Oklahoma · Nonprofit
FOUNDATION FOR THE MCKNIGHT CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS
FOUNDATION FOR THE MCKNIGHT CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS (Oklahoma) receives grants from 2 organizations whose IRS filings report $48,977,602 to it, the largest being Oklahoma State University Foundation ($48,967,602). 1 of them have funded it in more than one year.
- Revenue FY2025
- $3.4M
- Funders on record
- 2
- Grants received
- $49M
- Net assets
- $62M
What Foundation for the McKnight Center for the Performing Arts does
Mission
The mcknight center inspires and transforms individuals' lives through artistic excellence, shared creative experiences, and impactful learning opportunities. Performances and events are presented in a supportive environment that seeks to eliminate obstacles to attendance for all audiences.
As stated on its FY2025 Form 990.
Programs
The mcknight center completed its sixth season of operations and served more ticket buyers than any previous year. Through a wide range of diverse concerts, including major pop artists, broadway touring shows, chamber music and major symphony orchestras, the center served 23,970 ticket buyers over the course of the season and ticket sales and related fees and commissions grew to $1,731,012.
$4,199,433 spent$1,806,018 earned by the program97% of program spendingThe mcknight center offers a wide range of free programs to serve the students at oklahoma state university, the stillwater community and surrounding areas. Through master classes, young peoples concerts and special lecture topics, 5,664 students benefited from free learning opportunities including primary, secondary and university students. Additionally, the mcknight center offered free community engagement opportunities such as yoga on the plaza with live music and a free movie series to the broader community, serving an additional 1,108 people.
$145,980 spent3% of program spending
The 2 programs described on its FY2024 Form 990, listed largest first by expense. Program spending in total: $4,345,413.
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.
Balance sheet
Total assets and total liabilities at each year end, in dollars. The largest one-year move in total assets was 2020 to 2021, from $45M to $57M (+27%).
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.
Government-grant reliance: 2017 0% · 2021 5% · 2024 8% · 2025 6%. Grants only. Government contracts and fees sit inside program revenue.
44% of FOUNDATION FOR THE MCKNIGHT CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS’s revenue is contributions — about as donation-reliant as the typical peer (48% for the typical peer).
Surplus & reserves
Operating surplus or deficit each year, and months of liquidity in hand. 4 of the last 9 reported years ran a deficit.
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.
Chief executive
Mark Blakeman
Executive director
Board chair
Ross Mcknight
Chairman
As listed on its FY2025 Form 990.
Who funds it, year by year
2017 → 2023: the base held at 1 funder, grant income fell $29M → $2.0M.
From the IRS filings of FOUNDATION FOR THE MCKNIGHT CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS’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
FOUNDATION FOR THE MCKNIGHT CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS leans on a few funders — its largest provides 100% of grant income and the top three 100%; half comes from just 1 funder.
the vertical line marks half of all grant income — 1 funder to its left
100% 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 FOUNDATION FOR THE MCKNIGHT CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS.
Largest funder’s share by year: 2017 100% · 2018 100% · 2019 100% · 2020 100% · 2021 100% · 2022 100% · 2023 100% — broadly stable.
“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.
Where its funders are
100% of FOUNDATION FOR THE MCKNIGHT CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS's grant income comes from Oklahoma funders.
In-state vs out-of-state, by year
Funder states come from each funder’s own filing. 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.
Against its field
FOUNDATION FOR THE MCKNIGHT CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS holds deeper cash reserves than three-quarters of the 9,398 education nonprofits its size.
this organization peer median middle 50% of peers· 9,398 education nonprofits $1M–$10M, FY2025
Organizations like FOUNDATION FOR THE MCKNIGHT CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS
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 Oklahoma
Nationally
Read directly from this organization’s own Form 990, as neutral context.
Where the money goes
77% of spending goes to programs.
Governance
Public support
98%
Share of support from the public (Schedule A) — the basis for its public-charity status.
Footprint & structure
Files a return copy in 1 state
Part of a family of 1 related entity
- Multilateral Endowment Management Company · exempt
Screen this organization
A dated, signed PDF of the compliance screen for FOUNDATION FOR THE MCKNIGHT CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS: 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.
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 FOUNDATION FOR THE MCKNIGHT CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS?
- FOUNDATION FOR THE MCKNIGHT CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS (Oklahoma) receives grants from 2 organizations whose IRS filings report $48,977,602 to it, the largest being Oklahoma State University Foundation ($48,967,602). 1 of them have funded it in more than one year.
- How many funders does FOUNDATION FOR THE MCKNIGHT CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS have?
- IRS filings report 2 organizations giving $48,977,602 in grants to FOUNDATION FOR THE MCKNIGHT CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS, 1 of which have funded it in more than one year.
- Who is the largest funder of FOUNDATION FOR THE MCKNIGHT CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS?
- Oklahoma State University Foundation is the largest funder on record, with $48,967,602 in grants. The full list of funders is on this page.
- How can an organization like FOUNDATION FOR THE MCKNIGHT CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS find more funders?
- Start with the funders already giving here, then look at the foundations that back similar organizations in Oklahoma. The funding by cause and by state pages list the largest funders for a given area and how to approach them.
Play a game about who funds Foundation for the McKnight Center for the Performing Arts →
These figures are read directly from IRS Form 990 / 990-PF e-file XML: this organization’s own return for FY2025 (financials across 2017–2025), and the filings of 2 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