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Foundation Dossiers

Illinois · Private foundation

The Regenstein Foundation

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.

$6.8M
Granted FY2025(still arriving)
29
Grants FY2025
30
Organizations funded FY2024
30%
First-time grantees FY2024
Read the full brief
Median grant, FY2025
$50,000
Largest grant, FY2025
$1,750,000
Organizations funded a year
26 to 33
FY2020 to FY2024
States reached, FY2025
4
Total assets, FY2025
$77M
Applications
Preselected organizations only
Per its most recent filing; check its own site

How open it is to new grantees

In FY2024, 30% of the organizations The Regenstein Foundation funded were first-time grantees, receiving 27% of its grant dollars.

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 73% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $1.2M 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
EnvironmentCommunity ImprovementHuman ServicesPhilanthropyOther
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.
The numbers by year
Fiscal yearOrganizations fundedTo those organizationsFirst-time grantees
FY2025still arriving29$6.8M24%
FY202430$4.5M30%
FY202331$7.1M13%
FY202228$3.3M4%
FY202126$11M4%
FY202033$5.5Mn/a
98% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2020 to 2024.

Health$13MAnimals$7.6MEnvironment$5.0MPhilanthropy$2.9MArts & Culture$1.9MFood & Nutrition$275kEducation$215kPublic Safety & Disaster$106kOther$0

Top grantees

Largest recipients by total granted, FY2020 to FY2025, and the share of each one’s budget the grants supplied at peak.

GranteeTotal grantedYearsShare of their budget
Rush University Medical Center$5,175,00060%
Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago$4,860,00061%
Lincoln Park Zoological Society$4,809,00067%
Chicago Horticultural Society$4,805,00062%
Shedd Aquarium Society$4,300,00062%
Gulfshore Playhouse Inc$1,325,00063%
The Conservancy of Southwest Florida$580,00063%
Field Museum of Natural History$425,00050%
Greater Chicago Food Depository$300,00060%
Chicago Zoological Society$261,00060%
Show all 37 grantees
All grantees of The Regenstein Foundation by total granted
GranteeTotal grantedYearsShare of their budget
Rush University Medical Center$5,175,00060%
Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago$4,860,00061%
Lincoln Park Zoological Society$4,809,00067%
Chicago Horticultural Society$4,805,00062%
Shedd Aquarium Society$4,300,00062%
Gulfshore Playhouse Inc$1,325,00063%
The Conservancy of Southwest Florida$580,00063%
Field Museum of Natural History$425,00050%
Greater Chicago Food Depository$300,00060%
Chicago Zoological Society$261,00060%
Nch Healthcare System Inc$250,000515%
Naples Zoo Inc$230,00061%
Chicago Symphony Orchestra$175,00050%
American National Red Cross & Its Constituent Chapters and Branches$155,50060%
The Art Institute of Chicago$150,00060%
Naples Community Hospital Inc$100,00010%
University of Chicago$100,00020%
The Everglades Foundation Inc$77,50020%
Evanston Rebuilding Warehouse$55,00041%
Millennium Park Foundation$55,00061%
Lumen Christi Institute$55,00011%
The Arc of Greater New Orleans$35,00040%
The Service Club of Chicago$30,00031%
Friends of Catherine and Channel Lakes$30,000121%
Conservation Nation$30,00010%
Artis-Naples Inc$25,00010%
Parliament of the Worlds Religions$25,00022%
The Conservation Fund a Nonprofit Corporation$25,00010%
Vandercook College of Music$23,50050%
Naples Botanical Garden Inc$18,00060%
Wounded Warrior Project Inc$15,00010%
The Wasteshed$10,00012%
For Autistic Kids Foundation$10,00011%
The Shelter for Abused Women & Children Inc$7,50010%
Serbs for Serbs$5,0001n/a
Children of Abraham Coalition$5,0001n/a
Paws Chicago$2,50010%

What it could do for these grantees

Plus 18 recipients with no EIN on record ($10.0M), not named here.

Where it is load-bearing

Each grantee by its size and the share of its budget The Regenstein Foundation supplied at peak.

