Skip to content
The Comisky Family Foundation Trust at a glance

· Private foundation

The Comisky Family Foundation Trust

Its FY2025 filing reports that it funds preselected organizations and did not take unsolicited requests; check the foundation's own site before ruling it out.

$79k
Granted FY2025still arriving
26
Grants FY2025still arriving
5
States reached
$10k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead
01What it funds
0198% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2020 to 2025.

Religion$91kCivil Rights$90kArts & Culture$82kEducation$76kInternational$41kRecreation & Sports$26kScience & Tech$24kHealth$22kOther$0
02FY2025 · 26 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2025

  • Under $10k23 grants · $49k
  • $10k–50k3 grants · $30k
$2,000
Median grant
5
States reached
$888k
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
Anti Defamation League$10,000
Philadelphia Mural Arts Advocates$10,000
Beth Sholom Congregation$10,000
Jewish National Fund$6,000
Israel Tennis & Education Centers$6,000
Thomas Jefferson University Hospitals$5,000
Mann Center for the Performing Arts$3,500
Lafayette College$3,000
The Franklin Institute$3,000
Jewish Relief Agency$2,000
Lankenau Hospital Foundation$2,000
Trustees of the University of$2,000
Temple University$2,000
Congregation Beth Or$2,000
Thomas Jefferson University Hospitals$2,000
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 (FY21–25, $4k) land where the poverty rate runs at 7%, against an area that typically sits at 8%. 0% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Its grants skew toward lower-need ZIPs.

area typical 8%Jewish Relief Agency: $2k → 7%Jewish Relief Agency: $2k → 7%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.

94%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$398k · 27 repeat orgs$24k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +33% since the first grant, against -5% for those funded once.

27 repeat relationships: 17 still active in FY2025, 10 since wound down; 2 grantees were first funded in FY2025 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

27
14

Total granted

$398k
$22k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+33%
-5%

Still filing today

74%
50%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2025, 97% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $2k went to new ones.

50%100%’21’22’23’24’25
RenewedFirst-time

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

’21’22’23’24’25
EducationArts & CultureHealthCivil RightsInternationalFood & NutritionOther
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

  • AL
    ANTI-DEFAMATION LEAGUE
    5× · 2021–2025 · $85k · revenue +34%
  • PHILADELPHIA MURAL ARTS ADVOCATES INC
    5× · 2021–2025 · $43k · revenue +86%
  • TF
    THE FRANKLIN INSTITUTE
    5× · 2021–2025 · $24k · revenue +60%

Funded once

  • AMERICAN JEWISH COMMITTEEgraduated
    one grant, 2023 · $5k · revenue +44%
  • CB
    CONGREGATION BETH SOLOMON
    one grant, 2021 · $3k
  • IG
    Individual grant recipient
    one grant, 2021 · $3k
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
Drexel University

Drexel university fulfills its founder's vision of preparing each new generation of students for productive professional and civic lives while also focusing its collective expertise on solving society's greatest problems. drexel is an…

Education
2
Bar Ilan University in Israel Inc

Biu produces students who excel in the sciences, humanities, law, engineering, business & the arts.

—
3
Albright College

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

Education
4
Institute for Advanced Study - Louis Bamberger & Mrs Felix Fuld Foundation

The institute for advanced study (the institute) is one of the world's leading centers for theoretical research and intellectual inquiry. see schedule o.

Science & Tech
5
Philadelphia University

The organization is an affiliate within thomas jefferson university/jefferson health; a comprehensive professional university and tax-exempt integrated healthcare delivery system ("system"), with a tripartite mission of education, research…

Education
6
The Trustees of Princeton University

Research, education and general - princeton university is a private not-for-profit, non-sectarian institution of higher learning with approximately 5,700 undergraduate and 3,300 graduate students. 2,500 students graduated in the 2024-2025…

Education
7
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
8
Saint Joseph's University

As philadelphia's jesuit catholic university, saint joseph's provides a rigorous, student-centered education rooted in the liberal arts. we prepare students for personal excellence, professional success, and engaged citizenship. striving…

Education
9
New York University

Nyu is a private university with approximately 60,000 matriculating students in 20 schools and institutes. nyu's primary missions are education, research and scholarship, and patient care.

Education
10
University of Miami

See Form 990, Part I, Line 1, Description of Organization Mission.

Education
11
Alvernia University

Alvernia university is a catholic comprehensive university with a liberal arts foundation founded by the bernardine franciscan sisters in 1958. see continuation on schedule o.

—
12
Fairleigh Dickinson University

Fairleigh dickinson university is a center of academic excellence dedicated to the preparation of world citizens through global education. the university strives to provide students with the multi-disciplinary, intercultural, and ethical…

Education
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Free Library of Philadelphia Foundation; the most unlike its peers is The Philadelphia Chorus. 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

30 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. 30 of the 45 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)
30/30
Grantees still filing
22/30
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

