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The McKnight Endowment Fund for Neuroscience at a glanceMostly funded, not a grantmaker: see who funds it →

· Private foundation

The McKnight Endowment Fund for Neuroscience

Its FY2024 filing reports that it accepted unsolicited grant applications.

$3.4M
Granted FY2024still arriving
45
Grants FY2024still arriving
17
States reached
$110k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
01What it funds
01100% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2018 to 2024.

Health$10MEducation$6.7MScience & Tech$4.9MRecreation & Sports$210kFood & Nutrition$75kCommunity Improvement$75k
02FY2024 · 45 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2024

  • $10k–50k6 grants · $99k
  • $50k–250k39 grants · $3.3M
$75,000
Median grant
17
States reached
$20k
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
Northwestern University$110,310
University of Alabama at Birmingham$100,000
Stanford University School of Medicine$100,000
Regents of the University of Michigan$100,000
Mass General Brigham Incorporated$100,000
University of Utah$100,000
St Jude Children's Research Hospital$100,000
Yale University$100,000
Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine$100,000
Carnegie Mellon University$100,000
Regents of the University of California$100,000
Regents of the University of California$100,000
Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center$100,000
New York University$75,000
New York University$75,000
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 (FY18–24) land where the poverty rate runs at 13%, against an area that typically sits at 10%. 82% of its dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 10%Childrens Hospital Boston: $100k → 16%University of Minnesota: $100k → 11%Carnegie Mellon University: $100k → 11%Stanford University School of Medicine: $100k → 8%UC Berkeley & NYU: $100k → 10%University of California San Francisco: $100k → 10%The Salk Institute for Biological Studies: $100k → 11%California Institue of Technology: $100k → 14%Syracuse Uninversity: $100k → 14%NYU Langone Health: $100k → 17%Texas State University: $100k → 10%U of Texas Austin: $100k → 10%Kimberley Tolias and Andreas Tolias: $100k → 16%University of Iowa School of Medicine: $100k → 15%Regents of the University of Michigan: $100k → 14%University of Alabama & Mount Sinai Medical Schools: $100k → 17%Washington School of Medicine in St Louis: $100k → 21%University of Washington: $100k → 6%Marquette University: $100k → 17%Yale University School of Medicine: $100k → 12%St Jude Children's Research Hospital: $100k → 17%Duke University Medical Center: $100k → 11%UNC Chapel Hill: $100k → 13%Emory University and Georgia Tech: $100k → 13%University of Colorado School of Medicine: $100k → 10%University of Washington Medical School: $100k → 9%Northwestern University: $100k → 14%Rutgers University: $100k → 12%Massachusetts Institute of Technology Brain & Cognitive Scis: $100k → 8%Brigham and Women's HospitalHarvard Medical School: $100k → 16%University of Minnesota: $100k → 11%Stanford University School of Medicine: $100k → 8%UC Berkeley: $100k → 10%UC Sanfrancisco: $100k → 10%The Salk Institute for Biological Studies: $100k → 11%California Institue of Technology: $100k → 14%Syracuse University: $100k → 14%NYU Langone Health: $100k → 17%Texas State University & Northwestern University: $100k → 10%Boris Zemelman & Daniel Johnston: $100k → 10%University of Iowa School of Medicine: $100k → 15%Washington School of Medicine: $100k → 21%Marquette University: $100k → 17%Yale University School of Medicine: $100k → 12%St Jude Children's Research Hospital: $100k → 17%Duke University: $100k → 11%University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill: $100k → 13%Northwestern University: $110k → 14%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

WA
MN
IL
WI
MI
NY
MA
OR
IA
PA
NJ
CT
CA
UT
CO
MO
MD
NM
TN
NC
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.
04

Where the work is directed

The same grants placed two ways: where each recipient sits, and where its stated purpose sends the money.

About 12% of The McKnight Endowment Fund for Neuroscience’s grant dollars are earmarked for a different county than the recipient’s own address.

