· Private foundation
The John Russell Thomas Foundation
Its FY2025 filing reports that it accepted unsolicited grant applications.
What it funded, over time
Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2017 to 2025.
Where the money goes
Grants by size, and the largest recipients.
By grant size · FY2025
- Under $10k2 grants · $8k
- $10k–50k4 grants · $62k
- $50k–250k1 grant · $105k
| Recipient | Amount |
|---|---|
| THE UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA | $105,000 |
| CENTRAL ALABAMA COMMUNITY COLLEGE | $25,000 |
| PASTORAL COUNSELING AND TRAINING CENTER INC | $15,000 |
| STEPS MINISTRIES | $12,000 |
| LAKE MARTIN AREA UNITED WAY | $10,000 |
| BAYLOR SCHOOL | $5,000 |
| THE CENTER FOR EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIOP | $3,000 |
Does the money reach high-need areas?
Each grant placed by the hardship in its grantee’s ZIP, against the area’s typical level.
Its human-services grants (FY17–25, $90k) land where the poverty rate runs at 16%, against an area that typically sits at 10%. 97% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.
How this is measured
How this is measured
Who it funds again
Organizations funded in more than one year, against those funded once.
16 repeat relationships: 6 still active in FY2025, 10 since wound down; 1 grantees were first funded in FY2025 (too recent to call).
How the two cohorts compare
Organizations
Total granted
Median revenue growth · since first grant
Still filing today
New vs renewed · share of each year
In FY2025, 86% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $25k went to new ones.
Where new relationships form · theme of each grantee’s first grant
How this is measured
Backed again, and grew
- SMSTEPS MINISTRIES7× · 2019–2025 · $68k · revenue +45%
- LMLAKE MARTIN AREA UNITED WAY7× · 2017–2025 · $65k · revenue +44%
- SCSOZO CHILDREN INTERNATIONAL6× · 2017–2022 · $32k · revenue +80%
Funded once
- USUAB SCHOOL OF MEDICINEone grant, 2019 · $100k
- CMCANTERBURY METHODIST CHURCHone grant, 2017 · $5k
- STSKY'S THE LIMIT FUNDgraduatedone grant, 2017 · $3k · revenue +143%
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.
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.
A private institution of higher education, offering both undergraduate and graduate courses to students.
To work in partnership with families and organizations to ensure that all alabama children (birth to five) get everything they need to develop to their fullest potential.
The mission of christian services for children in alabama is to show the love of christ by providing counseling and other related services to children and their families.
To support the university of alabama at birmingham in its scientific and educational mission, including managing and disbursing funds, acquiring real property, and providing operational flexibility.
Services include, but are not limited to, identification and development of academic leadership talent and programs enabling them to be successful in their roles and to advance the institutions they serve; consultation to academic leaders…
Landmark christian school partners with christian families by equipping college-bound students to embrace a christ-centered worldview, grow as servant leaders, and steward god's unique purpose for their lives.
Southern wesleyan university is a christ-centered, student-focused learning community devoted to transforming lives by challenging students to be dedicated scholars and servant-leaders who impact the world for christ.
Leadership austin connects and develops leaders to courageously engage and transform our communities.
To offer research and technology services to support the life sciences, energy, and environmental protection industries. the organization pursues entrepreneurial and collaborative initiatives to develop and maintain a pipeline of…
The alabama best practices center helps teachers and administrators develop the competence, commitment and courage to do whatever it takes to improve student learning.
We provide exemplary interdisciplinary programs for a community of scholar-practitioners within a distributed learning model grounded in student-driven inquiry and leading to enhanced knowledge.
Summit ministries is an educational christian ministry with the purpose of equipping tomorrow's servant leaders to analyze competing worldviews and champion the christian faith, inspiring each one to love god with all his heart, soul,…
How this is measured
11 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. 11 of the 25 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.
Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee
Each grantee by its size and the funder’s share of it; top left is load-bearing
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 PASTORAL COUNSELING AND TRAINING CENTER INC ↗
- Who funds STEPS MINISTRIES ↗
- Who funds LAKE MARTIN AREA UNITED WAY ↗
- Who funds SOZO CHILDREN INTERNATIONAL ↗
- Who funds BAYLOR SCHOOL ↗
- Who funds ALEXANDER CITY SCHOOLS EDUCATION FOUNDATION ↗
- Who funds THE CENTER FOR EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP INC ↗
- Who funds CHILDREN'S HARBOR INC ↗
- Who funds SKY'S THE LIMIT FUND ↗
- Who funds THE UNIVERSITY FOUNDATION ↗
- Who funds CITY YEAR 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.
Open a dossier: The Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham · Alabama Power Foundation Inc · Hill Crest Foundation Inc · Natl Christian Charitable Fdn Inc · Morgan Stanley Global Impact Funding Trust Inc · Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program · American Online Giving Foundation Inc · National Philanthropic Trust · The Bank of America Charitable Foundation Inc · Donor Advised Charitable Giving Inc · Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund · Amazonsmile Foundation
How this is measured
How much its grantees rely on government
Each dot is one organization The John Russell Thomas Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from The John Russell Thomas Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.
- City Year Inc: 11% of income from government
How this is measured
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