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The Leonard & Sophie Davis Fund at a glanceAlso receives grants: funding profile →

· Private foundation

The Leonard & Sophie Davis Fund

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.

$24M
Granted FY2024still arriving
51
Grants FY2024still arriving
15
States reached
$4.6M
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, FY2021 to 2024.

Philanthropy$33MPublic Benefit$13MEducation$11MCivil Rights$6.4MArts & Culture$5.0MHuman Services$4.8MSocial Science$2.8MYouth Development$2.6MOther$0
02FY2024 · 51 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2024

  • Under $10k1 grant · $5k
  • $10k–50k8 grants · $248k
  • $50k–250k22 grants · $2.7M
  • $250k+20 grants · $21M
$160,000
Median grant
15
States reached
$201M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
TIDES FOUNDATION$4,605,000
THE UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA (USC) LEONARD DAVIS SCHOOL OF GERONTO$2,500,000
THE SAN FRANCISCO FOUNDATION$1,550,000
PA ALLIANCE FOUNDATION$1,240,000
THE RAYMOND F KRAVIS CENTER$1,125,000
STATE DEMOCRACY PROJECT$1,120,000
ACCELERATE CHANGE INC$1,100,000
FOCUS FOR DEMOCRACY FUND$1,100,000
EXCESSIVE WEALTH DISORDER INSTITUTE$1,050,000
AMALGAMATED FOUNDATION$1,000,000
CORPORATION OF THE FINE ARTS MUSEUMS$991,250
JEWISH FEDERATION OF PALM BEACH COUNTY$750,000
NORTON MUSEUM OF ART INC$600,000
JEWISH COMMUNAL FUND$500,000
UNIVERSITY OF SAN FRANCISCO$450,000
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, $1.3M) land where the poverty rate runs at 16%, against an area that typically sits at 10%. 95% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 10%HMONG AMERICAN WOMENS ASSOCIATION: $60k → 17%LATINO COMMUNITY FUND: $100k → 17%REPOWER FUND: $100k → 14%MAKE THE ROAD STATES: $60k → 20%UNDERGROUND KINDNESS: $10k → 12%A NONPROFIT GROUP ENRICHING LIVES INC: $25k → 10%WORKMONEY FOUNDATION INC: $800k → 17%PUENTE HUMAN RIGHTS MOVEMENT: $50k → 11%CENTER FOR DOMESTIC PEACE: $30k → 8%CENTER FOR DOMESTIC PEACE: $10k → 8%LARKIN STREET YOUTH SERVICES: $10k → 10%ONE TREASURE ISLAND: $20k → 10%ONE TREASURE ISLAND: $20k → 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.

Which US states its grants reach

VT
WA
ID
MT
MN
IL
WI
MI
NY
MA
OR
OH
PA
NJ
RI
CA
MO
WV
VA
MD
DE
AZ
NM
TN
NC
SC
DC
LA
AL
GA
TX
FL
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.

53%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$27M · 117 repeat orgs$24M to everyone else

117 repeat relationships: 19 still active in FY2024, 98 since wound down; 25 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

117
131

Total granted

$27M
$15M

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+13%
+15%

Still filing today

79%
71%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 43% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $8.9M went to new ones.

50%100%’21’22’23’24
RenewedFirst-time

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

’21’22’23’24
Civil RightsArts & CulturePublic BenefitEducationHuman ServicesHealthOther
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

  • PA
    PA Alliance Foundation
    3× · 2021–2024 · $1.4M · revenue +353%
  • SO
    SOCIETY OF AMERICAN REGISTERED ARCHITECTS EDUCATION FUND INC
    2× · 2021–2022 · $1.3M · revenue +170%
  • STATE DEMOCRACY PROJECT
    2× · 2022–2024 · $1.2M · revenue ×26

Funded once

  • AF
    AMERICAN FRIENDS OF HEBREW UNIVERSITY INC
    one grant, 2022 · $3.0M · revenue -4%
  • BG
    BOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF RHODE ISLAND
    one grant, 2021 · $2.1M
  • FG
    FLORIDA GULF COAST UNIVERSITY
    one grant, 2023 · $1.5M
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
Democracy Works Inc

The organization's mission is to leverage web-technologies to improve civic engagement and voter education.