The McKnight Endowment Fund for Neurosciencelessmore of its giving
Placed by recipient address · 5.4% directed abroad (not shown)
How this is measured
Recipient view: each grant at its grantee’s ZIP, mapped to a county. Directed view: each grant at the county its stated purpose names, falling back to the recipient’s county when the purpose names no place; US grants only. A county shows only if it carries the top 95% of that view’s dollars. Purposes are read from the funder’s own 990 grant descriptions.
03Its grantees
repeat funding

Who it funds again

Organizations funded in more than one year, against those funded once.

67%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$13M · 46 repeat orgs$6.4M to everyone else

46 repeat relationships: 17 still active in FY2024, 29 since wound down; 9 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

46
63

Total granted

$13M
$5.6M

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+34%
+44%

Still filing today

33%
6%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 73% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $783k went to new ones.

50%100%’18’19’20’21’22’23’24
RenewedFirst-time

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

’18’19’20’21’22’23’24
EducationHealthScience & TechRecreation & SportsOther
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

  • NY
    New York University
    5× · 2019–2024 · $675k · revenue +51%
  • ICAHN SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AT MOUNT SINAI
    4× · 2019–2022 · $600k · revenue +41%
  • CI
    CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
    4× · 2020–2023 · $517k · revenue +0%

Funded once

  • UO
    University of California Berkeley
    one grant, 2022 · $175k
  • UO
    University of Washington
    one grant, 2022 · $100k
  • BU
    Boston University Dept of Psych & Brain Sci
    one grant, 2019 · $100k
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
University of Miami

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

Education
2
Cornell University

Education, research, medical services and other public services.

Education
3
William Marsh Rice University

As a leading research university with a distinctive commitment to undergraduate education, Rice University aspires to path breaking research, unsurpassed teaching, and contributions to the betterment of our world. It seeks to fulfill this…

Education
4
Trustees of Tufts College

Education and Research

Education
5
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
6
Bar Ilan University in Israel Inc

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

—
7
Trustees of Dartmouth College

Dartmouth College educates the most promising students and prepares them for a lifetime of learning and of responsible leadership, through a faculty dedicated to teaching and the creation of knowledge.

Education
8
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
9
Trustees of Boston College

Mission strengthened by more than a century and a half of dedication to academic excellence, boston college commits itself to the highest standards of teaching and research in undergraduate, graduate and professional programs and to the…

Education
10
Case Western Reserve University

Case Western Reserve University is an independent, research-oriented university with broadly based strengths in health, including medicine, nursing and dentistry; in engineering; in the arts and sciences; and in law, management and social…

Education
11
Seton Hall University

Seton hall university is a catholic institution of higher education

—
12
The Graduate School of the Stowers Institute for Medical Research

The graduate school of the stowers institute for medical research ("gssimr") exempt purpose is to provide graduate education that will prepare scholars for scientific research in the biological sciences.

Education
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Trustees of Boston University; the most unlike its peers is University of Michigan. Resemblance is measured on each organization’s own IRS 990 mission text; it reflects how work is described, not its quality or impact.
05the grantee network

28 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. 28 of the 123 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.

1
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
1
Early backer (in before they grew)
27/28
Grantees still filing
25/28
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

Regents of the University of California: $766,500 · OtherRegents of the University of California+98 more: $13,065,913 · Other+98 moreTHE TRUSTEES OF COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK: $1,141,500 · EducationTHE TRUSTEES OF COLUMBIA UNIVERS…THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE LELAND STANFORD JUNIOR UNIVERSITY: $841,500 · EducationTHE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE LEL…New York University: $675,000 · EducationNew York UniversityMassachusetts Institute of Technology: $600,000 · EducationMassachusetts Institute of Techn…ICAHN SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AT MOUNT SINAI: $600,000 · EducationICAHN SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AT MOUN…CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY: $516,500 · EducationCALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLO…JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY: $462,112 · EducationJOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITYBaylor College of Medicine: $375,000 · EducationBaylor College of MedicineYale University: $300,000 · EducationSYRACUSE UNIVERSITY: $216,500 · Education+5 more: $650,000 · Education+5 moreST JUDE CHILDREN'S RESEARCH HOSPITAL INC: $300,000 · HealthVAN ANDEL RESEARCH INSTITUTE: $225,000 · HealthTHE SCRIPPS RESEARCH INSTITUTE: $150,000 · HealthMax Planck Florida Corporation: $150,000 · HealthChildren's Hospital Corporation: $100,000 · HealthWHITEHEAD INSTITUTE FOR BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH: $75,000 · HealthThe Salk Institute for Biological Studies: $316,500 · Science & TechCOLD SPRING HARBOR LABORATORY: $225,000 · Science & TechNorthwestern University: $510,310 · Recreation & Sports
Other$13,832,413Education$6,378,112Health$1,000,000Science & Tech$541,500Recreation & Sports$510,310

