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The Thorne Cox Family Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

The Thorne Cox Family Foundation

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.

$572k
Granted FY2024still arriving
19
Grants FY2024still arriving
8
States reached
$195k
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, FY2019 to 2024.

Arts & Culture$1.2MEducation$676kEnvironment$604kRecreation & Sports$237kInternational$125kSocial Science$120kPublic Benefit$62kPhilanthropy$54kOther$0
02FY2024 · 19 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2024

  • Under $10k9 grants · $31k
  • $10k–50k6 grants · $146k
  • $50k–250k4 grants · $395k
$10,000
Median grant
8
States reached
$4.3M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
Avenue Concept Inc$195,000
Bay Chamber Concerts Inc$100,000
Middlesex School$50,000
Trustees of Dartmouth College$50,000
United States Ski and Snowboard Association$45,000
National Debutante Cotillion Foundation Inc$31,200
Milton Academy$25,000
Boston Impact Initiative$25,000
Presidents and Fellows of Harvard$10,000
Maine Public Broadcasting Corp$10,000
The William A Farnsworth Library and Art Museum Inc$6,624
Knox County Homeless Coalition$5,000
Imagine North Carolina First$5,000
Lifeflight Foundation$5,000
YMCA of the USA$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 (FY21–24, $30k) land where the poverty rate runs at 11%, against an area that typically sits at 9%. 100% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 9%Knox County Homeless Coalition: $10k → 11%Knox County Homeless Coalition: $10k → 11%Knox County Homeless Coalition: $5k → 11%Knox County Homeless Coalition: $5k → 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

ME
NH
IL
NY
MA
NJ
CT
RI
CA
UT
CO
VA
NC
DC
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.

88%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$2.6M · 21 repeat orgs$343k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +43% since the first grant, against +27% for those funded once.

21 repeat relationships: 11 still active in FY2024, 10 since wound down; 6 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

21
18

Total granted

$2.6M
$230k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+43%
+27%

Still filing today

76%
61%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 78% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $113k went to new ones.

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

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

’19’20’21’22’23’24
Arts & CultureEducationEnvironmentSocial ScienceInternationalRecreation & 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

  • TA
    THE AVENUE CONCEPT INC
    6× · 2019–2024 · $615k · revenue +73%
  • MP
    Maine Public Broadcasting Corporation
    4× · 2020–2024 · $285k · revenue +68%
  • Maine Coast Heritage Trust
    3× · 2021–2023 · $205k · revenue +5%

Funded once

  • RI
    REFUGEPOINT INCgraduated
    one grant, 2022 · $100k · revenue +27%
  • VITAL VOICES GLOBAL PARTNERSHIP INC
    one grant, 2021 · $25k · revenue -26%
  • LC
    LAND CONSERVANCY OF NORTH KINGSTOWN
    one grant, 2022 · $20k
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
Massachusetts Institute of Technology

The mission of mit is to advance knowledge and educate students in science, technology, and other areas of scholarship that will best serve the nation and the world in the 21st century.

Education
2
President and Trustees of Bates College

Bates is a college of the liberal arts and sciences, and is a coeducational, nonsectarian, residential college with special commitments to academic rigor, and to assuring in all of its efforts the dignity of each individual, and access to…

Education
3
Boston Architectural College

The bac is committed to provide excellence in design education grounded in practice and accessible to diverse communities.

—
4
Bowdoin International Music Festival

The mission of the Bowdoin International Music Festival is to provide gifted young musicians from around the world with an opportunity to study with world-class artists, and to provide audiences with classical music performed to the…

Arts & Culture
5
Marine Biological Laboratory

The Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) is a world-renowned center for biological discovery and training that is notably affiliated with more than 60 Nobel Prize winners. Research is conducted by full-time faculty as well as hundreds of the…

Science & Tech
6
Wheaton College

Wheaton college provides a transformative liberal arts education, combining theory and practice, for intellectually curious students within a collaborative and vibrant extended community and network that values and strives to create an…

Education
7
The President and Trustees of Colby College

to provide a rigorous and transformative liberal arts education that prepares students to become thoughtful, engaged citizens.

