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The Rodney H and Judy E Margolis Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

The Rodney H and Judy E Margolis Foundation

Its FY2019 filing reports that it funds preselected organizations and did not take unsolicited requests; check the foundation's own site before ruling it out.

$61k
Granted FY2018
16
Grants FY2018
3
States reached
$20k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead

Read this first · the figures below need context

91% of The Rodney H and Judy E Margolis Foundation’s FY2019 grant dollars went to Greater Houston Community Foundation, not to grantees.

Its money now reaches organizations through that sponsor, which does not report who recommended each grant. FY2019 names 4 organizations directly, so a portfolio cannot be read from it. Everything below is therefore FY2018, the last year The Rodney H and Judy E Margolis Foundation named its own grantees at scale: 6 organizations, $61k. It is dated, not current.

Organizations named directly on the return

13
’17
6
’18
4
’19

Amber years are those where most dollars went to a sponsor.

01What it funds
01100% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2017 to 2019.

Philanthropy$342kArts & Culture$53kEducation$22kHealth$22kFood & Nutrition$3kReligion$910Recreation & Sports$550Employment$75Other$0
02FY2018 · 16 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2018

  • Under $10k13 grants · $11k
  • $10k–50k3 grants · $50k
$300
Median grant
3
States reached
$0
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
ST JOHNS SCHOOL$20,000
MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS HOUSTON$20,000
UT HEALTH SCIENCE CENTER$10,000
THE METHODIST HOSPITAL FOUNDATION$7,000
ASPEN THEATRE$1,000
HOUSTON FOOD BANK$800
HOUSTON AREA PARKINSON'S SOCIETY$500
KELSEY RESEARCH FOUNDATION$300
ST JOHNS SCHOOL$250
THRIVE SCHOOL NETWORK$200
THE SHAWN M HURWITZ FELLOWSHIP$100
CONGREGATION BETH ISRAEL BROTHERHOOD$100
HIGH SCHOOL FOR PERFORMING ARTS$100
CONGREGATION BETH ISRAEL BROTHERHOOD$75
CAESER KLEBURG WILDLIFE RESEARCH$50
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 (FY17–19) land where the poverty rate runs at 16%, against an area that typically sits at 14%. 98% of its dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 14%AMERICAN ASSOCIATION FOR CANCER RESEARCH: $250 → 22%TOURETTE SYNDROME ASSOC OF TEXAS: $100 → 8%UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON-BAUER COLLEGE: $100 → 16%CAESER KLEBURG WILDLIFE RESEARCH: $50 → 27%THE METHODIST HOSPITAL FOUNDATION: $7k → 14%ASPEN THEATRE: $1k → 6%GREATER HOUSTON COMMUNITY FOUNDATION: $338k → 16%BROWN UNIVERSITY: $2k → 14%THE SHAWN M HURWITZ FELLOWSHIP: $100 → 16%MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS HOUSTON: $30k → 16%MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS HOUSTON: $20k → 16%HOUSTON METHODIST HOSPITAL FOUNDATION: $2k → 16%HOUSTON MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS: $350 → 16%HOUSTON METHODIST HOSPITAL FOUNDATION: $250 → 16%JDRF: $200 → 16%ST JOHNS SCHOOL: $20k → 16%UT HEALTH SCIENCE CENTER: $10k → 16%RIVER OAKS COUNTRY CLUB: $550 → 16%HOUSTON AREA PARKINSON'S SOCIETY: $500 → 16%HOUSTON PARKINSON'S SOCIETY: $500 → 16%MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY: $300 → 16%THE HUNTINGDON: $500 → 16%M D ANDERSON CANCER CENTER: $250 → 16%KELSEY RESEARCH FOUNDATION: $300 → 16%THE MENIL COLLECTION: $1k → 16%ST JOHNS SCHOOL: $250 → 16%GREATER HOUSTON COMMUNITY FOUNDATION: $2k → 16%THRIVE SCHOOL NETWORK: $200 → 16%CONGREGATION BETH ISRAEL: $910 → 16%CONGREGATION BETH ISRAEL BROTHERHOOD: $360 → 16%SHLENKER SCHOOL: $250 → 16%CORONADO CLUB: $500 → 16%JEWISH FEDERATION OF GREATER HOUSTON: $250 → 16%HOUSTON SYMPHONY: $450 → 16%CONGREGATION BETH ISRAEL BROTHERHOOD: $100 → 16%HOUSTON CENTER FOR CONTEMPORARY CRAFT: $250 → 16%OLIVER LAPIN BOOK FAIR FUND: $100 → 16%HOUSTON SYMPHONY ENDOWMENT FUND: $100 → 16%DANIEL A POLLOCK ART FUND: $100 → 16%HIGH SCHOOL FOR PERFORMING ARTS: $100 → 16%HOUSTON FOOD BANK: $800 → 16%HOUSTON FOOD BANK: $800 → 16%HOUSTON FOOD BANK: $800 → 16%THE HOLOCAUST MUSEUM: $75 → 16%SIRE-UNDER THE STARS: $100 → 16%HOUSTON AREA PARKINSON SOCIETY: $700 → 16%PROJECT GRAD: $75 → 16%CONGREGATION BETH ISRAEL BROTHERHOOD: $75 → 16%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.
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.

