Delta Air Lines Foundation
Atlanta, GA · EIN 58-6073119. Reported 116 grants totalling $74.9M to 50 recipients across tax years 2021-2025. 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. Delta Air Lines 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 $400,000. Half of everything it gave fell between $100,000 and $1,000,000; the smallest was $25,000 and the largest $5,000,000. 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. Recipients are grouped by name and state as they were written on the returns, so an organization entered under two different names appears twice. Years funded is the number of separate tax years in which that name received money.
| Organization | Location | Total received | Grants | Years funded | Last |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Global Citizen | New York, NY | $11.0M | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| University of Georgia Foundation | Athens, GA | $7,766,667 | 9 | 5 | 2025 |
| Delta Employee Matching Gifts to Collegesuniversities Via Bonterra | Austin, TX | $5,900,213 | 2 | 2 | 2025 |
| Delta Employee Matching Gifts to Collegesuniversities Via Cybergrants | Andover, MA | $5,288,560 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| American Red Cross | Washington, DC | $5,000,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Delta Air Transport Heritage Museum Inc | Atlanta, GA | $5,000,000 | 2 | 2 | 2025 |
| Children's Healthcare of Atlanta Foundation | Atlanta, GA | $4,500,000 | 6 | 4 | 2025 |
| Westside Future Fund | Atlanta, GA | $3,300,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Middle Georgia State University | Eastnab, GA | $2,750,000 | 3 | 2 | 2025 |
| New Common School Foundation | Detroit, MI | $2,500,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Junior Achievement of Georgia Clayton Co | Atlanta, GA | $2,000,000 | 2 | 2 | 2025 |
| Operation Hope | Atlanta, GA | $2,000,000 | 2 | 2 | 2025 |
| Spelman College | Atlanta, GA | $2,000,000 | 4 | 4 | 2025 |
| Grady Health Foundation | Atlanta, GA | $1,600,000 | 7 | 4 | 2025 |
| Middle Georgia State University Foundation | Macon, GA | $1,250,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Auburn University Foundation | Auburn, AL | $1,000,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Clayton County Public Schools Foundation | Morrow, GA | $1,000,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Emory University Goizueta Business School | Atlanta, GA | $1,000,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| World Central Kitchen | Washington, DC | $1,000,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| World Kitchen | Washington, DC | $1,000,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Agnes Scott College | Decatur, GA | $750,000 | 3 | 3 | 2025 |
| YMCA of Greater Atlanta | Atlanta, GA | $750,000 | 3 | 3 | 2025 |
| Atlanta Community Food Bank | Atlanta, GA | $600,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Junior Achievement of Georgia | Atlanta, GA | $600,000 | 3 | 3 | 2025 |
| Wellspring Living | Atlanta, GA | $600,000 | 3 | 3 | 2025 |
| YMCA of Greater New York | New York, NY | $500,000 | 2 | 2 | 2025 |
| Zoo Atlanta | Atlanta, GA | $500,000 | 2 | 2 | 2025 |
| Boys and Girls Club Metro Atlanta - Clayton County | Chamblee, GA | $400,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Georgia Historical Society | Savannah, GA | $300,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| YMCA of Metro Atlanta | Atlanta, GA | $300,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| National Center for Civil and Human Rights | Atlanta, GA | $250,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Science Museum of Minnesota | St Paul, MN | $250,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Woodruff Arts Center | Atlanta, GA | $250,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Atlanta Police Foundation | Atlanta, GA | $200,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Martin Luther King JR Center | Atlanta, GA | $200,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| National Monuments Foundation | Atlanta, GA | $200,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| The Carter Center | Atlanta, GA | $200,000 | 2 | 2 | 2025 |
| Trust for Public Land | Atlanta, GA | $200,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Archdiocese of St Paul and Minneapolis | St Paul, MN | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Jane Goodall Institute (memory of Jane Goodall) | New York, NY | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| University of North Georgia Foundation | Dahlonega, GA | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Atlanta Beltline Partnership | Atlanta, GA | $83,334 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Atlanta Habitat for Humanity | Atlanta, GA | $83,334 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Children's Healthcare of Atlanta Foundation - Marcus Autism Center | Atlanta, GA | $83,334 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Georgia Aquarium | Atlanta, GA | $83,334 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Shepherd Center Foundation | Atlanta, GA | $83,334 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| YMCA of Seattle | Seattle, WA | $83,334 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| North Georgia Community Foundation | Gainesville, GA | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| University of Minnesota Foundation | Minneapolis, MN | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Mount Sinai Medical Fdn (memory of Larry Mendelson) | Miami Beach, FL | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
30 of 50 (60%) received money in more than one year over the 5 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 67%, across 4 year-to-year transitions. The median foundation retains about 67%, so this one is about typical. This measures how often it paid the same organizations again. It says nothing about whether it would consider a new one.