Education
8
Roger Williams University

At Roger Williams University, students are prepared to be thinkers and doers ready to solve challenging problems with innovative solutions. RWU offers robust offerings of undergraduate, graduate and professional programs across eight…

Education
9
Williams College

Williams College strives to achieve educational excellence by fostering a community of learning in collaboration with students, faculty, staff, devoted alumni and parents.

Education
10
Islesboro Islands Trust

The mission of Islesboro Islands Trust is to enhance the quality of residents' lives through the preservation of open space, educate all residents as to the value of the island's natural ecosystems, and act as an environmental advocate on…

Philanthropy
11
Nantucket Conservation Foundation Inc

The nantucket conservation foundation owns, protects, and stewards over 9,000 acres of land and coastal shoreline, conserves nantucket's rare and significant natural resources, and engages in impactful ecological research to inform…

Environment
12
Rhode Island School of Design

The mission of rhode island school of design, through its college and museum,is to educate its students and the public in the creation and (see schedule o)appreciation of works of art and design, to discover and transmit knowledge and to…

Education
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is The Trustees of Reservations; the most unlike its peers is The William a Farnsworth Library and Art Museum 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

36 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. 36 of the 49 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)
7
Early backer (in before they grew)
36/36
Grantees still filing
24/36
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

THE AVENUE CONCEPT INC: $615,000 · Arts & CultureTHE AVENUE CONCEPT INCMaine Public Broadcasting Corporation: $285,000 · Arts & CultureMaine Public Broadcasting CorporationFriends of Katahdin Woods & Waters: $250,000 · Arts & CultureFriends of Katahdin Woods & WatersBAY CHAMBER CONCERTS INC: $207,500 · Arts & CultureBAY CHAMBER CONCERTS INC+5 more: $75,624 · Arts & CultureROCKPORT LIBRARY FOUNDATION: $264,467 · EducationROCKPORT LIBRARY FOUNDAT…Trustees of Dartmouth College: $200,000 · EducationTrustees of Dartmouth Co…MILTON ACADEMY: $125,000 · EducationMILTON ACADEMYMIDDLESEX SCHOOL: $50,000 · EducationMIDDLESEX SCHOOLPresident and Fellows of Harvard College: $25,000 · Education+2 more: $16,500 · EducationUnited States Ski and Snowboard Association: $90,000 · OtherUnited States Sk…Coastal Maine Land Trust: $75,000 · OtherCoastal Maine La…US Ski Team Foundation: $30,000 · OtherUS Ski Team Foun…LAND CONSERVANCY OF NORTH KINGSTOWN: $20,000 · OtherWHAT CHEER ART COMPANY: $20,000 · OtherISSUE ONE: $55,000 · OtherISSUE ONENATIONAL DEBUTANTE COTILLION FOUNDATION INC: $31,200 · OtherNATIONAL DEBUTAN…Homeworthy: $30,000 · OtherHomeworthyBOSTON IMPACT INITIATIVE FUND: $25,000 · OtherBOSTON IMPACT IN…LifeFlight Foundation: $22,000 · Other+11 more: $62,500 · Other+11 moreMaine Coast Heritage Trust: $205,300 · EnvironmentMaine Coa…Coastal Mountains Land Trust: $35,000 · EnvironmentCoastal M…NEW VENTURE FUND: $20,000 · EnvironmentNEW VENTU…+3 more: $10,500 · EnvironmentCOUNCIL FOR ECONOMIC EDUCATION: $120,000 · Social ScienceIMAGINE NORTH CAROLINA FIRST: $5,000 · Social ScienceREFUGEPOINT INC: $100,000 · InternationalVITAL VOICES GLOBAL PARTNERSHIP INC: $25,000 · InternationalUnited States Ski Team Foundation: $110,000 · Recreation & SportsWICKFORD SAILING ASSOCIATION INC: $5,000 · Recreation & Sports
Arts & Culture$1,433,124Education$680,967Other$460,700Environment$270,800Social Science$125,000International$125,000Recreation & Sports$115,000