55%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$56k · 5 repeat orgs$46k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +54% since the first grant, against +12% for those funded once.

5 repeat relationships: 4 still active in FY2018, 1 since wound down; 15 grantees were first funded in FY2018 (too recent to call). Read against FY2018, the last year this funder named its own grantees directly; its giving has since run through a sponsor, which reports no donor behind each grant.

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

5
17

Total granted

$56k
$6k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+54%
+12%

Still filing today

80%
47%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2019, 98% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $700 went to new ones.

50%100%’17’18’19
RenewedFirst-time

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

’17’18’19
Arts & CultureHealthEducationOther
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

  • TM
    THE MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS HOUSTON
    2× · 2018–2019 · $50k · revenue +54%
  • The Houston Food Bank
    3× · 2017–2019 · $2k · revenue +107%
  • HA
    Houston Area Parkinson Society
    2× · 2018–2019 · $1k · revenue +45%

Funded once

  • MF
    Menil Foundation Inc
    one grant, 2017 · $1k · revenue -1%
  • CB
    CONGREGATION BETH ISRAEL
    one grant, 2017 · $910
  • RO
    RIVER OAKS COUNTRY CLUB
    one grant, 2017 · $550 · revenue +15%
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
Houston Museum of Natural Science

The mission of the Houston Museum of Natural Science shall be to preserve and advance the general knowledge of natural science; to enhance in individuals the knowledge of and delight in natural science and related subjects; and to maintain…

Arts & Culture
2
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
3
Harris County Medical Society

Our mission is to be the leading advocate for our member physicians, their patients and our community, in promoting the highest standards of ethical medical practice, access to quality medical care, medical education, research, and…

—
4
Houston Academy of Medicine

The mission of the Houston Academy of Medicine is to support the community service, education, scientific, and charitable programs for physicians, their patients, and the community at large in Harris County.

Education
5
Houston Independent School District Foundation

The HISD Foundation is dedicated to mobilizing the local community to support innovative priorities in HISD to improve outcomes for all students in the district. Our mission is to fund projects and programs of merit that fall outside of…

—
6
Houston Botanic Garden

To enrich life through discovery, education, and the conservation of plants and the natural environment.

Environment
7
John P McGovern Museum of Health & Medical Science

The Health Museum is an innovative science center that provides an interactive and entertaining experience for all ages, promotes understanding and appreciation of the human body, mind, and spirit, and inspires a lifelong commitment to…

Arts & Culture
8
Contemporary Arts Museum Houston

CAMH presents extraordinary and thought-provoking arts programming and exhibitions.

