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The Robert & Kelly Kaplan Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

The Robert & Kelly Kaplan 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.

$164k
Granted FY2025still arriving
37
Grants FY2025still arriving
12
States reached
$10k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
01What it funds
0197% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2021 to 2025.

Animals$81kEnvironment$79kEducation$78kInternational$75kCivil Rights$74kFood & Nutrition$52kHuman Services$39kCrime & Legal$27kOther$0
02FY2025 · 37 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2025

  • Under $10k33 grants · $124k
  • $10k–50k4 grants · $40k
$5,000
Median grant
12
States reached
$3.3M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
ACLU FOUNDATION OF SAN DIEGO AND IMPERIAL COUNTIES$10,000
UNIVERSITY OF SAN DIEGO$10,000
HINDMAN SETTLEMENT SCHOOL INC$10,000
SAVE THE CHIMPS INC$10,000
CASA CORNELIA LEGAL SERVICES$7,500
WORLD WILDLIFE FUND INC$7,500
EARTHRIGHTS INTERNATIONAL INC$7,500
FRIENDS OF THE WORLD FOOD PROGRAM INC$5,000
LUCKY DUCK FOUNDATION$5,000
EVERGREEN STATE COLLEGE FOUNDATION$5,000
NATURE CONSERVANCY$5,000
UNITED STATES ASSOCIATION FOR UNHCR$5,000
JEWISH FAMILY SERVICE OF SAN DIEGO$5,000
DAP HEALTH INC$5,000
HAWAII COMMUNITY FOUNDATION$5,000
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 (FY22–25, $32k) land where the poverty rate runs at 11%, against an area that typically sits at 11%. 100% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 11%JEWISH FAMILY SERVICE OF SAN DIEGO: $10k → 11%AMERICAN NATIONAL RED CROSS: $3k → 14%JEWISH FAMILY SERVICE OF SAN DIEGO: $5k → 11%JEWISH FAMILY SERVICE OF SAN DIEGO: $5k → 11%JEWISH FAMILY SERVICE OF SAN DIEGO: $5k → 11%DEL MAR COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS: $2k → 11%DEL MAR COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS: $1k → 11%DEL MAR COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS: $1k → 11%DEL MAR COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS: $500 → 11%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
NY
MA
CA
UT
KY
VA
MD
TN
NC
DC
HI
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 7% of The Robert & Kelly Kaplan Foundation’s grant dollars are earmarked for a different county than the recipient’s own address.

The Robert & Kelly Kaplan Foundationlessmore of its giving
Placed by recipient address
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.

91%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$493k · 37 repeat orgs$49k to everyone else

37 repeat relationships: 29 still active in FY2025, 8 since wound down; 6 grantees were first funded in FY2025 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

37
11

Total granted

$493k
$27k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+10%
+16%

Still filing today

95%
91%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2025, 86% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $22k 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
AnimalsInternationalFood & NutritionEnvironmentHuman 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

  • UO
    UNIVERSITY OF SAN DIEGO
    4× · 2022–2025 · $40k · revenue +27%
  • JF
    JW FOUNDATION
    4× · 2022–2025 · $28k · revenue +45%
  • JF
    JEWISH FAMILY SERVICE OF SAN DIEGO
    4× · 2022–2025 · $25k · revenue +14%

Funded once

  • RJ
    RADY JEWISH FAMILY SERVICE FOUNDATION
    one grant, 2023 · $10k · revenue -51%
  • MANNA FOOD BANK INCgraduated
    one grant, 2024 · $3k · revenue +141%
  • BW
    Brother Wolf Animal Rescue Inc
    one grant, 2024 · $3k · revenue 0%
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
Rainforest Trust

Rainforest trust saves endangered wildlife and protects our planet by creating rainforest reserves through partnerships, community engagement, and donor support.

International
2
Marin Humane Society

Marin humane transforms lives through exceptional animal care, humane education, and advocacy. every day, marin humane inspires compassion and positive relationships between people and animals.

Animals
3
Friends of the Earth

Friends of the earth strives for a more healthy and just world by defendng the environment and human health while advancing social and economic justice by conducting research and education, transforming the economy so it protects the…

Environment
4
Asociacion Interamericana Para La Defensa Del Ambiente

To strenghten people's ability to guarantee their individual and collective right to a healthy environment, via the development, implementation, and effective enforcement of national and international law.

Crime & Legal
5
The Union of Concerned Scientists Inc

The union of concerned scientists puts rigorous, independent science into action, developing solutions and advocating for a healthy, safe, and just future.

International
6
Food Forward Inc

Food forward fights hunger and prevents food waste by rescuing fresh surplus produce, connecting this abundance with people experiencing food insecurity, and inspiring others to do the same.

