Coleman Foundation
Conshohocken, PA · EIN 23-6214964. Reported 112 grants totalling $657,404 to 76 organizations across tax years 2021-2024. This foundation did not tell the IRS it funds only preselected organizations.
Does this foundation accept applications?
Yes -- on its own tax return. Form 990-PF asks every private foundation whether it makes grants only to organizations it selects itself. Of the 91,758 foundations in our data that made a grant and answered, 78% said yes -- and applying to those is wasted effort. Coleman Foundation did not check that box on its most recent filing, which puts it in the minority that is at least open to being approached.
How big are its grants?
The median grant is $2,000. Half of everything it gave fell between $1,000 and $6,000; the smallest was $500 and the largest $50,000. If you are asking for materially more than the top of that range, you are asking the wrong foundation.
Every organization it funded
This is the complete list from its filings, largest first. Years funded is the number of separate tax years in which the organization received money -- more than one means a real relationship rather than a one-off.
| Organization | Location | Total received | Grants | Years funded | Last |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boston Area Gleaners | Waltham, MA | $54,500 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Thompson Island Outward Bound | Boston, MA | $50,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Woods Hole Oceanographic | Woods Hole, MA | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Boston Harbor Now | Boston, MA | $44,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Greater Boston Food Bank | Boston, MA | $36,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Calvary Presbyterian Church | Willow Grove, PA | $35,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| 3RD Street Alliance | Easton, PA | $31,904 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Planned Parenthood Fed of America | Washington, DC | $29,500 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Hopewell Fund | Washington, DC | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| World Central Kitchen | Washington, DC | $20,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Humane Society International | Washington, DC | $17,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Cornell Lab of Ornithology | Ithaca, NY | $14,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Elevate Oakland | Oakland, CA | $14,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Xerces Society | Washington, DC | $14,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Temple University | Philadelphia, PA | $13,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| NAACP Legal Defense Fund | New York, NY | $12,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Planned Parenthood Fed of America | New York, NY | $12,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| North Philly Community Church | Philadelphia, PA | $12,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| San Francisco-Marin Food Bank | San Francisco, CA | $12,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Nationalities Service Center | Philadelphia, PA | $11,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Philadelphia Tennis Club | Philadelphia, PA | $11,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Food Moxie | Philadelphia, PA | $9,500 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Eddie's Ranch | Saugus, MA | $8,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Doctors Without Borders | New York, NY | $7,750 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Restorative Justice Proj Maine | Belfast, ME | $7,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Motse Community & Wildlife | New York, NY | $6,500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Tree House Books | Philadelphia, PA | $6,500 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Hias Pennsylvania | Philadelphia, PA | $6,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Wbur | Boston, MA | $6,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Inaturalist | San Rafael, CA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Philabundance | Philadelphia, PA | $4,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Wagner Free Institute of Science | Philadelphia, PA | $4,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Friends of Clark Park | Philadelphia, PA | $3,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Habitat for Humanity | Americus, GA | $3,500 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| San Francisco Botanical Garden | San Francisco, CA | $3,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Trustees of Reservations | Boston, MA | $3,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Williams Alumni Fund | Williamstown, MA | $3,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Wright-Locke Farm | Winchester, MA | $3,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Doctors for America | Washington, DC | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Environmental Defense Fund | New York, NY | $2,500 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Innovation Network for Communities | Tamworth, NH | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Institute of Nonprofit News | Beverly Hills, CA | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Bartram Garden | Philadelphia, PA | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Brennan Center for Justice | New York, NY | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Choate Rosemary Hall | Wallingford, CT | $2,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| First Congressional Church | Winchester, MA | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Natural Resources Defense Council | New York, NY | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Rose Kennedy Greenway Conservancy | Boston, MA | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Southwestern Law School | Los Angeles, CA | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Prep for Prep | New York, NY | $1,500 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Spirit of Truth Fellowship | Philadelphia, PA | $1,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Saint John's Hospice | Philadelphia, PA | $1,250 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Catholic Charities | Alexandria, VA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Drug Policy Alliance | New York, NY | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| National Alliance on Mental | Baltimore, MD | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| New Sanctuary Movement | Philadelphia, PA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Partners in Health | Frederick, MD | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Planned Parenthood Federation of Am | Washington, DC | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Project Meow | Philadelphia, PA | $1,000 | 2 | 1 | 2021 |
| Rare | Arlington, VA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Special Equestrians Inc | Warrington, PA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Spirit & Truth Fellowship Church | Philadelphia, PA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| The Jed Foundation | New York, NY | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| The Maine Heritage Orchard | Unity, ME | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Tower Hill Botanic Garden | Boylston, MA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Turtle Rescue League | Southbrdige, MA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Waquoit Congregational Church | E Falmouth, MA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Winchester Farmers Market | Winchester, MA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Windward Fund | Washington, DC | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Council of Social Concern | Woburn, MA | $750 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Pspca | Philadelphia, PA | $750 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Cambridge Children Care Foundation | Cambridge, MA | $500 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Chestnut Hill Community Assoc | Philadelphia, PA | $500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| DC Diaper Bank | Washington, DC | $500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Global Importune | Philadelphia, PA | $500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Phil Assoc of Former Gang Members | Philadelphia, PA | $500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
26 of 76 (34%) received money in more than one year over the 4 years we hold.
Measured the way we measure every foundation -- what share of one year's grantees are funded again the next -- this one retains 35%, across 3 year-to-year transitions. The median foundation retains about 67%, so this one is less consistent than most. A high number means its list is close to settled and a newcomer has to displace someone; a low one means it is still moving money around, which is where an opening is.
What the money was for
Taken verbatim from the purpose field of its filings. This is the closest thing to a statement of what this foundation cares about, in its own words.
- Boston Area Gleaners
HNR OF DR MARGARET COLEMAN - NAACP Legal Defense Fund
IN HONOR OF JOHN & AGNES COLEMAN - Philabundance
FEEDING THE NEEDY POPULATION - Bartram Garden
RIVER GARDEN 2025 STRAT PLAN - Project Meow
CARE FOR ABANDONED FELINES
What kind of organizations it funds
By the recipient's own IRS classification, for the 61 grants where we could identify the organization. These are assigned categories, not our guesses.
Giving by year
| Tax year | Grants | Total | Median grant |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 35 | $88,000 | $1,500 |
| 2022 | 29 | $81,500 | $2,000 |
| 2023 | 15 | $205,000 | $3,000 |
| 2024 | 33 | $282,904 | $6,000 |
Tax years, not calendar years, and the most recent year is usually incomplete -- filings arrive about a year late, so a low final year means late paperwork rather than a foundation winding down.
Where its money goes
Foundations concentrate geographically far more than their mission statements suggest. 41% of this one's giving went to organizations in Massachusetts. If you are outside its footprint, that matters more than how well your programme fits.
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Funders that support the same organizations
These funders gave to organizations this one also funded -- some private foundations, some community foundations and other grantmaking charities. Shared grantees are the strongest available signal that two funders have overlapping priorities, and a funder already backing your peers is a far warmer prospect than one that merely lists your cause.
How to approach this foundation
- Check you are its size. The median grant is $2,000. Asking for ten times that is the most common way small organizations waste a submission.
- Check you are in its geography. Its giving is concentrated in Massachusetts.
- Read the recipient list above for organizations like yours. If nothing on it resembles your work, that is a real answer, and a cheap one to get.
- Look up the current filing before writing. The 990-PF names the foundation's officers and, where one exists, its application procedure. We link it below.
Related guides
Where these numbers come from
Everything above is taken from Coleman Foundation's own Form 990-PF filings, which the IRS publishes in bulk. We used 4 returns (tax years 2021-2024). Nothing here is scraped, inferred, or estimated.
Address of record on the latest return: C/O 161 Washington St Ste 801, Conshohocken, PA, 19428. This is the address the foundation gave the IRS; many small foundations file through an accountant or a bank trust department, so it may not be where post to a programme officer should go.
EIN 23-6214964 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this
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