California · Nonprofit
THE FOUNDATION OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF OPHTHALMOLOGY
THE FOUNDATION OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF OPHTHALMOLOGY (California) receives grants from 23 organizations whose IRS filings report $9,235,877 to it, the largest being KNIGHTS TEMPLAR EYE FOUNDATION ($6,100,000). 11 of them have funded it in more than one year.
- Revenue FY2025
- $15M
- Funders on record
- 23
- Grants received
- $9.2M
- Net assets
- $136M
What The Foundation of the American Academy of Ophthalmology does
Mission
The mission of The Foundation of the American Academy of Ophthalmology (faao) is to advance the american academy of ophthalmology's (aao) priority programs in clinical education, quality and data science, and public service.
As stated on its FY2025 Form 990.
Programs
Grants to aao to support "advancing lifelong ophthalmic education": medical knowledge and the pace of surgical and therapeutic innovation is growing rapidly, as is an increased emphasis on patient outcomes and value-based care. Faao supports aao programs that speed the transfer of ophthalmic knowledge and innovation to ophthalmologists worldwide. By raising philanthropic gifts globally and managing its investable assets, faao provides grants to aao programs in ophthalmic education and quality of care, including the one network, iris registry, r&d for products and services, and international outreach in developing countries.
$4,725,367 spentof which $4,273,137 as grants39% of program spendingGrants to aao to support "public service": one in six people age 65 and older has vision impairment that cannot be corrected with glasses. This is often caused by common eye conditions and diseases detected by eye exams. Many people often delay getting care that could save their sight because they cannot afford it. Eyecare america, through its 4,000 volunteer ophthalmologists, removes this barrier by providing care at no out-of-pocket cost to patients. Eyecare america also raises awareness about eye disease and provides free eye health information. In fiscal year 2023-2024, eyecare america referred 24,622 individuals nationwide for care. In addition to eyecare america, faao supports the museum of vision, which preserves the history of medicine, and translates it into educational resources for use by aao's members, medical historians, researchers, and the public as they seek to understand ophthalmology's contributions to society, learn more about the eye and the science of vision, and to address similar ophthalmic challenges today and in the future. In fiscal year 2023-2024, the museum of vision provided these resources to 82,135 individuals.
$1,636,243 spentof which $924,960 as grants13% of program spendingGrants to aao to support "quality and data science": faao provides support to the h. Dunbar hoskins jr., m.d. Center for quality eye care, which was established as a quality of care and health policy research center that advances the accessibility to and appropriateness of eye care services. The work of the hoskins center ensures that patients continue to receive high quality, evidence-based eye care within a tightening economic environment that will demand increased value for any services provided. Although extensive in scope, the hoskins center is organized into four main programmatic areas: (I) evidenced-based eye care: produces guidance for eye care providers and develops performance-in-practice evaluation tools; (ii) value-based delivery of eye care: identifies and assesses value-based eye care practice models for a variety of settings and examines the public health needs for quality of eye care; (iii) medical information technology standards: creates standardized terminology, imaging and ehr standards, and models for integrating e-prescribing and technology in practice; and (iv) fellowships and grants funding: extends the reach and scope of the hoskins center in emerging or…
$1,447,593 spentof which $1,447,593 as grants12% of program spendingOther program services include owing and maintaining property, which is leaded to the american academy of ophthalmology (faao's supported organization) for use within its general operations as well as grants to aao for administrative purposes.
$4,339,585 spentof which $4,339,585 as grants$1,590,616 earned by the program36% of program spending
The 4 programs described on its FY2023 Form 990, listed largest first by expense. Program spending in total: $12,148,788.
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 $127M to $159M (+25%).
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: 2022 2%. Grants only. Government contracts and fees sit inside program revenue.
35% of THE FOUNDATION OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF OPHTHALMOLOGY’s revenue is contributions — about as donation-reliant as the typical peer (58% for the typical peer).
Surplus & reserves
Operating surplus or deficit each year, and months of liquidity in hand. 3 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.
Who funds it, year by year
2017 → 2023: the base broadened from 3 funders to 8 funders, grant income rose $465k → $1.5M.
9 of 23 of your funders are donor-advised or pass-through sponsors (tagged DAF) — 7% of grant dollars received. That money is really individual donors directing a sponsor; the institutions to cultivate are the non-DAF funders.
Left out of every figure on this page: $2.5M from 4 payers (the payer shares this organization's board, largest American Academy of Ophthalmology Inc). These are real filings, and they are not money THE FOUNDATION OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF OPHTHALMOLOGY raised.
From the IRS filings of THE FOUNDATION OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF OPHTHALMOLOGY’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
THE FOUNDATION OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF OPHTHALMOLOGY leans on a few funders — its largest provides 66% of grant income and the top three 89%; half comes from just 1 funder.
the vertical line marks half of all grant income — 1 funder to its left
89% 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 THE FOUNDATION OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF OPHTHALMOLOGY.
Largest funder’s share by year: 2017 97% · 2018 82% · 2019 61% · 2020 65% · 2021 57% · 2022 46% · 2023 79% — 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
45% of THE FOUNDATION OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF OPHTHALMOLOGY's funders are still giving 3 years after their first grant; 48% 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
THE FOUNDATION OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF OPHTHALMOLOGY draws 98% of its grant income from funders outside California, across 9 states in all.
In-state vs out-of-state, by year
Funder states come from each funder’s own filing. $624k 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
THE FOUNDATION OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF OPHTHALMOLOGY 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
Organizations like THE FOUNDATION OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF OPHTHALMOLOGY
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 California
Nationally
Read directly from this organization’s own Form 990, as neutral context.
Where the money goes
75% of spending goes to programs.
Governance
Footprint & structure
Files a return copy in 38 states
Part of a family of 5 related entities
- American Academy of Ophthalmology · exempt
- American Academy of Ophthalmology Ces Fund · exempt
- American Academy of Ophthalmology Inc PAC · exempt
- Academy Services Inc & Subsidiary · corp_trust
- Perpetual Trust (1) · corp_trust
Screen this organization
A dated, signed PDF of the compliance screen for THE FOUNDATION OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF OPHTHALMOLOGY: 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 THE FOUNDATION OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF OPHTHALMOLOGY?
- THE FOUNDATION OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF OPHTHALMOLOGY (California) receives grants from 23 organizations whose IRS filings report $9,235,877 to it, the largest being KNIGHTS TEMPLAR EYE FOUNDATION ($6,100,000). 11 of them have funded it in more than one year.
- How many funders does THE FOUNDATION OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF OPHTHALMOLOGY have?
- IRS filings report 23 organizations giving $9,235,877 in grants to THE FOUNDATION OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF OPHTHALMOLOGY, 11 of which have funded it in more than one year.
- Who is the largest funder of THE FOUNDATION OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF OPHTHALMOLOGY?
- KNIGHTS TEMPLAR EYE FOUNDATION is the largest funder on record, with $6,100,000 in grants. The full list of funders is on this page.
- How can an organization like THE FOUNDATION OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF OPHTHALMOLOGY find more funders?
- Start with the funders already giving here, then look at the foundations that back similar organizations in California. 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 23 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