Food & Nutrition
7
The San Diego Foundation

The san diego foundation inspires enduring philanthropy and enables community solutions to improve the quality of life in our region.

Philanthropy
8
United Animal Nations Dba Redrover

To bring animals out of crisis and strengthen the bond between people and animals through emergency sheltering, disaster relief services, financial assistance and education. redrover accomplishes its mission by engaging volunteers and…

—
9
Zoological Society of San Diego

San diego zoo wildlife alliance is committed to saving species worldwide by uniting our expertise in wildlife care and conservation science with our dedication to inspiring passion for nature.

Animals
10
United Food Bank

United Food Bank unites communities to alleviate hunger.

Food & Nutrition
11
American Water Works Association

To promote public health, safety, and welfare through the improvement of the quality and quantity of drinking water and the development and furtherance of understanding of the problems relating thereto.

Public Benefit
12
American Flood Coalition Inc

To drive transformational adaptation to protect communities across the country from higher seas, stronger storms, and more frequent flooding.

Environment
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Jacobs & Cushman San Diego Food Bank; the most unlike its peers is Rails to Trails Conservancy. 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

53 grantees tracked through their own filings, 2017–2026.

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 2026, not grant rows in a single year, so this will not match the grant count on the cover. 53 of the 56 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)
3
Early backer (in before they grew)
53/53
Grantees still filing
28/53
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

ACLU FOUNDATION OF SAN DIEGO & IMPERIAL COUNTIES: $40,000 · OtherACLU FOUNDATION OF SAN DIEGO & IMPERIAL COUNTIESUNIVERSITY OF SAN DIEGO: $40,000 · OtherUNIVERSITY OF SAN DIEGOJW FOUNDATION: $27,500 · OtherJW FOUNDATIONTHE NATURE CONSERVANCY: $20,000 · OtherTHE NATURE CONSERVANCYMEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES USA INC - DOCTORS WITHOUT: $10,000 · OtherIndividual grant recipient: $9,500 · OtherEARTHRIGHTS INTERNATIONAL INC: $22,500 · OtherEARTHRIGHTS INTERNATIONAL INCTHE CENTER FOR REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS INC: $11,000 · OtherHAWAII COMMUNITY FOUNDATION: $12,500 · OtherRADY JEWISH FAMILY SERVICE FOUNDATION: $10,000 · OtherCasa Cornelia Legal Services: $20,500 · OtherCasa Cornelia Legal ServicesLUCKY DUCK FOUNDATION: $17,500 · OtherLUCKY DUCK FOUNDATION+12 more: $32,000 · Other+12 moreSAVE THE CHIMPS INC: $30,000 · AnimalsSAVE THE CHIMPS…INTERNATIONAL FUND FOR ANIMAL WELFARE INC: $20,000 · AnimalsINTERNATIONAL F…Friends of the Palm SpringsAnimal Shelter: $6,000 · AnimalsFriends of the …BEST FRIENDS ANIMAL SOCIETY: $6,000 · AnimalsBEST FRIENDS AN…THE ELEPHANT SANCTUARY IN TENNESSEE: $5,500 · AnimalsTHE ELEPHANT SA…RANCHO COASTAL HUMANE SOCIETY: $3,500 · AnimalsPERFORMING ANIMAL WELFARE SOCIETY: $3,000 · Animals+3 more: $6,500 · Animals+3 moreWORLD WILDLIFE FUND INC: $37,500 · EnvironmentWORLD WILDL…NATURAL RESOURCES DEFENSE COUNCIL INC: $20,000 · EnvironmentNATURAL RES…+2 more: $1,500 · EnvironmentUnited States Association for UNHCR: $13,000 · InternationalMEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES USA INC: $10,000 · InternationalAMNESTY INTERNATIONAL OF THE USA INC: $7,500 · InternationalHUMAN RIGHTS WATCH INC: $5,500 · InternationalWORLD CENTRAL KITCHEN INC: $5,000 · International+1 more: $1,000 · InternationalJEWISH FAMILY SERVICE OF SAN DIEGO: $25,000 · Human ServicesFRIENDS OF THE WORLD FOOD PROGRAM INC: $10,000 · Human ServicesDEL MAR COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS DMCC: $4,000 · Human ServicesAmerican National Red Cross & Its Constituent Chapters and Branches: $2,500 · Human ServicesJACOBS & CUSHMAN SAN DIEGO FOOD BANK: $17,500 · Food & NutritionMAUI FOOD BANK INC: $10,000 · Food & NutritionMEALS-ON-WHEELS GREATER SAN DIEGO INC: $8,500 · Food & NutritionMANNA FOOD BANK INC: $3,000 · Food & Nutrition+1 more: $1,000 · Food & NutritionTHE EVERGREEN STATE COLLEGE FOUNDATION: $25,500 · EducationHINDMAN SETTLEMENT SCHOOL INC: $10,000 · EducationADAMS STREET FOUNDATION INC: $2,000 · Education
Other$273,000Animals$80,500Environment$59,000International$42,000Human Services$41,500Food & Nutrition$40,000Education$37,500

