FundersMinnesota

Rahr Foundation

Minneapolis, MN · EIN 39-6046046. Reported 114 grants totalling $1,135,000 to 63 organizations across tax years 2021-2024. This foundation did not tell the IRS it funds only preselected organizations.

Yesaccepts unsolicited requests
$7,500median grant
$1,135,000granted, 2021-2024
63organizations funded
61%of grantees funded again the next year
$7,525,418assets, latest filing

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. Rahr 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.

This is the foundation's own statement to the IRS, not our judgement, and it says nothing about whether they have a form, a deadline, or an appetite for new grantees. Treat it as the reason this foundation is worth your research time, not as an invitation. Many small foundations of this kind have no website and no application process -- a letter of inquiry is the normal first step.

How big are its grants?

The median grant is $7,500. Half of everything it gave fell between $7,500 and $10,000; the smallest was $2,500 and the largest $30,000. If you are asking for materially more than the top of that range, you are asking the wrong foundation.

$1,000 - $5,000
2 grants
$5,000 - $10,000
64 grants
$10,000 - $25,000
44 grants
$25,000 - $50,000
4 grants

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.

OrganizationLocationTotal receivedGrantsYears fundedLast
Montana Trout UnlimitedMissoula, MT$97,500442024
Resilient NeighborhoodsSan Rafael, CA$70,000442024
Earth JusticeSan Francisco, CA$65,000442024
Minneapolis Institute of ArtsMinneapolis, MN$50,000222022
Environmental DefenseWashington, DC$45,000332023
Minnesota Land TrustSt Paul, MN$45,000332023
Sustainable NorthwestPortland, OR$40,000442024
American Rivers ThrivingWashington, DC$35,000332023
University of Minnesota FoundationMinneapolis, MN$30,000332023
National Resources Defense CouncilNew York, NY$25,000222023
Wildlife Rehabilitation CenterRoseville, MN$25,000332023
Fairfield UniversityFairfield, CT$22,500332024
Mcmaster UniversityHamilton, Ont L8S 4L8$22,500332023
University of Minnesota - Twin CitiesMinneapolis, MN$22,500332023
Winona State UniversityWinona, MN$22,500332023
Chircahua Land ConservancyPortal, AZ$20,000222023
Environmental Defense FundNew York, NY$20,000112024
Montana Land RelianceHelena, MT$20,000442024
The Nature ConservatoryMinneapolis, MN$20,000112024
Climate GenerationMinneapolis, MN$15,000112021
Dalhouse UniversityHalifax, Ns B3H 4R2$15,000222022
Iowa State UniversityAmes, IA$15,000222022
Minnesota State University - MoorheadMoorhead, MN$15,000222022
Mount Royal UniversityCalgary, Alberta T3E 6K6$15,000222022
Red Deer PolytechnicRed Deer, Alberta T4N 5H5$15,000222023
South Central CollegeNorth Mankato, MN$15,000222023
The Children's Theatre CompanyMinneapolis, MN$15,000222022
The Nature ConservancyArlington, VA$15,000112023
University of St ThomasSt Paul, MN$15,000222022
University of Wi-River FallsRiver Falls, WI$15,000212024
Wild Salmon CenterPortland, OR$15,000222024
Montana Environmental Information CenterHelena, MT$12,500332023
Union of Concerned ScientistsWashington, DC$12,500222023
American RiveraWashington, DC$10,000112024
Chiricahua Land ConservancyPortal, AZ$10,000112024
Friends of the MississippiSt Paul, MN$10,000222024
Greater Twin Cities Youth SymphoniesSt Paul, MN$10,000222022
Marin Agricultural Land TrustPoint Reyes Station, CA$10,000112023
Mn Land TrustSt Paul, MN$10,000112024
The Nature ConservancyMinneapolis, MN$10,000112024
U of M FoundationMinneapolis, MN$10,000112024
Bates CollegeLewiston, ME$7,500112022
Concordia CollegeMoorhead, MN$7,500112024
Dance Arts Institute - CanadaToronto, on M5A 2$7,500112023
Fire and Emergency ServicesMississauga, Ontario$7,500112024
Minnesota State University - MankatoMankato, MN$7,500112023
Mn State University MankatoMankato, MN$7,500112024
Purdue UniversityWest Lafayette, IN$7,500112021
South Central UniversityNorth Mankato, MN$7,500112024
The School of Toronto DanceToronto, Ontario M4X 1B2$7,500112022
University of British ColumbiaVancouver, British Columbia$7,500112022
University of LethbridgeLethbridge, Ab T1K 3M4$7,500112021
University of Mn - Twin CitiesMinneapolis, MN$7,500112024
University of Wi-StoutMenominee, WI$7,500112024
University of WindsorDetroit, MI$7,500112024
University of Wisconsin Eau ClaireEau Claire, WI$7,500112022
University of Wisconsin MadisonMadison, WI$7,500112023
University of Wisconsin StoutMenominee, WI$7,500112023
Friends of the Columbia GorgePortland, OR$5,000112024
Montana Environmental Information CenterHelena, MN$5,000112024
Owl Research CenterCharlo, MT$5,000112023
Owl Research InstituteCharlo, MT$5,000112024
Union of Concerned ScientistsCambridge, MA$5,000112024

30 of 63 (48%) 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 61%, across 3 year-to-year transitions. The median foundation retains about 67%, so this one is about typical. 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 kind of organizations it funds

By the recipient's own IRS classification, for the 49 grants where we could identify the organization. These are assigned categories, not our guesses.

Environment
14 grants
Education
14 grants
Animal Welfare
5 grants
Recreation & Sports
4 grants
Community Improvement
4 grants
Arts & Culture
4 grants
International Affairs
3 grants
Food & Nutrition
1 grant

Giving by year

Tax yearGrantsTotalMedian grant
202126$292,500$7,500
202233$312,500$7,500
202327$265,000$7,500
202428$265,000$7,500

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. 34% of this one's giving went to organizations in Minnesota. If you are outside its footprint, that matters more than how well your programme fits.

Minnesota
$382K
California
$145K
Montana
$140K
District of Columbia
$102K
Oregon
$60K
New York
$45K
Wisconsin
$45K
Arizona
$30K

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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.

Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund23 shared recipientsDonor Advised Charitable Giving Inc21 shared recipientsAmerican Online Giving Foundation Inc17 shared recipientsVanguard Charitable Endowment Program15 shared recipientsXcel Energy Foundation13 shared recipientsThe Blackbaud Giving Fund13 shared recipients

How to approach this foundation

  1. Check you are its size. The median grant is $7,500. Asking for ten times that is the most common way small organizations waste a submission.
  2. Check you are in its geography. Its giving is concentrated in Minnesota.
  3. 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.
  4. 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

Foundations funding environment in CaliforniaEvery funder in this group, rankedFoundations funding education in CaliforniaEvery funder in this group, rankedFoundations funding animal welfare in CaliforniaEvery funder in this group, ranked

Where these numbers come from

Everything above is taken from Rahr 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: 80 S 8TH St Ste 4200, Minneapolis, MN, 55402. 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 39-6046046 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this

This is history, not an open call. Foundation returns are published about a year after the tax year ends. Nothing on this page is a deadline. It is a record of who this foundation has actually funded, which is the best available predictor of who it will fund next -- and a much better basis for deciding whether to write to them than a mission statement.

Is something here wrong about your foundation? Email hello@funderscope.com and we will correct it.