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Illinois · Nonprofit

COSLEY FOUNDATION INC

COSLEY FOUNDATION INC (Illinois) receives grants from 19 organizations whose IRS filings report $1,101,456 to it, the largest being FIDELITY INVESTMENTS CHARITABLE GIFT FUND ($607,400). 12 of them have funded it in more than one year, and 81% of the money arrives through donor-advised or pass-through sponsors rather than from an institution directly.

Revenue FY2024
$1.1M
Funders on record
19
Grants received
$1.1M
Net assets
$2.3M
12/19 repeat funderspeak grant-dependency 28%
01What it does

What Cosley Foundation Inc does

Mission

Mission: to create connections between people and animals that will inspire lifelong conservation of the natural world.vision: a world in which everyone has a meaningful connection to animals and nature.

As stated on its FY2024 Form 990.

Programs

  1. The foundation provides financial support to help fund the operation of the cosley zoo by the wheaton park district. The zoos operations include free admission to all children under the age of 18 y/o, regardless of residence within the wheaton park district bounds and free admission to all wheaton park district adults. Admission to the zoo allows access to more than 20 animal exhibits, including a duck pond and chicken coop where visitors can participate in animal feedings for a small additional fee. Within the grounds of the zoo there is also a unique gift shop and small concessions stand. Since 2000, the cosley zoo has maintained accreditation by the association of zoos & aquariums (aza), and as such adheres to the worlds strictest standards of animal welfare and conservation advocacy within every aspect of its operating plan. The zoo is also beloved by the community for its strong and inclusive educational programs, with education being a primary operational focus.

    $1,335,245 spentof which $1,335,245 as grants
    90% of program spending
  2. The foundation, in accordance with a donors wishes, is providing one scholarship in memory of the former president of the foundation.

    $2,500 spentof which $2,500 as grants
    0% of program spending
  3. The foundation provides financial support for the advancement of the zoo. The foundation invests in donor relationship building and the engagement of subject matter experts.

    $133,506 spent
    9% of program spending
  4. Other programs

    $19,672 spent
    1% of program spending

The 4 programs described on its FY2025 Form 990, listed largest first by expense. Program spending in total: $1,490,923.

02The organization over time

The organization over time

Each line starts at 100 in 2017, so what you read is the shape rather than the size: 150 means half as much again as 2017, 50 means half. The number beside each label in the key is where it ended. The shaded band is where the middle 50% of its peers' revenue would sit, given their growth.

100 = 20172017 Revenue 100 ($483k) Expenses 100 ($311k) Net assets 100 ($750k)2018 Revenue 104 ($502k) Expenses 128 ($398k) Net assets 114 ($854k)2019 Revenue 130 ($628k) Expenses 133 ($413k) Net assets 143 ($1.1M)2020 Revenue 129 ($622k) Expenses 105 ($325k) Net assets 182 ($1.4M)2021 Revenue 166 ($800k) Expenses 125 ($389k) Net assets 237 ($1.8M)2022 Revenue 261 ($1.3M) Expenses 140 ($436k) Net assets 343 ($2.6M)2023 Revenue 192 ($928k) Expenses 169 ($527k) Net assets 401 ($3.0M)2024 Revenue 232 ($1.1M) Expenses 579 ($1.8M) Net assets 309 ($2.3M)
'17'18'19'20'21'22'23'24
Revenue (232)Expenses (579)Net assets (309)Peer revenue range

Balance sheet

Total assets and total liabilities at each year end, in dollars. The largest one-year move in total assets was 2021 to 2022, from $1.8M to $2.6M (+43%).

$842k
$964k
$1.1M
$1.4M
$1.8M
$2.6M
$3.1M
$3.6M
'17'18'19'20'21'22'23'24
Total assetsTotal liabilities

How it's funded, over time

Each bar is one year's revenue split into where it came from, and every bar is the same height — these are shares, not amounts, so a year that raised twice as much looks the same size. Hover a bar for the split.

2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
ContributionsProgram revenueInvestmentOther

71% of COSLEY FOUNDATION INC’s revenue is contributions — more donation-reliant than the typical peer (63% for the typical peer).

This organization
Typical peer · 5,377 orgs

Surplus & reserves

Operating surplus or deficit each year, and months of liquidity in hand. 1 of the last 8 reported years ran a deficit.

$172k
’17
$104k
’18
$215k
’19
$297k
’20
$411k
’21
$826k
’22
$401k
’23
−$682k
’24
11
months of
reserve

Leadership and staff

The officers, directors, trustees and key employees listed on each return. Joined and no longer listed compare each filing with the year before, matching people by surname and first initial; a year after a gap, or a roster under three people, has no comparison.

'17'18'19'20'21'22'23'24
Listed998910111214
Joined·+0+2+2+3+1+1+4
No longer listed·0312002
03Who funds it

Who funds it, year by year

2018 → 2023: the base broadened from 1 funder to 5 funders, grant income rose $15k → $154k.

8 of 19 of your funders are donor-advised or pass-through sponsors (tagged DAF) — 81% of grant dollars received. That money is really individual donors directing a sponsor; the institutions to cultivate are the non-DAF funders.