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 budgetACLU FOUNDATION OF SAN DIEGO & IMPERIAL COUNTIES: $40,000 over 4y, 0.4% of budgetUNIVERSITY OF SAN DIEGO: $40,000 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetWORLD WILDLIFE FUND INC: $37,500 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetSAVE THE CHIMPS INC: $30,000 over 4y, 0.2% of budgetJW FOUNDATION: $27,500 over 4y, 9.1% of budgetTHE EVERGREEN STATE COLLEGE FOUNDATION: $25,500 over 5y, 0.3% of budgetJEWISH FAMILY SERVICE OF SAN DIEGO: $25,000 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetEARTHRIGHTS INTERNATIONAL INC: $22,500 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetCasa Cornelia Legal Services: $20,500 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetINTERNATIONAL FUND FOR ANIMAL WELFARE INC: $20,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetTHE NATURE CONSERVANCY: $20,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetNATURAL RESOURCES DEFENSE COUNCIL INC: $20,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetJACOBS & CUSHMAN SAN DIEGO FOOD BANK: $17,500 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetLUCKY DUCK FOUNDATION: $17,500 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetUnited States Association for UNHCR: $13,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetHAWAII COMMUNITY FOUNDATION: $12,500 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetTHE CENTER FOR REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS INC: $11,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetHINDMAN SETTLEMENT SCHOOL INC: $10,000 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetFRIENDS OF THE WORLD FOOD PROGRAM INC: $10,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetMEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES USA INC: $10,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetMAUI FOOD BANK INC: $10,000 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetMEALS-ON-WHEELS GREATER SAN DIEGO INC: $8,500 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetAMNESTY INTERNATIONAL OF THE USA INC: $7,500 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetROBIN HOOD FOUNDATION: $7,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetFriends of the Palm SpringsAnimal Shelter: $6,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetBEST FRIENDS ANIMAL SOCIETY: $6,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetTHE ELEPHANT SANCTUARY IN TENNESSEE: $5,500 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetHUMAN RIGHTS WATCH INC: $5,500 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetWORLD CENTRAL KITCHEN INC: $5,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetInner City Law Center: $5,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetDAP Health Inc: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetPALM SPRINGS ART MUSEUM: $4,000 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetDEL MAR COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS DMCC: $4,000 over 4y, 0.3% of budgetRANCHO COASTAL HUMANE SOCIETY: $3,500 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetMANNA FOOD BANK INC: $3,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetPERFORMING ANIMAL WELFARE SOCIETY: $3,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetAmerican National Red Cross & Its Constituent Chapters and Branches: $2,500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetBrother Wolf Animal Rescue Inc: $2,500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetLOS ANGELES REGIONAL FOOD BANK: $2,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetHELEN WOODWARD ANIMAL CENTER: $2,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetADAMS STREET FOUNDATION INC: $2,000 over 2y, 0.2% of budgetPediatric Brain Tumor Foundation of the United States Inc: $2,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetPalm Springs Preservation Foundation: $2,000 over 2y, 0.7% of budgetANIMAL WELFARE INSTITUTE: $2,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetKQED INC: $1,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetKCRW FOUNDATION INC: $1,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetENVIRONMENTAL DEFENSE FUND INCORPORATED: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetAIDS Assistance Program: $1,000 over 1y, 0.2% 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.

Sempra FoundationThe San Diego Foundat…Alliance Healthcare F…Jewish Community Foun…The California Wellne…The San Francisco Fou…Verizon FoundationSilicon Valley Commun…Vanguard Charitable E…The Pfizer Foundation…Network for GoodNational Philanthropi…
Sempra FoundationCA21.5× affinity9 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Sempra Foundation · The San Diego Foundation · Alliance Healthcare Foundation · Jewish Community Foundation of San Diego · The California Wellness Foundation · The San Francisco Foundation · Verizon Foundation · Silicon Valley Community Foundation · Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program · The Pfizer Foundation Inc · Network for Good · National Philanthropic Trust

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 Robert & Kelly Kaplan Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from The Robert & Kelly Kaplan Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 10%1%3%6%10%funder's share of their income ↑0%6%13%19%25%share of the org’s income from government →median 0%
  • Oxfam-America Inc: 0% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
1get no government money at all
12report 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.

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 56 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

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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