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Shawn Carter Scholarship Fund at a glanceMostly funded, not a grantmaker: see who funds it →

· Public charity

Shawn Carter Scholarship Fund

To help individuals facing socio-economic hardships further their education at post secondary institutions by providing them with educational scholarships and related educational support services and experiences to ensure their path towards success.

$1.8M
Granted FY2023
1
Grants FY2023
1
States reached
$1.5M
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 2023.

Philanthropy$3.0MEducation$1.9MYouth Development$413kCommunity Improvement$19k
02FY2023 · 1 grant

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

How this is measured
The 1 grants below total $1,500,000, the rows itemized in this filing. The $1,815,251 headline is the total grant expense on the return; the other $315,251 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.
$1,500,000
Median grant
1
States reached
$17M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
BROOKLYN PUBLIC LIBRARY$1,500,000
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:

Dollar for dollar, its grants (FY17–23) land where the poverty rate runs at 16%, against an area that typically sits at 12%. 98% of its dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 12%DELAWARE STATE UNIVERSITY: $5k → 11%LINCOLN UNIVERSITY: $5k → 6%Investing in OUrselves: $19k → 22%LINCOLN UNIVERSITY: $16k → 10%CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY: $9k → 14%STONEYBROOK STATE UNIVERSITY OF NY: $7k → 7%Iona College: $7k → 9%SUNY - BUFFALO STATE UNIVERSITY: $14k → 13%SUNY - UNIVERSITY AT ALBANY: $14k → 14%THE CITY COLLEGE OF NEW YORK: $5k → 17%BROOKLYN PUBLIC LIBRARY: $1.5M → 20%RIVERDALE COUNTRY SCHOOL: $15k → 28%HOWARD UNIVERSITY: $11k → 14%Clara Lionel Foundation: $3.0M → 15%BOYS AND GIRLS CLUB OF AMERICA: $275k → 13%CONCORDIA UNIVERSITY: $5k → 14%HAMPTON UNIVERSITY: $15k → 14%SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY: $5k → 19%BOWIE STATE UNIVERSITY: $5k → 11%LINCOLN UNIVERSITY: $15k → 10%STONEYBROOK STATE UNIVERSITY OF NY: $6k → 7%SUNY - UNIVERSITY AT ALBANY: $11k → 14%CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK: $37k → 17%BROOKLYN COLLEGE: $13k → 20%RIVERDALE COUNTRY SCHOOL: $8k → 28%HOWARD UNIVERSITY: $9k → 14%BOYS AND GIRLS CLUB OF AMERICA: $138k → 13%HAMPTON UNIVERSITY: $14k → 14%BOWIE STATE UNIVERSITY: $5k → 11%LINCOLN UNIVERSITY: $9k → 10%CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK: $22k → 17%CUNY Brooklyn College: $8k → 20%Spelman College: $6k → 13%HAMPTON UNIVERSITY: $7k → 14%CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK: $20k → 17%CUNY Medgar Evers College: $7k → 20%Clark Atlanta University: $6k → 13%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.

Which US states its grants reach

IL
NY
PA
CA
VA
MD
DE
DC
LA
GA
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.

14%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$739k · 10 repeat orgs$4.6M to everyone else

10 repeat relationships: 0 still active in FY2023, 10 since wound down; 1 grantees were first funded in FY2023 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

10
16

Total granted

$739k
$3.1M

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+37%
+40%

Still filing today

40%
75%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2023, 0% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $1.5M 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
EducationPhilanthropyYouth DevelopmentOther
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

  • BG
    BOYS & GIRLS CLUBS OF AMERICA
    2× · 2021–2022 · $413k · revenue +5%
  • LU
    LINCOLN UNIVERSITY
    3× · 2017–2019 · $40k · revenue +6%
  • RC
    RIVERDALE COUNTRY SCHOOL INC
    3× · 2017–2019 · $23k · revenue +37%

Funded once

  • TC
    THE CLARA LIONEL FOUNDATION
    one grant, 2020 · $3.0M · revenue -54%
  • II
    INVESTING IN OURSELVES
    one grant, 2021 · $19k · revenue -66%
  • VS
    VIRGINIA STATE UNIVERSITY FOUNDATIONgraduated
    one grant, 2020 · $14k · revenue +286%
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
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
2
Albright College

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

Education
3
California Lutheran University

The mission of the university is to educate leaders for a global society who are strong in character and judgment, confident in their identity and vocation, and committed to service and justice.

Education
4
Furman University

The primary mission of furman as a liberal arts institution is to provide a distinctive education in fine arts, humanities, social sciences, mathematics and the sciences, as well as selected professional disciplines.

Education
5
Manhattanville University

To educate students to be ethical and socially responsible leaders in a global community.

Education
6
Columbia College Chicago

The organization's mission is to educate students for creative occupations in diverse fields of arts and media.