Civil Rights
2
American Civil Liberties Union Fund of the District of Columbia

Preservation of civil liberties through litigation and public education.

—
3
The Campaign Legal Center Inc

The nonpartisan campaign legal center advances democracy through law at the federal, state and local levels, fighting for every american's rights to responsive government and a fair opportunity to participate in and affect the democratic…

Crime & Legal
4
Common Future

Common future is a network of pioneering leaders across the u.s. and canada who work deeply within their communities to create alternative approaches to business, philanthropy, and investing. we envision an economy that has transitioned…

Community Improvement
5
Democracy Forward

See schedule o.this organization seeks to build collective power to defend and advance a vibrant democracy that benefits all people.

—
6
Council for Court Excellence

Council for court excellence's (cce's) mission is to bring people together to conduct research, educate, and advocate to make d.c.'s unique legal systems more just, equitable, and accountable to the community.

—
7
Fund for Justice

Fund for Justice is a nationally connected social impact research and advocacy organization that works to achieve fundamental, systemic reform by addressing policies and practicies that prevent individuals from reaching their full…

Crime & Legal
8
California Forward

Ca fwd drives action to identify solutions that can be taken to scale to meet the challenges the state is facing. the organization is driven by the belief that regional solutions across the state will help ensure economic, environmental,…

Public Benefit
9
Center for American Progress

The center for american progress (cap) is an independent nonpartisan policy institute that is dedicated to improving the lives of all americans through bold, progressive ideas, as well as strong leadership and concerted action. our aim is…

Civil Rights
10
Upturn Inc

Upturn advances equity and justice in the design, governance, and use of technology.

—
11
America's Newspapers

Providing research, education and practical information all aimed at optimizing newspapers' business operations, deepening their community engagement and enhancing the quality of their journalism.

Employment
12
Npr Foundation

The npr foundation ("foundation") is organized and operated exclusively for the benefit of its sole supported organization, national public radio, inc. ("npr inc."). the foundation supports npr inc. through various activities such as…

—
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Organizing Empowerment Fund Inc; the most unlike its peers is Society of American Registered Architects Education Fund 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

227 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. 227 of the 289 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.

4
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
40
Early backer (in before they grew)
223/227
Grantees still filing
135/227
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