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.
- Global Citizen
GRANT TO SUPPORT GLOBAL CITIZEN - Delta Employee Matching Gifts to Collegesuniversities Via Bonterra
MATCHING QUALIFYING GRANTS IN SUPPORT OF EDUCATION - Delta Air Transport Heritage Museum Inc
GRANT TO SUPPORT THE RENOVATION OF THE DELTA FLIGHT MUSEUM FOR DELTA'S CENTENNIAL YEAR - Middle Georgia State University Foundation
GRANT TO SUPPORT EXPANSION OF CAPACITY FOR FLIGHT OPERATIONS AND TECHNICAL OPERATIONS AT SCHOOL OF AVIATION - Westside Future Fund
GRANT TO SUPPORT AFFORDABLE HOUSING ON THE WESTSIDE ($1.0M) AND GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT ($0.1M)GRANT TO SUPPORT WESTSIDE FUTURE FUND - American Red Cross
GRANT TO THE AMERICAN RED CROSS FOR THE ANNUAL DISASTER GIVING PROGRAM TO BE PROACTIVE IN DISASTER RESPONSE INITIATIVES.
What kind of organizations it funds
By the activity category the IRS assigns each recipient, for the 65 grants where we could match the recipient to a registered organization. The categories are the IRS's. The match, made from the name and address on the return, is ours.
Giving by year
| Tax year | Grants | Total | Median grant |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 23 | $12.1M | $100,000 |
| 2022 | 21 | $11.4M | $500,000 |
| 2023 | 20 | $12.4M | $325,000 |
| 2024 | 22 | $18.8M | $1,000,000 |
| 2025 | 30 | $20.2M | $325,000 |
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.
Already committed for future years
Form 990-PF has a separate schedule for grants approved but not yet paid. Delta Air Lines Foundation has 23 of them, worth $49.8M. This is the one part of the filing that looks forward rather than back.
| Organization | Location | Approved |
|---|---|---|
| United Way of Greater Atlanta | Atlanta, GA | $10.0M |
| Andrew Young Foundation | Atlanta, GA | $5,000,000 |
| Georgia Tech Foundation | Atlanta, GA | $5,000,000 |
| University of Georgia Foundation | Athens, GA | $5,000,000 |
| Operation Hope | Atlanta, GA | $4,000,000 |
| Global Citizen | New York, NY | $3,000,000 |
| New Common School Foundation | Detroit, MI | $2,000,000 |
| Seattle Symphony | Seattle, WA | $2,000,000 |
| Global Citizen | New York, NY | $1,700,000 |
| Spelman College | Atlanta, GA | $1,500,000 |
| YMCA of Greater New York | New York, NY | $1,000,000 |
| Zoo Atlanta | Atlanta, GA | $1,000,000 |
| Grady Health Foundation | Atlanta, GA | $1,000,000 |
| Science Museum of Minnesota | St Paul, MN | $1,000,000 |
| Woodruff Arts Center | Atlanta, GA | $1,000,000 |
Where its money goes
55% of its giving went to organizations in Georgia. If your organization is based elsewhere, look in the recipient list for grants to your area before writing.
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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 a sign of overlapping priorities and nothing more: they do not show that any of these funders would consider a new organization. Each page says what its filings show.
How to approach this foundation
- Check you are its size. The median grant is $400,000. A request many times that size asks for something it has rarely or never given.
- Check you are in its geography. Its giving is concentrated in Georgia.
- 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 Delta Air Lines Foundation's own Form 990-PF filings, which the IRS publishes in bulk. We used 5 returns (tax years 2021-2025). Grant figures are from its returns. Matching recipients to registered organizations, their IRS classifications, the retention rate and the funders that support the same organizations are our own calculations, described in how we build this.
Address of record on the latest return: 1060 Delta Blvd Dept 983, Atlanta, GA, 30354. 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 58-6073119 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this
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