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 AVENUE CONCEPT INC: $615,000 over 6y, 17% of budgetMaine Public Broadcasting Corporation: $285,000 over 4y, 0.9% of budgetROCKPORT LIBRARY FOUNDATION: $264,467 over 5y, 55% of budgetFriends of Katahdin Woods & Waters: $250,000 over 2y, 6.5% of budgetBAY CHAMBER CONCERTS INC: $207,500 over 2y, 3.3% of budgetMaine Coast Heritage Trust: $205,300 over 3y, 0.4% of budgetTrustees of Dartmouth College: $200,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetMILTON ACADEMY: $125,000 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetCOUNCIL FOR ECONOMIC EDUCATION: $120,000 over 4y, 0.9% of budgetUnited States Ski Team Foundation: $110,000 over 3y, 0.3% of budgetREFUGEPOINT INC: $100,000 over 1y, 0.8% of budgetISSUE ONE: $55,000 over 4y, 0.3% of budgetMIDDLESEX SCHOOL: $50,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetCoastal Mountains Land Trust: $35,000 over 3y, 1.7% of budgetTHE WILLIAM A FARNSWORTH LIBRARY AND ART MUSEUM INC: $34,624 over 6y, 0.2% of budgetAMERICAN REPERTORY THEATRE CO INC: $32,500 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetNATIONAL DEBUTANTE COTILLION FOUNDATION INC: $31,200 over 1y, 21% of budgetHomeworthy: $30,000 over 4y, 0.3% of budgetPresident and Fellows of Harvard College: $25,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetVITAL VOICES GLOBAL PARTNERSHIP INC: $25,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetBOSTON IMPACT INITIATIVE FUND: $25,000 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetLifeFlight Foundation: $22,000 over 6y, 0.2% of budgetNEW VENTURE FUND: $20,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetMassachusetts Bay Community College Foundation Inc: $15,000 over 1y, 1.6% of budgetAMOS HOUSE: $10,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetWICKFORD SAILING ASSOCIATION INC: $5,000 over 1y, 5.1% of budgetTHE TRUSTEES OF RESERVATIONS: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetFreshgrass Public Foundation: $5,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetIMAGINE NORTH CAROLINA FIRST: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetLiving Observatory Inc: $4,000 over 4y, 2.6% of budgetCOMMUNITY FOUNDATION BOULDER COUNTY: $2,500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetHAUS OF CODEC: $2,500 over 1y, 0.7% of budgetCONANICUT ISLAND SAILING FOUNDATION: $1,500 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetPROVIDENCE PUBLIC LIBRARY: $1,500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetROCKY MOUNTAIN PUBLIC MEDIA INC: $1,000 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.

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.

Fidelity FoundationThe Aldermere Foundat…Boston Foundation IncTr Ua the Camden Foun…Otter Island Foundati…Ralph R Papitto & Bar…Onion FoundationBangor Savings Bank F…The Rhode Island Comm…Maine Community Found…Vanguard Charitable E…Raymond James Charita…
Fidelity FoundationMA16.1× affinity6 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Fidelity Foundation · The Aldermere Foundation · Boston Foundation Inc · Tr Ua the Camden Foundation · Otter Island Foundation · Ralph R Papitto & Barbara a Papitto Private Family Foundation · Onion Foundation · Bangor Savings Bank Foundation · The Rhode Island Community Foundation · Maine Community Foundation Inc · Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program · Raymond James Charitable Endowment Fund

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 Thorne Cox Family Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from The Thorne Cox Family Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 40%4%15%34%60%funder's share of their income ↑0%25%50%75%100%share of the org’s income from government →median 2%
  • Living Observatory Inc: 30% of income from government
  • President and Fellows of Harvard College: 7% of income from government
  • The Trustees of Reservations: 2% of income from government
  • American Repertory Theatre Co Inc: 0% of income from government
  • Milton Academy: 0% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
4get no government money at all
6report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
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 49 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 Thorne Cox Family’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