TIDES FOUNDATION: $10,590,000 · PhilanthropyTIDES FOUNDATIONTHE SAN FRANCISCO FOUNDATION: $7,250,000 · PhilanthropyTHE SAN FRANCISCO FOUNDATIONAmalgamated Charitable Foundation Inc: $4,456,000 · PhilanthropyAmalgamated Charitable Foundation IncCALIFORNIA COMMUNITY FOUNDATION: $3,950,000 · PhilanthropyCALIFORNIA COMMUNITY FOUNDATIONSolidaire Network Inc: $1,100,000 · Philanthropy+11 more: $3,180,000 · Philanthropy+11 moreEXCESSIVE WEALTH DISORDER INSTITUTE: $2,519,000 · OtherEXCESSIVE WEALTH DISORDER INSTITUT…THE UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA (USC) LEONARD DAVIS SCHOOL OF GERONTO: $2,500,000 · OtherTHE UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFOR…BOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF RHODE ISLAND: $2,100,000 · OtherBOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF RHODE ISLANDFLORIDA GULF COAST UNIVERSITY: $1,500,000 · OtherFLORIDA GULF COAST UNIVERSITYSOCIETY OF AMERICAN REGISTERED ARCHITECTS EDUCATION FUND INC: $1,250,000 · OtherTHE RAYMOND F KRAVIS CENTER: $1,125,000 · OtherNEW VENTURE FUND: $1,500,000 · OtherNEW VENTURE FUND+86 more: $12,284,000 · Other+86 morePA Alliance Foundation: $1,450,000 · Civil RightsPA Alliance…FOCUS FOR DEMOCRACY FUND: $1,100,000 · Civil RightsFOCUS FOR D…ACCELERATE CHANGE INC: $1,100,000 · Civil RightsACCELERATE …Fair Elections Center: $540,000 · Civil RightsFair Electi…TEXAS FREEDOM NETWORK EDUCATION FUND: $330,000 · Civil Rights+31 more: $3,970,000 · Civil Rights+31 moreWORKING AMERICA EDUCATION FUND: $1,900,000 · EducationPROTEUS FUND INC: $1,290,000 · EducationTESSERACT RESEARCH CENTER INC: $650,000 · EducationUniversity of San Francisco: $450,000 · EducationCALIFORNIA BUDGET & POLICY CENTER: $310,000 · EducationGEORGIA ALLIANCE EDUCATION FUND INC: $235,000 · Education+10 more: $835,020 · EducationSTATE DEMOCRACY PROJECT: $1,160,000 · Public BenefitNEO Philanthropy Inc: $775,000 · Public BenefitINSTITUTE ON TAXATION AND ECONOMIC POLICY: $400,000 · Public BenefitCenter for Common Ground: $250,000 · Public BenefitPUBLIC CITIZEN FOUNDATION INC: $250,000 · Public BenefitDEMOS A NETWORK FOR IDEAS AND ACTION LTD: $200,000 · Public BenefitFLORIDA ALLIANCE FOR CIVIC ENGAGEMENT INC: $160,000 · Public BenefitCENTER FOR POPULAR DEMOCRACY INC: $150,000 · Public BenefitPartnership for Large Election Juri: $150,000 · Public Benefit+8 more: $630,000 · Public BenefitAMERICAN FRIENDS OF HEBREW UNIVERSITY INC: $3,000,000 · InternationalINSTITUTE FOR POLICY STUDIES: $525,000 · International+4 more: $270,000 · InternationalNORTON MUSEUM OF ART INC: $1,050,000 · Arts & CultureCORPORATION OF THE FINE ARTS MUSEUMS: $1,021,250 · Arts & CultureRAYMOND F KRAVIS CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS INC: $275,000 · Arts & CultureThe United States Holocaust Memorial Museum: $200,000 · Arts & CultureMOVEMENT RESEARCH INC: $140,000 · Arts & Culture+11 more: $700,000 · Arts & Culture
Philanthropy$30,526,000Other$24,778,000Civil Rights$8,490,000Education$5,670,020Public Benefit$4,125,000International$3,795,000Arts & Culture$3,386,250

Showing the 200 largest grantees by grant value.