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 budgetTHE TRUSTEES OF COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK: $1,141,500 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetTHE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE LELAND STANFORD JUNIOR UNIVERSITY: $841,500 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetNew York University: $675,000 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetMassachusetts Institute of Technology: $600,000 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetICAHN SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AT MOUNT SINAI: $600,000 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetCALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY: $516,500 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetNorthwestern University: $510,310 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetJOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY: $462,112 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetUniversity of Michigan: $449,913 over 3y, 46% of budgetBaylor College of Medicine: $375,000 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetThe Salk Institute for Biological Studies: $316,500 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetST JUDE CHILDREN'S RESEARCH HOSPITAL INC: $300,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetYale University: $300,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetTRUSTEES OF BOSTON UNIVERSITY: $250,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetCOLD SPRING HARBOR LABORATORY: $225,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetVAN ANDEL RESEARCH INSTITUTE: $225,000 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetSYRACUSE UNIVERSITY: $216,500 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetUNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA: $200,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetMarquette University: $200,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetTHE SCRIPPS RESEARCH INSTITUTE: $150,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetMax Planck Florida Corporation: $150,000 over 2y, 0.3% of budgetChildren's Hospital Corporation: $100,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCarnegie Mellon University: $100,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetDUKE UNIVERSITY: $100,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetThe Trustees of Princeton University: $75,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetWHITEHEAD INSTITUTE FOR BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH: $75,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetWASHINGTON UNIVERSITY: $75,000 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.

  • Who funds THE TRUSTEES OF COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK ↗
  • Who funds THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE LELAND STANFORD JUNIOR UNIVERSITY ↗
  • Who funds New York University ↗
  • Who funds Massachusetts Institute of Technology ↗
  • Who funds ICAHN SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AT MOUNT SINAI ↗
  • Who funds CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY ↗
  • Who funds Northwestern University ↗
  • Who funds JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY ↗
  • Who funds University of Michigan ↗
  • Who funds Baylor College of Medicine ↗
  • Who funds The Salk Institute for Biological Studies ↗
  • Who funds ST JUDE CHILDREN'S RESEARCH HOSPITAL INC ↗
  • Who funds Yale University ↗
  • Who funds TRUSTEES OF BOSTON UNIVERSITY ↗
  • Who funds COLD SPRING HARBOR LABORATORY ↗
  • Who funds VAN ANDEL RESEARCH INSTITUTE ↗
  • Who funds SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY ↗
  • Who funds UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA ↗
  • Who funds FRED HUTCHINSON CANCER RESEARCH CENTER ↗

How much its grantees rely on government

Each dot is one organization The McKnight Endowment Fund for Neuroscience funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from The McKnight Endowment Fund for Neuroscience. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%3%13%28%50%funder's share of their income ↑0%25%50%75%100%share of the org’s income from government →median 12%
  • Massachusetts Institute of Technology: 35% of income from government
  • Max Planck Florida Corporation: 23% of income from government
  • Trustees of Boston University: 12% of income from government
  • Johns Hopkins University: 12% of income from government
  • Yale University: 12% of income from government
  • The Trustees of Princeton University: 11% of income from government
  • Children's Hospital Corporation: 10% of income from government
  • Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research: 7% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
0get no government money at all
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 123 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 McKnight Endowment Fund for Neuroscience’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