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Sills Family Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

Sills Family 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.

$1.4M
Granted FY2024still arriving
7
Grants FY2024still arriving
3
States reached
$1.4M
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead

Read this first · the figures below need context

99% of Sills Family Foundation’s FY2024 grant dollars went to Boston Foundation Inc, not to grantees.

Its money now reaches organizations through that sponsor, which does not report who recommended each grant. FY2024 names 6 organizations directly, so a portfolio cannot be read from it.

Organizations named directly on the return

0
’17
0
’18
2
’19
0
’20
11
’21
4
’22
4
’23
6
’24

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

01What it funds
0196% classified

What it funded, over time

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

Philanthropy$9.7MHuman Services$4.5MArts & Culture$1.9MEducation$50kEnvironment$18kHealth$10kCrime & Legal$6kCivil Rights$5kOther$0
02FY2024 · 7 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2024

  • Under $10k5 grants · $5k
  • $10k–50k1 grant · $10k
  • $250k+1 grant · $1.4M
$1,000
Median grant
3
States reached
$11M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
Boston Foundation$1,400,000
Doula Project$10,000
Our Childrens Trust$1,000
New Neighbors Partnership$1,000
Westhab$1,000
UPRose$1,000
New Rochelle Council on the Arts$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 (FY21–24, $20k) land where the poverty rate runs at 10%, against an area that typically sits at 11%. 10% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Its grants skew toward lower-need ZIPs.

area typical 11%Songcatchers: $18k → 9%New Neighbors Partnership: $1k → 17%Witness to Mass Incarceration: $1k → 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.

Which US states its grants reach

VT
WA
NY
MA
OR
NJ
CA
DC
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.
$6.7M · 5 repeat orgs$274k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +37% since the first grant, against +21% for those funded once.

5 repeat relationships: 1 still active in FY2024, 4 since wound down; 5 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

5
17

Total granted

$6.7M
$260k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+37%
+21%

Still filing today

60%
82%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 7% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $14k went to new ones.

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

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

’19’20’21’22’23’24
Arts & CultureEnvironmentHuman ServicesEducationCrime & LegalHealthOther
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

  • IG
    Individual grant recipient
    2× · 2019–2020 · $4.9M
  • TB
    THE BROOKLYN INSTITUTE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES
    2× · 2021–2022 · $1.8M · revenue -25%
  • PHILANTHROPY NEW YORK INC
    4× · 2019–2023 · $21k · revenue +118%

Funded once

  • AI
    ARTSWESTCHESTER INC
    one grant, 2021 · $40k · revenue +24%
  • AF
    AMERICAN FRIENDS OF POLIN MUSEUM OF THE HISTORY OF POLISH JEWS INC
    one grant, 2021 · $25k · revenue -35%
  • BC
    BLOOMFIELD COLLEGE OF MONTCLAIR STATE UNIVERSITY INC
    one grant, 2021 · $25k · revenue -63%
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
Brooklyn Bridge Park Corporation

Brooklyn bridge park corporation's mission, d/b/a brooklyn bridge park ("bbp") mission is to provide an exceptional public space that connects people, nature, and the waterfront, through inclusive, innovative, and sustainable management…

Recreation & Sports
2
New York Foundation for the Arts Inc

Established in 1971, the mission of the new york foundation for the arts (nyfa) is to empower artists in all disciplines, as well as cultural workers, to achieve success on their own terms by providing critical support, resources, and…

Arts & Culture
3
The Bronx Council On the Arts Incorporated

A pioneering advocate for cultural equity, the bronx council on the arts nurtures the development of diverse artists and arts organizations and build strong cultural connections in and beyond the bronx.

Arts & Culture
4
New Museum of Contemporary Art

A center for exhibitions, information, and documentation about living artists since 1977, which continues to be a place of experimentation and a hub of new art and new ideas.

Arts & Culture
5
New York City Center Inc

The mission of new york city center is to be new york city's leading center for dance and musical theater. dedicated to making the arts accessible to the broadest possible audience, city center seeks to create a welcoming environment and…

Arts & Culture
6
White Columns Inc

White columns identifies significant emerging and under-represented visual artists and encourages their creative and professional development through the presentation of group and solo exhibitions, an online curated artists registry, and…

Arts & Culture
7
The Partnership for New York City Inc

(a) the development, stimulation, encouragement, improvement and promotion of the business climate in new york city; (b) the fostering of trade and commerce in new york city and the promotion of the general welfare andprosperity of new…

—
8
The Architectural League of New York

The architectural league of new york supports critically transformative work in the allied fields that shape the built environment. as a vital, independent forum, the league stimulates thinking, debate, and action on today's (continued on…

—
9
Municipal Art Society of New York

The municipal art society of new york (mas) lifts up the voices of the people in the debates that shape new york's built environment and leads the way to a more livable city from sidewalk to skyline. mas envisions a future in which all new…

