Massachusetts · Nonprofit
NEW ENGLAND FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS INCORPORATED
NEW ENGLAND FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS INCORPORATED (Massachusetts) receives grants from 27 organizations whose IRS filings report $53,382,319 to it, the largest being THE ANDREW W MELLON FOUNDATION ($23,888,000). 18 of them have funded it in more than one year.
- Revenue FY2025
- $10M
- Funders on record
- 27
- Grants received
- $53M
- Net assets
- $32M
What New England Foundation for the Arts Incorporated does
Mission
Nefa invests in artists and communities and fosters equitable access to the arts, enriching the cultural landscape in new england and the nation.
As stated on its FY2025 Form 990.
Programs
National dance project (ndp) - provides support for the creation and touring of dance work through grants to dance artists and presenters; fosters community engagement and international exchange; and through special initiatives, creates opportunities for dance artists at various stages in their careers.
$2,940,592 spentof which $2,293,250 as grants26% of program spendingNational theater project (ntp) - explores creating a system of support for professional artist-led collaborative, devised theater. Modeled after nefa's national dance project, the program supports ensemble theater development and touring in the united states.
$2,418,538 spentof which $1,909,465 as grants22% of program spendingNew england presenting and touring - provides financial and professional support to new england artists and arts organizations to foster the development and sharing of creative work; the program strives to reach populations for whom access is more limited.
$3,779,808 spentof which $2,494,659 as grants$7,030 earned by the program34% of program spendingCenter stage - an international exchange program that will bring performing artists from around the globe to tour throughout the u.s. The program is an effort to demonstrate respect and understanding of cultures by bringing international performing artists to the u.s. So that americans can grow in appreciation and understanding of other nations, while providing opportunities to international performers.
$807,188 spent7% of program spendingPublic art - provides support for public art through programs including fund for the arts and creative city by grant-making that pairs artists with community organizations and integrates public participation into artistic process; provides professional development training to artistsworking in the public realm.
$1,202,128 spentof which $745,450 as grants11% of program spending
The 5 programs described on its FY2024 Form 990, listed largest first by expense. Program spending in total: $11,148,254.
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 2023 to 2024, from $33M to $42M (+28%).
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 18% · 2018 22% · 2019 20% · 2020 13% · 2021 26% · 2022 18% · 2023 43% · 2024 19% · 2025 24%. Grants only. Government contracts and fees sit inside program revenue.
94% of NEW ENGLAND FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS INCORPORATED’s revenue is contributions — more reliant on donations than three-quarters of its peers (58% 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
Harold Steward
Executive director
Board chair
Carrie Zaslow
Chair
As listed on its FY2025 Form 990.
Who funds it, year by year
2017 → 2023: the base broadened from 6 funders to 11 funders, grant income rose $3.9M → $6.9M.
8 of 27 of your funders are donor-advised or pass-through sponsors (tagged DAF) — 17% 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 NEW ENGLAND FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS INCORPORATED’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
NEW ENGLAND FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS INCORPORATED leans on a few funders — its largest provides 45% of grant income and the top three 81%; half comes from just 2 funders.
the vertical line marks half of all grant income — 2 funders to its left
Largest funder’s share by year: 2017 98% · 2018 94% · 2019 97% · 2020 49% · 2021 60% · 2022 28% · 2023 39% — 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
50% of NEW ENGLAND FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS INCORPORATED's funders are still giving 3 years after their first grant; 67% give in more than one year at all.
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
NEW ENGLAND FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS INCORPORATED draws 86% of its grant income from funders outside Massachusetts, across 8 states in all.
In-state vs out-of-state, by year
Funder states come from each funder’s own filing. $8.8M 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.
Against its field
NEW ENGLAND FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS INCORPORATED is better cushioned than half of the 550 arts & culture nonprofits its size.
this organization peer median middle 50% of peers· 550 arts & culture nonprofits $10M–$100M, FY2025
Government funding NEW ENGLAND FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS INCORPORATED receives
Grants and contracts to this organization from federal (USASpending) and state checkbooks, reconciled to its EIN. $20.0M on record — $19.8M federal, $130k state.
- National Endowment for the Arts$13.1M
- Department of State$6.7M
- Membership Dues$130k
Federal grants vs contracts are distinguished; state line items keep their reported category. Matched by name + geography (the BMF), so coverage is partial and precision-first.
Organizations like NEW ENGLAND FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS INCORPORATED
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 Massachusetts
Nationally
Read directly from this organization’s own Form 990, as neutral context.
Where the money goes
81% of spending goes to programs.
Governance
Public support
39%
Share of support from the public (Schedule A) — the basis for its public-charity status.
Footprint & structure
Files a return copy in 2 states
Screen this organization
A dated, signed PDF of the compliance screen for NEW ENGLAND FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS INCORPORATED: 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 NEW ENGLAND FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS INCORPORATED?
- NEW ENGLAND FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS INCORPORATED (Massachusetts) receives grants from 27 organizations whose IRS filings report $53,382,319 to it, the largest being THE ANDREW W MELLON FOUNDATION ($23,888,000). 18 of them have funded it in more than one year.
- How many funders does NEW ENGLAND FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS INCORPORATED have?
- IRS filings report 27 organizations giving $53,382,319 in grants to NEW ENGLAND FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS INCORPORATED, 18 of which have funded it in more than one year.
- Who is the largest funder of NEW ENGLAND FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS INCORPORATED?
- THE ANDREW W MELLON FOUNDATION is the largest funder on record, with $23,888,000 in grants. The full list of funders is on this page.
- How can an organization like NEW ENGLAND FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS INCORPORATED find more funders?
- Start with the funders already giving here, then look at the foundations that back similar organizations in Massachusetts. 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 FY2025 (financials across 2017–2025), and the filings of 27 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