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 budgetTIDES FOUNDATION: $10,590,000 over 4y, 1.3% of budgetTHE SAN FRANCISCO FOUNDATION: $7,250,000 over 4y, 0.9% of budgetAmalgamated Charitable Foundation Inc: $4,456,000 over 3y, 1.6% of budgetCALIFORNIA COMMUNITY FOUNDATION: $3,950,000 over 3y, 0.5% of budgetAMERICAN FRIENDS OF HEBREW UNIVERSITY INC: $3,000,000 over 1y, 2.9% of budgetEXCESSIVE WEALTH DISORDER INSTITUTE: $2,519,000 over 2y, 68% of budgetWORKING AMERICA EDUCATION FUND: $1,900,000 over 3y, 12% of budgetNEW VENTURE FUND: $1,500,000 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetPA Alliance Foundation: $1,450,000 over 3y, 18% of budgetPROTEUS FUND INC: $1,290,000 over 4y, 1.2% of budgetSTATE DEMOCRACY PROJECT: $1,160,000 over 2y, 2.2% of budgetFOCUS FOR DEMOCRACY FUND: $1,100,000 over 1y, 4.5% of budgetACCELERATE CHANGE INC: $1,100,000 over 1y, 3.6% of budgetSolidaire Network Inc: $1,100,000 over 3y, 9.0% of budgetNORTON MUSEUM OF ART INC: $1,050,000 over 2y, 1.7% of budgetCORPORATION OF THE FINE ARTS MUSEUMS: $1,021,250 over 3y, 1.7% of budgetWORKMONEY FOUNDATION INC: $800,000 over 1y, 4.6% of budgetNEO Philanthropy Inc: $775,000 over 3y, 0.2% of budgetJEWISH FEDERATION OF PALM BEACH COUNTY INC: $750,000 over 1y, 1.5% of budgetTESSERACT RESEARCH CENTER INC: $650,000 over 4y, 13% of budgetROCKEFELLER PHILANTHROPY ADVISORS INC: $650,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetFair Elections Center: $540,000 over 4y, 4.6% of budgetINSTITUTE FOR POLICY STUDIES: $525,000 over 3y, 6.2% of budgetHOPEWELL FUND: $505,000 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetJEWISH COMMUNAL FUND: $500,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetUniversity of San Francisco: $450,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetTHE AMERICAN INDEPENDENT FOUNDATION: $450,000 over 1y, 0.8% of budgetVerified Voting Foundation: $445,000 over 4y, 12% of budgetINSTITUTE ON TAXATION AND ECONOMIC POLICY: $400,000 over 2y, 6.2% of budgetTHE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF WOMEN IN THE ARTS: $400,000 over 3y, 0.8% of budgetBETH ISRAEL MEDICAL CENTER: $400,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetIMAGINE NORTH CAROLINA FIRST: $370,000 over 2y, 3.7% of budgetSchool of the Arts Foundation Inc: $350,000 over 1y, 13% of budgetTEXAS FREEDOM NETWORK EDUCATION FUND: $330,000 over 2y, 5.2% of budgetCALIFORNIA BUDGET & POLICY CENTER: $310,000 over 3y, 3.1% of budgetSOUTHERN POVERTY LAW CENTER INC: $290,000 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetRAYMOND F KRAVIS CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS INC: $275,000 over 1y, 1.9% of budgetSTATE INNOVATION EXCHANGE: $270,000 over 3y, 1.1% of budgetALLIANCE FOR YOUTH ORGANIZING: $265,000 over 3y, 1.0% of budgetCOALITION OF COMMUNITIES OF COLOR: $250,000 over 2y, 5.9% of budgetCenter for Common Ground: $250,000 over 2y, 3.4% of budgetPEOPLE'S ACTION INSTITUTE: $250,000 over 2y, 0.9% of budgetPUBLIC CITIZEN FOUNDATION INC: $250,000 over 3y, 0.8% of budgetCALIFORNIA CALLS EDUCATION FUND: $240,000 over 2y, 1.0% of budgetGEORGIA ALLIANCE EDUCATION FUND INC: $235,000 over 2y, 4.1% of budgetThe United States Holocaust Memorial Museum: $200,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetAmerica Votes Education Fund: $200,000 over 1y, 2.4% of budgetFAIRVOTE: $200,000 over 2y, 2.1% 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.

NEO Philanthropy IncAmalgamated Charitabl…Hopewell FundNew Venture FundTides FoundationWindward FundThe San Francisco Fou…Marguerite Casey Foun…The Ford FoundationWellspring Philanthro…Rockefeller Family Fu…Impactassetsinc
NEO Philanthropy IncNY82× affinity48 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: NEO Philanthropy Inc · Amalgamated Charitable Foundation Inc · Hopewell Fund · New Venture Fund · Tides Foundation · Windward Fund · The San Francisco Foundation · Marguerite Casey Foundation · The Ford Foundation · Wellspring Philanthropic Fund Inc · Rockefeller Family Fund Inc · Impactassetsinc

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 Leonard & Sophie Davis Fund funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from The Leonard & Sophie Davis Fund. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 160%6%25%56%100%funder's share of their income ↑0%25%50%75%100%share of the org’s income from government →median 8%
  • National Safe Boating Council Inc: 61% of income from government
  • Coalition of Communities of Color: 15% of income from government
  • Community Catalyst Inc: 15% of income from government
  • Casa Inc: 8% of income from government
  • President and Fellows of Harvard College: 7% of income from government
  • Planned Parenthood of South Florida and the Treasure Coast Inc: 6% of income from government
  • Asian Community Development Corporation: 2% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
16get no government money at all
24report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
1rely 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 The Leonard & Sophie Davis Fund?

Find your warmest path to The Leonard & Sophie Davis 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 289 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 Leonard & Sophie Davis’ 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