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The Watts Family Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

The Watts Family 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.

$215k
Granted FY2025still arriving
4
Grants FY2025still arriving
3
States reached
$170k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead
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 2025.

Education$2.1MHealth$413kEnvironment$65kRecreation & Sports$54kPhilanthropy$46kArts & Culture$25kHuman Services$5k
02FY2025 · 4 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2025

  • Under $10k1 grant · $5k
  • $10k–50k2 grants · $40k
  • $50k–250k1 grant · $170k
$25,000
Median grant
3
States reached
$3.9M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
THE CITADEL FOUNDATION$170,000
CHARLOTTE BALLET$25,000
OPEN SPACE INSTITUTE$15,000
BELLE W BARUCH 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 (FY20–20, $5k) land where the poverty rate runs at 14%, against an area that typically sits at 8%. 100% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 8%Fair Chance: $5k → 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

MT
NY
CT
VA
NC
SC
DC
GA
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.

94%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$2.6M · 7 repeat orgs$168k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +62% since the first grant, against +55% for those funded once.

7 repeat relationships: 2 still active in FY2025, 5 since wound down; 2 grantees were first funded in FY2025 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

7
7

Total granted

$2.6M
$138k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+62%
+55%

Still filing today

86%
71%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2025, 86% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $30k went to new ones.

50%100%’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24’25
RenewedFirst-time

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

’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24’25
EducationHealthHuman ServicesPhilanthropyEnvironmentArts & CultureOther
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

  • RS
    Roper St Francis Foundation
    5× · 2020–2024 · $380k · revenue +224%
  • TC
    THE CITADEL BRIGADIER FOUNDATION
    2× · 2022–2024 · $54k · revenue +107%
  • CO
    Children of Fallen Patriots Foundation
    2× · 2022–2024 · $50k · revenue +62%

Funded once

  • TU
    THE UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA FOUNDATIONgraduated
    one grant, 2023 · $50k · revenue +43%
  • PF
    PORTER-GAUD FOUNDATIONgraduated
    one grant, 2017 · $40k · revenue +223%
  • AI
    AMPLIFY INCgraduated
    one grant, 2023 · $20k · revenue +68%
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
The Baruch College Fund

The baruch college fund is an organization engaged in generating, encouraging and promoting the educational welfare of the students of the bernard m. baruch college of the city university of new york.

Education
2
Banner Alzheimer's Foundation

Established in 2006, the banner alzheimer's foundation (baf) secures and stewards charitable gifts to advance the mission of banner alzheimer's institute (bai), including groundbreaking research initiatives and pioneering prevention…

Health
3
College of Charleston Foundation

The Mission of the College of Charleston Foundation is to promote programs of education, research, student development, and faculty development for the exclusive benefit of the College of Charleston.

Education
4
Vanderbilt University

See Disclosure Above.

Education
5
Unc Health Foundation Inc

At unc health foundation, we inspire philanthropic support for unc health and unc school of medicine that transforms healthcare and provides hope to the people of north carolina and communities around the world.

Education
6
University of South Florida Foundation Inc

University of South Florida Foundation, Inc.'s mission is to provide charitable and educational aid to the University of South Florida; to promote education and other related activities of the University; and to encourage research,…

Education
7
Stony Brook Ophthalmology University Faculty Practice Corporation

Provide clinical instruction to and supervision of medical school students, interns and residents and, incident thereto, rendering professional services.

Health
8
University of South Carolina Educational Foundation

To support the University of South Carolina in its academic, research and charitable endeavors by promoting a culture of philanthropy, managing and stewarding donor gifts, and providing financial resources to support students and faculty…

Education
9
Roper St Francis Physicians Network

Healing all people with compassion, faith and excellence.

Health
10
Stony Brook Orthopedic Associates University Faculty Practice Corporation

Provide clinical instruction to and supervision of medical school students, interns and residents and, incident thereto, rendering professional services.

Health
11
Furman University

The primary mission of furman as a liberal arts institution is to provide a distinctive education in fine arts, humanities, social sciences, mathematics and the sciences, as well as selected professional disciplines.

Education
12
Stony Brook Internists University Faculty Practice Corporation

Provide clinical instruction to and supervision of medical school students, interns and residents and, incident thereto, rendering professional services.

Health
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is The Citadel Foundation; the most unlike its peers is Belle W Baruch Foundation. 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

13 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. 13 of the 16 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)
4
Early backer (in before they grew)
13/13
Grantees still filing
9/13
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

THE CITADEL FOUNDATION: $1,976,000 · EducationTHE CITADEL FOUNDATION+3 more: $154,000 · Education+3 moreRoper St Francis Foundation: $380,441 · HealthRoper St Franci…PORTER-GAUD FOUNDATION: $40,000 · OtherOPEN SPACE INSTITUTE: $25,000 · OtherAMPLIFY INC: $20,000 · OtherOpen Space Institute: $10,000 · OtherBELLE W BARUCH FOUNDATION: $5,000 · OtherThe Leukemia Lymphoma Society: $5,000 · OtherGOOD FRIENDS OF THE LOWCOUNTRY: $41,000 · PhilanthropyOPEN SPACE INSTITUTE INC: $30,000 · EnvironmentCHARLOTTE BALLET: $25,000 · Arts & CultureOneWorld Health: $7,500 · InternationalFAIR CHANCE: $5,000 · Human Services
Education$2,130,000Health$380,441Other$105,000Philanthropy$41,000Environment$30,000Arts & Culture$25,000International$7,500Human Services$5,000

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 CITADEL FOUNDATION: $1,976,000 over 9y, 2.7% of budgetRoper St Francis Foundation: $380,441 over 5y, 2.6% of budgetTHE CITADEL BRIGADIER FOUNDATION: $54,000 over 2y, 0.8% of budgetChildren of Fallen Patriots Foundation: $50,000 over 2y, 0.2% of budgetTHE UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA FOUNDATION: $50,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetGOOD FRIENDS OF THE LOWCOUNTRY: $41,000 over 2y, 13% of budgetPORTER-GAUD FOUNDATION: $40,000 over 1y, 1.7% of budgetOPEN SPACE INSTITUTE INC: $30,000 over 2y, 0.2% of budgetCHARLOTTE BALLET: $25,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetAMPLIFY INC: $20,000 over 1y, 1.5% of budgetOneWorld Health: $7,500 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetBELLE W BARUCH FOUNDATION: $5,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetFAIR CHANCE: $5,000 over 1y, 0.3% 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.

Morgan Stanley Global…Gs Donor Advised Phil…American Endowment Fo…National Philanthropi…The Bank of America C…American Online Givin…Vanguard Charitable E…Donor Advised Charita…Fidelity Investments …Amazonsmile Foundation
Morgan Stanley Global Impact Funding Trust IncIN11.2× affinity6 shared granteesties to 9 of 9Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Morgan Stanley Global Impact Funding Trust Inc · Gs Donor Advised Philanthropy Fund for Wealth Management Inc · American Endowment Foundation · National Philanthropic Trust · The Bank of America Charitable Foundation Inc · American Online Giving Foundation Inc · Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program · Donor Advised Charitable Giving Inc · Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund · 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 Watts Family Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from The Watts Family Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%1%4%8%15%funder's share of their income ↑0%25%50%75%100%share of the org’s income from government →median 100%
  • Amplify Inc: 100% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
0get no government money at all
2report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
1rely 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.
05Through Plinth

Warm introductions · Powered by PlinthPlus

How do I get to The Watts Family Foundation?

Find your warmest path to The Watts Family 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.

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 16 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 Watts 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