Education
7
Boston Architectural College

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

—
8
Trustees of Clark University

Clark university's mission is to educate undergraduate and graduate students to be imaginative and contributing citizens of the world, and to advance the frontiers of knowledge and understanding through rigorous scholarship and creative…

Education
9
Delaware Valley University

See schedule o.we are inspired by the ideals of our founder who, in 1896, emphasized respect for all people and ideas, who honored knowledge with practice, progress and the common good. our historical commitment to experiential learning…

—
10
Capital University

Capital university transforms lives by empowering an inclusive community of learners through engaging academic, co-curricular, and professional experiences.

Education
11
Point Park University

Provides innovative education in a dynamic urban setting. dedicated to academic excellence and community engagement,we prepare students of diverse backgrounds with the knowledge, skill,and experience to lead meaningful lives as informed…

—
12
La Salle University

See schedule o for complete mission statement.la salle is a lasallian catholic university committed to the principle that all knowledge is practical and empowering, filled with the capacity to transform lives. anchored in the living…

Education
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Lincoln University; the most unlike its peers is Brooklyn Public 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

18 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. 18 of the 27 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)
2
Early backer (in before they grew)
17/18
Grantees still filing
13/18
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

THE CLARA LIONEL FOUNDATION: $3,000,000 · PhilanthropyTHE CLARA LIONEL FOUNDATIONBROOKLYN PUBLIC LIBRARY: $1,500,000 · EducationBROOKLYN PUBLIC LIBRARY+11 more: $102,250 · Education+11 moreBOYS & GIRLS CLUBS OF AMERICA: $412,500 · Youth DevelopmentVIRGINIA STATE UNIVERSITY: $82,000 · OtherCITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK: $79,625 · OtherLINCOLN UNIVERSITY: $40,000 · OtherHAMPTON UNIVERSITY: $35,250 · OtherSUNY - UNIVERSITY AT ALBANY: $24,500 · OtherINVESTING IN OURSELVES: $18,738 · OtherSUNY - BUFFALO STATE UNIVERSITY: $13,500 · OtherSTONEYBROOK STATE UNIVERSITY OF NY: $13,000 · OtherBROOKLYN COLLEGE: $12,500 · Other+4 more: $31,000 · Other
Philanthropy$3,000,000Education$1,602,250Youth Development$412,500Other$350,113

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

25%50%75%100%$10M$100Mgrantee revenue →↑ funder's share of their budgetTHE CLARA LIONEL FOUNDATION: $3,000,000 over 1y, 5.8% of budgetBROOKLYN PUBLIC LIBRARY: $1,500,000 over 1y, 0.9% of budgetBOYS & GIRLS CLUBS OF AMERICA: $412,500 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetRIVERDALE COUNTRY SCHOOL INC: $22,500 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetTHE HOWARD UNIVERSITY: $20,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetVIRGINIA STATE UNIVERSITY FOUNDATION: $13,500 over 1y, 0.9% of budgetCalifornia State University Fresno Alumni Association Incorporated: $9,000 over 1y, 0.6% of budgetTHE BROOKLYN COLLEGE FOUNDATION INC: $8,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetMEDGAR EVERS COLLEGE EDUCATIONAL FOUNDATION INC: $7,000 over 1y, 1.4% of budgetIONA UNIVERSITY: $6,500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetClark Atlanta University Inc: $5,750 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetSpelman College: $5,750 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetLINCOLN UNIVERSITY: $5,250 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCONCORDIA UNIVERSITY CHICAGO: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetDELAWARE STATE UNIVERSITY: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetSOUTHERN UNIVERTY SYSTEM: $5,000 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.

The Blackbaud Giving …The Bank of America C…Vanguard Charitable E…Fidelity Investments …American Online Givin…Amazonsmile Foundation
The Blackbaud Giving FundSC11.7× affinity5 shared granteesties to 5 of 5Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: The Blackbaud Giving Fund · The Bank of America Charitable Foundation Inc · Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program · Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund · American Online Giving Foundation Inc · 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 Shawn Carter Scholarship Fund funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Shawn Carter Scholarship 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%25%50%75%100%share of the org’s income from government →median 18%
  • Delaware State University: 18% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
0get no government money at all
2report 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 Shawn Carter Scholarship Fund?

Find your warmest path to Shawn Carter Scholarship 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 27 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 2023, released 2023. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

Possibly out of date. A more recent filing (FY2024) is on record and reports $572k of grant expense, but none of it to a named recipient. On a Form 990 that can mean grants abroad, filed by region only (Schedule F), grants under $5,000, which are not itemized, or a schedule referenced as an attachment the e-file does not carry. The figures above are therefore from FY2023, the most recent year this funder named its grantees.

Source object · view filing

Play a game based on Shawn Carter Scholarship’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