Beth Sholom Congregation: $55,000 · OtherBeth Sholom CongregationIsrael Tennis & Education Centers: $26,000 · OtherIsrael Tennis & Education CentersCONGREGATION BETH OR: $14,000 · OtherCONGREGATION BETH ORFREE LIBRARY OF PHILADELPHIA FOUNDATION: $12,500 · OtherFREE LIBRARY OF PHILADELPHIA FOUNDATI…Temple Beth Hillel - Beth El: $10,000 · OtherTemple Beth Hillel - Beth ElUniversity of Pennsylvania Law School: $10,000 · OtherUniversity of Pennsylvania Law School+16 more: $27,500 · Other+16 morePHILADELPHIA MURAL ARTS ADVOCATES INC: $42,500 · Arts & CulturePHILADELPHIA MURAL ART…THE FRANKLIN INSTITUTE: $23,500 · Arts & CultureTHE FRANKLIN INSTITUTEMANN CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS: $20,500 · Arts & CultureMANN CENTER FOR THE PE…THE BARNES FOUNDATION: $4,000 · Arts & Culture+1 more: $1,000 · Arts & CultureANTI-DEFAMATION LEAGUE: $85,000 · Civil RightsANTI-DEFAMATION LEAGUEAMERICAN JEWISH COMMITTEE: $5,000 · Civil RightsAMERICAN JEWISH COMMIT…TRUSTEES OF THE UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA: $18,000 · EducationTRUSTEES OF THE…THOMAS JEFFERSON UNIVERSITY: $11,000 · EducationTHOMAS JEFFERSO…Temple University - Of The Commonwealth System of Higher Education: $10,000 · EducationTemple Universi…SPRINGSIDE CHESTNUT HILL ACADEMY: $9,000 · EducationSPRINGSIDE CHES…LAFAYETTE COLLEGE: $7,000 · EducationLAFAYETTE COLLE…Indiana University Foundation: $3,500 · EducationIndiana Univers…+3 more: $6,000 · Education+3 moreJEWISH NATIONAL FUND (KEREN KAYEMETH LEISRAEL) INC: $23,000 · InternationalJEWISH NAT…ISRAEL TENNIS CENTERS FOUNDATION INC: $17,000 · InternationalISRAEL TEN…+1 more: $1,000 · InternationalTHOMAS JEFFERSON UNIVERSITY HOSPITALS INC: $13,500 · HealthLANKENAU MEDICAL CENTER FOUNDATION: $3,000 · Health+1 more: $500 · HealthJEWISH RELIEF AGENCY: $4,000 · Human Services
Other$155,000Arts & Culture$91,500Civil Rights$90,000Education$64,500International$41,000Health$17,000Human Services$4,000

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 budgetANTI-DEFAMATION LEAGUE: $85,000 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetPHILADELPHIA MURAL ARTS ADVOCATES INC: $42,500 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetTHE FRANKLIN INSTITUTE: $23,500 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetJEWISH NATIONAL FUND (KEREN KAYEMETH LEISRAEL) INC: $23,000 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetMANN CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS: $20,500 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetTRUSTEES OF THE UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA: $18,000 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetISRAEL TENNIS CENTERS FOUNDATION INC: $17,000 over 2y, 0.2% of budgetTHOMAS JEFFERSON UNIVERSITY HOSPITALS INC: $13,500 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetFREE LIBRARY OF PHILADELPHIA FOUNDATION: $12,500 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetTHOMAS JEFFERSON UNIVERSITY: $11,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetTemple University - Of The Commonwealth System of Higher Education: $10,000 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetSPRINGSIDE CHESTNUT HILL ACADEMY: $9,000 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetLAFAYETTE COLLEGE: $7,000 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetAMERICAN JEWISH COMMITTEE: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTHE BARNES FOUNDATION: $4,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetJEWISH RELIEF AGENCY: $4,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetIndiana University Foundation: $3,500 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetHILLEL FOUNDATION AT INDIANA UNIVERSITY INC: $3,000 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetLANKENAU MEDICAL CENTER FOUNDATION: $3,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetWILLIAM PENN CHARTER SCHOOL INC: $2,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetWASHINGTON UNIVERSITY: $2,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetHEIGHTS PHILADELPHIA: $2,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetBeyond Literacy: $1,500 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetTHE PHILADELPHIA CHORUS: $1,500 over 5y, 1.8% of budgetPhilabundance: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetMETROPOLITAN AREA NEIGHBORHOOD NUTRITION ALLIANCE: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetMarlboro School of Music Inc: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetPHILADELPHIA YOUTH BASKETBALL INC: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetAmerican Association for Cancer Research Inc: $500 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 Solomon & Sylvia …United Way of Greater…The Philadelphia Foun…Chubb Charitable Foun…National Philanthropi…Vanguard Charitable E…Jewish Communal FundMorgan Stanley Global…American Endowment Fo…The Bank of America C…Donor Advised Charita…American Online Givin…
The Solomon & Sylvia Bronstein FdnPA20× affinity7 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: The Solomon & Sylvia Bronstein Fdn · United Way of Greater Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey · The Philadelphia Foundation · Chubb Charitable Foundation · National Philanthropic Trust · Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program · Jewish Communal Fund · Morgan Stanley Global Impact Funding Trust Inc · American Endowment Foundation · The Bank of America Charitable Foundation Inc · Donor Advised Charitable Giving Inc · American Online Giving Foundation 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 The Comisky Family Foundation Trust funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from The Comisky Family Foundation Trust. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%0%1%3%5%funder's share of their income ↑0%6%13%19%25%share of the org’s income from government →
    no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
    0get no government money at all
    8report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
    0rely on government for over half their income
    ⤢ axis zoomed · 0–25%
    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 The Comisky Family Foundation Trust?

    Find your warmest path to The Comisky Family Foundation Trust 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 45 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 2025, released 2025. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

    Source object · view filing

    Play a game based on Comisky 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