25%50%75%100%$1.0M$10M$100Mgrantee revenue →↑ funder's share of their budgetRush University Medical Center: $5,175,000 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetRehabilitation Institute of Chicago: $4,860,000 over 6y, 0.6% of budgetLincoln Park Zoological Society: $4,809,000 over 6y, 7.1% of budgetChicago Horticultural Society: $4,805,000 over 6y, 2.3% of budgetShedd Aquarium Society: $4,300,000 over 6y, 1.6% of budgetGulfshore Playhouse Inc: $1,325,000 over 6y, 3.1% of budgetThe Conservancy of Southwest Florida: $580,000 over 6y, 2.8% of budgetField Museum of Natural History: $425,000 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetGreater Chicago Food Depository: $300,000 over 6y, 0.1% of budgetChicago Zoological Society: $261,000 over 6y, 0.1% of budgetNch Healthcare System Inc: $250,000 over 5y, 15% of budgetNaples Zoo Inc: $230,000 over 6y, 0.7% of budgetChicago Symphony Orchestra: $175,000 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetAmerican National Red Cross & Its Constituent Chapters and Branches: $155,500 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetThe Art Institute of Chicago: $150,000 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetNaples Community Hospital Inc: $100,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetUniversity of Chicago: $100,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetThe Everglades Foundation Inc: $77,500 over 2y, 0.4% of budgetEvanston Rebuilding Warehouse: $55,000 over 4y, 0.8% of budgetMillennium Park Foundation: $55,000 over 6y, 0.7% of budgetLumen Christi Institute: $55,000 over 1y, 1.4% of budgetThe Arc of Greater New Orleans: $35,000 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetThe Service Club of Chicago: $30,000 over 3y, 1.3% of budgetFriends of Catherine and Channel Lakes: $30,000 over 1y, 21% of budgetConservation Nation: $30,000 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetArtis-Naples Inc: $25,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetParliament of the Worlds Religions: $25,000 over 2y, 1.9% of budgetThe Conservation Fund a Nonprofit Corporation: $25,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetVandercook College of Music: $23,500 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetNaples Botanical Garden Inc: $18,000 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetWounded Warrior Project Inc: $15,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetThe Wasteshed: $10,000 over 1y, 1.6% of budgetFor Autistic Kids Foundation: $10,000 over 1y, 0.9% of budgetThe Shelter for Abused Women & Children Inc: $7,500 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetPaws Chicago: $2,500 over 1y, 0.0% of budget

Tap a dot to name the grantee.

How this is measured
Share of budget is the funder’s grant in a year over the grantee’s total revenue that year, at its highest across the years we hold; revenue is from all sources. Only grantees confirmed against their own filings, whose grants do not exceed their revenue, are plotted: the largest 35.

Nonprofits that may fit its grantmaking

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 Chicago Community…National Philanthropi…Fidelity Investments …Donor Advised Charita…Amazonsmile Foundation
The Chicago Community TrustIL13.9× affinity5 shared granteesties to 4 of 4Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: The Chicago Community Trust · National Philanthropic Trust · Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund · Donor Advised Charitable Giving Inc · Amazonsmile Foundation

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.

Compare The Regenstein Foundation with peer funders

Warm introductions · Powered by PlinthPlus

How do I get to The Regenstein Foundation?

Find your warmest path to The Regenstein Foundation 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.

About The Regenstein Foundation

How much does The Regenstein Foundation give?
The Regenstein Foundation reported 29 grants totaling $6,750,000 in its FY2025 IRS filing. It funded between 26 and 33 organizations a year over FY2020 to FY2024.
What does The Regenstein Foundation fund?
By grant dollars over FY2020 to FY2025, its largest causes are Health (42%), Animals (24%), Environment (16%).
Who are The Regenstein Foundation's largest grantees?
By total granted over FY2020 to FY2025: Rush University Medical Center ($5.2M), Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago ($4.9M), Lincoln Park Zoological Society ($4.8M).
Does The Regenstein Foundation fund new organizations?
In FY2024, 30% of the organizations it funded were first-time grantees.
Does The Regenstein Foundation accept unsolicited applications?
Its most recent filing reports that it funds preselected organizations and does not take unsolicited requests. Check the foundation's own site before ruling it out.
Which funders back the same organizations as The Regenstein Foundation?
Its strongest co-funders, measured against what their size predicts, include The Chicago Community Trust, National Philanthropic Trust, Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund.
Where is The Regenstein Foundation based?
The Regenstein Foundation is based in IL.

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 55 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 Regenstein’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