found…The Nicholson Family …Kenneth Rainin Founda…Koret Foundation
The San Francisco FoundationCA21.9× affinity9 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: The San Francisco Foundation · Walter and Elise Haas Fund · Silicon Valley Community Foundation · The Morris Stulsaft Foundation · The Zellerbach Family Foundation · McNabb Foundation · The William & Flora Hewlett Foundation · Jewish Community Federation of San Francisco the Peninsula Marin & Sonoma · Marin Community Foundation · The Nicholson Family Foundation · Kenneth Rainin Foundation · Koret 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 Ruth Asawa Fund funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Ruth Asawa Fund. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%1%3%6%10%funder's share of their income ↑0%5%10%15%20%share of the org’s 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 · 0–20%
    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 Ruth Asawa Fund?

    Find your warmest path to Ruth Asawa Fund 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 21 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 Ruth Asawa’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