Arts & Culture
9
Memorial Hermann Medical Group

Memorial hermann health system is a nonprofit, values-driven, community-owned health system dedicated to improving health. our vision is to create healthier communities, now and for generations to come. our values are community,…

Health
10
Houston Christian Foundation dba National Christian Foundation Houston

As the Houston affiliate of the National Christian Foundation (NCF), our mission is to serve and encourage givers to grow as faithful stewards who give wisely to further the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

—
11
The Heritage Society

The Heritage Society (THS) is a nonprofit organization founded in 1954 whose mission is to tell the stories of the diverse history of Houston and Texas through collections, exhibits, the arts, educational programs, film, video, and other…

—
12
President and Fellows of Harvard College

Undergraduate, graduate, and professional education and research across a broad array of academic domains.

Education
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Greater Houston Community Foundation; the most unlike its peers is Breakthrough T1D. 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

19 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. 19 of the 40 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)
2
Early backer (in before they grew)
18/19
Grantees still filing
13/19
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

GREATER HOUSTON COMMUNITY FOUNDATION: $339,729 · PhilanthropyGREATER HOUSTON COMMUNITY FOUNDATIONTHE MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS HOUSTON: $50,000 · Arts & CultureTHE MUSEUM OF…+3 more: $1,700 · Arts & CultureSt John's School: $20,250 · OtherSt John's Sc…UT HEALTH SCIENCE CENTER: $10,000 · OtherUT HEALTH SC…THE METHODIST HOSPITAL FOUNDATION: $7,000 · OtherTHE METHODIS…The Houston Food Bank: $2,400 · Other+25 more: $8,145 · Other+25 moreTHE METHODIST HOSPITAL FOUNDATION: $2,250 · HealthKelsey Research Foundation: $300 · HealthAmerican Association for Cancer Research Inc: $250 · HealthBREAKTHROUGH T1D: $200 · HealthBROWN UNIVERSITY: $1,500 · Community ImprovementThrive School Network: $200 · Education
Philanthropy$339,729Arts & Culture$51,700Other$47,795Health$3,000Community Improvement$1,500Education$200

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 budgetGREATER HOUSTON COMMUNITY FOUNDATION: $339,729 over 2y, 0.2% of budgetTHE MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS HOUSTON: $50,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetSt John's School: $20,250 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetThe Houston Food Bank: $2,400 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetTHE METHODIST HOSPITAL FOUNDATION: $2,250 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetBROWN UNIVERSITY: $1,500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetHouston Area Parkinson Society: $1,200 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetMenil Foundation Inc: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetRIVER OAKS COUNTRY CLUB: $550 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTHE CORONADO CLUB: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetHouston Symphony Society: $450 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetKelsey Research Foundation: $300 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetHOUSTON CENTER FOR CONTEMPORARY CRAFT: $250 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetAmerican Association for Cancer Research Inc: $250 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetJewish Federation of Greater Houston: $250 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetBREAKTHROUGH T1D: $200 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetThrive School Network: $200 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetTourette Syndrome Association of Texas: $100 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetProject GRAD Houston: $75 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.

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.

Greater Houston Commu…The Stanford & Joan A…The Brodsky FoundationShell USA Company Fou…Mechia FoundationAlbert & Ethel Herzst…The Brown Foundation …Natl Christian Charit…National Philanthropi…Fidelity Investments …Donor Advised Charita…Amazonsmile Foundation
Greater Houston Community FoundationTX18.3× affinity7 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Greater Houston Community Foundation · The Stanford & Joan Alexander Foundation · The Brodsky Foundation · Shell USA Company Foundation · Mechia Foundation · Albert & Ethel Herzstein Charitable Foundation · The Brown Foundation Inc · Natl Christian Charitable Fdn Inc · 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.

How much its grantees rely on government

Each dot is one organization The Rodney H and Judy E Margolis Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from The Rodney H and Judy E Margolis Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%0%1%3%5%funder's share of their income ↑0%4%8%11%15%share of the org’s income from government →
    no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
    0get no government money at all
    1report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
    0rely on government for over half their income
    ⤢ axis zoomed · 0–15%
    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 40 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 2018, released 2018. 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