Arts & Culture
10
New York Botanical Garden

The new york botanical garden is a museum of plants and a scientific research center devoted to the study of plants and their uses. it is the garden's mission to improve public understanding of the natural world, horticulture, and the…

Environment
11
En Garde Arts Inc

To produce bold theatre experiences that reach across artistic, physical and social boundries. We aim to increase empathy and open-mindedness by illuminating nuanced perspectives and unspoken truths behind the salient issues of our time.…

Arts & Culture
12
Public Media Nj Inc

To bring quality public television programs and resources to communities throughout new jersey and its tri-state neighbors. its content, both on-air and online, aims to reflect the diverse

Arts & Culture
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Artswestchester Inc; the most unlike its peers is American Friends of Polin Museum of the History of Polish Jews Inc. 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

23 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. 23 of the 28 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)
4
Early backer (in before they grew)
23/23
Grantees still filing
14/23
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

Boston Foundation Inc: $7,224,705 · PhilanthropyBoston Foundation IncIndividual grant recipient: $4,905,000 · OtherIndividual grant recipient+10 more: $132,100 · OtherTHE BROOKLYN INSTITUTE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES: $1,750,000 · Arts & CultureTHE BROOKLYN I…+5 more: $110,000 · Arts & Culture+5 moreCOMMUNITY-WORD PROJECT INC: $20,000 · EducationBENNINGTON COLLEGE CORPORATION: $5,000 · EducationGROUNDSWELL INC: $15,000 · EnvironmentDREAMORG: $5,000 · EnvironmentOUR CHILDREN'S TRUST: $1,000 · EnvironmentWest Harlem Environmental Action Inc: $1,000 · EnvironmentSONGCATCHERS INC: $18,000 · Human ServicesWITNESS TO MASS INCARCERATION INC: $1,000 · Human ServicesNEW NEIGHBORS PARTNERSHIP ASSOCIATION: $1,000 · Human ServicesTHE DOULA PROJECT INC: $10,000 · Health
Philanthropy$7,224,705Other$5,037,100Arts & Culture$1,860,000Education$25,000Environment$22,000Human Services$20,000Health$10,000

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 budgetBoston Foundation Inc: $7,224,705 over 4y, 1.1% of budgetTHE BROOKLYN INSTITUTE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES: $1,750,000 over 2y, 1.1% of budgetARTSWESTCHESTER INC: $40,000 over 1y, 0.8% of budgetAMERICAN FRIENDS OF POLIN MUSEUM OF THE HISTORY OF POLISH JEWS INC: $25,000 over 1y, 2.1% of budgetBLOOMFIELD COLLEGE OF MONTCLAIR STATE UNIVERSITY INC: $25,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetPHILANTHROPY NEW YORK INC: $21,100 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetCOMMUNITY-WORD PROJECT INC: $20,000 over 1y, 1.1% of budgetBROOKLYN BALLETINC: $20,000 over 1y, 1.6% of budgetSONGCATCHERS INC: $18,000 over 1y, 7.5% of budgetGROUNDSWELL INC: $15,000 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetCreative Arts Workshops for Kids Inc: $15,000 over 1y, 0.9% of budgetNEW YORK SHAKESPEARE FESTIVAL: $10,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTHE DOULA PROJECT INC: $10,000 over 1y, 25% of budgetBENNINGTON COLLEGE CORPORATION: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetDREAMORG: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetPURPOSE DIGNITY ACTION: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetNEW ROCHELLE COUNCIL ON THE ARTS: $4,000 over 2y, 2.2% of budgetOUR CHILDREN'S TRUST: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetWITNESS TO MASS INCARCERATION INC: $1,000 over 1y, 0.6% of budgetUPROSE INC: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetWest Harlem Environmental Action Inc: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetWesthab Inc: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetNEW NEIGHBORS PARTNERSHIP ASSOCIATION: $1,000 over 1y, 0.2% 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.

Boston Foundation IncThe Hyde and Watson F…The New York Communit…Td Charitable Foundat…American Express Foun…The Bank of America C…American Online Givin…Network for GoodNational Philanthropi…Morgan Stanley Global…Vanguard Charitable E…Donor Advised Charita…
Boston Foundation IncMA21.7× affinity9 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Boston Foundation Inc · The Hyde and Watson Foundation · The New York Community Trust · Td Charitable Foundation · American Express Foundation · The Bank of America Charitable Foundation Inc · American Online Giving Foundation Inc · Network for Good · National Philanthropic Trust · Morgan Stanley Global Impact Funding Trust Inc · Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program · Donor Advised Charitable Giving Inc

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 Sills Family Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Sills Family Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 10%2%6%14%25%funder's share of their income ↑0%25%50%75%100%share of the org’s income from government →median 0%
  • Bennington College Corporation: 0% of income from government
  • Boston Foundation Inc: 0% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
1get no government money at all
6report 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 28 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 Sills Family’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