From the IRS filings of COSLEY FOUNDATION INC’s funders (the co-funder graph). Association, not causation. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.

How concentrated its funding is

COSLEY FOUNDATION INC leans on a few funders — its largest provides 55% of grant income and the top three 75%; half comes from just 1 funder.

the vertical line marks half of all grant income — 1 funder to its left

82% of the income these shares are computed over arrives through pass-through sponsors or from payers whose filings do not say what kind of payment it is. Concentration is still measured over all of it, because the money is real; what it does not support is a claim about how many institutions have chosen to fund COSLEY FOUNDATION INC.

55%
largest funder
75%
top three
~3
effective funders

Largest funder’s share by year: 2018 100% · 2019 61% · 2020 65% · 2021 36% · 2022 47% · 2023 70% — diversifying over time.

“Effective funders” = inverse Herfindahl index (1 / Σ shareᵢ²) — the number of equal-sized funders that would give the same concentration. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.

How long its funders stay

71% of COSLEY FOUNDATION INC's funders are still giving 3 years after their first grant; 63% give in more than one year at all.

first grant+1y+2y+3y

Share of funders still giving k years after their first recorded grant, pooled across every acquisition cohort. A funder counts as retained in a year only if it made a grant that year. Measured to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving — a funder cannot be counted as lapsed in a year most filers have not reached.

Where its funders are

81% of COSLEY FOUNDATION INC's grant income arrives through donor-advised or pass-through sponsors, whose addresses record where the money is held rather than where the donor is. Of the $205k that is directly attributable, 53% of it comes from funders outside Illinois, across 5 states.

ID
IL
NJ
MD
FL

In-state vs out-of-state, by year

’19
’20
’21
’22
’23
Illinois out of state home

Funder states come from each funder’s own filing. $896k arriving through sponsors registered in 7 states is excluded from the map and the split above: a sponsor holds money on a donor’s behalf, so its registered address would place those dollars somewhere no donor need ever have been. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.

04Its place in the field

Against its field

COSLEY FOUNDATION INC holds deeper cash reserves than three-quarters of the 5,127 arts & culture nonprofits its size.

Operating margin−61% · bottom quartile
Months of reserve10.9mo · top quartile
Revenue growth (annualized)13% · above the median

this organization peer median middle 50% of peers· 5,127 arts & culture nonprofits $1M–$10M, FY2024

Organizations like COSLEY FOUNDATION INC

Organizations whose mission and program text most resemble this one, by semantic similarity over every organization in the US filings — the closest peers, and often the clearest route to shared or prospective funders.

In Illinois

Nationally

05Profile & governance

Read directly from this organization’s own Form 990, as neutral context.

Where the money goes

83% of spending goes to programs.

Program 83%Management 12%Fundraising 5%

Governance

14
board members
93%
independent
✓Conflict-of-interest policy✓Whistleblower policy✓Document retention✓Board reviewed the 990✓Audited financials

Footprint & structure

Files a return copy in 1 state

IL

Part of a family of 1 related entity

  • Wheaton Park District · exempt

Screen this organization

A dated, signed PDF of the compliance screen for COSLEY FOUNDATION INC: IRS status (Business Master File, Publication 78, auto-revocation), the OFAC sanctions lists, the Internal Revenue Bulletin, and California registration, with the Rev. Proc. 2018-32 §8.01 reliance elements stated element by element. Generated from the current files at the moment you download it.

A paid feature, included from the $75 plan up. Sign in to download.

Screens are triage, not determinations; a source that cannot be read reports not screened, never clear. Screen this nonprofit · How the screen works · on the API as GET /api/screening/{ein}?format=pdf

Questions and answers

Who funds COSLEY FOUNDATION INC?
COSLEY FOUNDATION INC (Illinois) receives grants from 19 organizations whose IRS filings report $1,101,456 to it, the largest being FIDELITY INVESTMENTS CHARITABLE GIFT FUND ($607,400). 12 of them have funded it in more than one year, and 81% of the money arrives through donor-advised or pass-through sponsors rather than from an institution directly.
How many funders does COSLEY FOUNDATION INC have?
IRS filings report 19 organizations giving $1,101,456 in grants to COSLEY FOUNDATION INC, 12 of which have funded it in more than one year.
Who is the largest funder of COSLEY FOUNDATION INC?
FIDELITY INVESTMENTS CHARITABLE GIFT FUND is the largest funder on record, with $607,400 in grants. The full list of funders is on this page.
How can an organization like COSLEY FOUNDATION INC find more funders?
Start with the funders already giving here, then look at the foundations that back similar organizations in Illinois. The funding by cause and by state pages list the largest funders for a given area and how to approach them.

These figures are read directly from IRS Form 990 / 990-PF e-file XML: this organization’s own return for FY2024 (financials across 2017–2024), and the filings of 19 funders that report grants to it. “On record” means captured in the filings we have parsed — a funder that does not e-file, or whose grant detail is not itemized, will not appear. Filings run roughly 12–24 months behind. Trends on this page end at FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving; later years are shown and marked, and move no figure. Data on this page was exported October 14, 2026. What this page cannot tell you · view filing