Simpson Psb Fund
Orinda, CA · EIN 68-0168017. Reported 157 grants totalling $37.8M to 73 recipients 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. Simpson Psb Fund 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 $15,000. Half of everything it gave fell between $5,000 and $70,000; the smallest was $1,000 and the largest $10.0M. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of California Berkeley Foundation | Berkeley, CA | $14.0M | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Cancer Support Community San Francisco Bay Area | Walnut Creek, CA | $5,155,075 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Ucsf Foundation | San Francisco, CA | $5,095,473 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Girls Inc of Alameda County | Oakland, CA | $2,580,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Oakland Museum of California | Oakland, CA | $2,050,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Girlsmart Literacy Program | Orinda, CA | $1,950,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| California College of the Arts | San Francisco, CA | $1,701,689 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive | Berkeley, CA | $1,000,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| UC Theatre Berkeley Music Group | Berkeley, CA | $600,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| California Symphony | Walnut Creek, CA | $489,644 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Life Learning Academy | San Francisco, CA | $375,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| California Shakespeare Theater | Orinda, CA | $322,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| New Literary Project | Oakland, CA | $245,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Big Wave Project | El Granada, CA | $230,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Oakland Leaf | Oakland, CA | $230,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Oakland Leaf Foundation | Oakland, CA | $230,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Ruth Bancroft Garden | Walnut Creek, CA | $218,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| University of California Regents | Berkeley, CA | $125,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Diablo Regional Arts Association | Walnut Creek, CA | $120,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Museum of Craft and Design | San Francisco, CA | $120,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Rock the CASA | Walnut Creek, CA | $80,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Northern Light School | Oakland, CA | $77,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Walnut Creek Library Foundation | Walnut Creek, CA | $70,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Kala Art Institute | Berkeley, CA | $66,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Cancer Support Community San Francisco | Walnut Creek, CA | $60,500 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Northwest Maritime Center | Port Townsend, WA | $60,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Lafayette Library and Learning Center Foundation | Lafayette, CA | $58,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Audubon Canyon Ranch | Stinson Beach, CA | $50,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| La Dance Project | Los Angeles, CA | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| The Crucible | Oakland, CA | $32,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| John Muir Health Foundation | Walnut Creek, CA | $30,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Las Trampas | Martinez, CA | $27,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Calpirg Education Fund | Los Angeles, CA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Futures Without Violence | San Francisco, CA | $25,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Kennedy-King Memorial College Scholarship Fund | Martinez, CA | $20,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Creative Growth Arts Center | Oakland, CA | $17,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Association of California Symphony Orchestras | Los Angeles, CA | $15,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Chinese Culture Center Foundation | San Francisco, CA | $15,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Compassion & Choices | Portland, OR | $15,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| National Ms Society | San Francisco, CA | $15,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Sonoma Valley Museum of Art | Sonoma, CA | $15,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| National Center for Cancer Research | Rockville, MD | $11,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Kennedy-King Memorial Scholarship Fund | Martinez, CA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| New Performance Traditions | San Francisco, CA | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Teach for America Bay Area | San Francisco, CA | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| The Gardens at Heather Farms | Walnut Creek, CA | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| The Sierra Chamber Society | Walnut Creek, CA | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| The Edible Schoolyard Project | Berkeley, CA | $9,500 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Sf Museum of Modern Art | San Francisco, CA | $8,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Piedmont Makers | Piedmont, CA | $7,500 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Playground | Berkeley, CA | $6,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Association of California Symphony | Los Angeles, CA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| CASA Contra Costa County | Concord, CA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Compassion & Choices | Etna, NH | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Junior Center of Art and Science | Oakland, CA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| National Foundation for Cancer Research | Rockville, MD | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Orinda Community Foundation | Orinda, CA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Paul Dresher Ensemble | San Francisco, CA | $5,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Families Without Borders | Walnut Creek, CA | $3,500 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Kcsm Jazz 91 | San Mateo, CA | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Shakespeare for Kids | Lafayette, CA | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| The Gardens at Heather Farm | Walnut Creek, CA | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Yerba Buena Center for the Arts | San Francisco, CA | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Chinese Culture Foundation | San Francisco, CA | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Save Mount Diablo | Walnut Creek, CA | $2,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Shelter Inc (project Hearth) | Concord, CA | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Teach for America | San Francisco, CA | $1,500 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| California Public Interest Research Group | Los Angeles, CA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Crossroads School for Arts and Sciences | Santa Monica, CA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Shelter Inc | Concord, CA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| UC Press Foundation | Oakland, CA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| University of California Botanic Garden at Berkeley | Walnut Creek, CA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| University of California Press Foundation | Oakland, CA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
46 of 73 (63%) 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 64%, across 3 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.
- University of California Berkeley Foundation
TO SUPPORT THE MISSIONS AND OPERATIONS OF THE BERKELEY ART MUSEUM AND PACIFIC FILM ARCHIVE, THE LIBRARY FUND, AND THE BOTANTICAL GARDEN. - Cancer Support Community San Francisco Bay Area
TO SUPPORT THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE NEW STATE OF THE ART CANCER SUPPORT CENTER IN LAFAYETTE, CALIFORNIA THAT WILL ALLOW ALL PEOPLE AFFECTED BY CANCER TO RECEIVE COMPREHENSIVE AND EQUITABLE CANCER CARE. - Ucsf Foundation
TO FURTHER THE ORGANIZATION'S MISSION TO ADVANCE HEALTH WORLDWIDE BY SUPPORTING RESEARCH FOR BREAST CANCER TREATMENT OPTIONS AND INITIATIVES FOR PROVIDING PATIENTS WITH ACCESS TO COMPASSIONATE AND EQUITABLE CARE. - California College of the Arts
TO SUPPORT THE MAKER/MEET/FUTURE CAPITAL CAMPAIGN FOR THE EXPANSION OF THE CCA SAN FRANCISCO CAMPUS, AND TO BENEFIT THE CCA SCHOLARSHIP FUND FOR TALENTED AND DESERVING ART AND DESIGN STUDENTS. - Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive
TO SUPPORT THE MISSION OF THE MUSEUM TO PROVIDE ART AND FILM PROGRAMS, EXHIBITION PROGRAMS, AND TO SHARE ITS COLLECTION TO THE WIDEST POSSIBLE AUDIENCE. - Girls Inc of Alameda County
TO PROVIDE FUNDS FOR UNRESTRICTED GENERAL SUPPORT AND SCHOLARSHIPS TO HELP GIRLS FROM UNDERSERVED BAY AREA COMMUNITIES RISE TO BE STRONG, SMART AND BOLD.
What kind of organizations it funds
By the activity category the IRS assigns each recipient, for the 99 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 | 42 | $3,000,500 | $11,250 |
| 2022 | 45 | $3,843,883 | $11,000 |
| 2023 | 36 | $13.6M | $28,000 |
| 2024 | 34 | $17.4M | $22,500 |
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
100% of its giving went to organizations in California. 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 $15,000. 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 California.
- 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 Simpson Psb Fund's own Form 990-PF filings, which the IRS publishes in bulk. We used 4 returns (tax years 2021-2024). 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: 21 Orinda Way Suite C 358, Orinda, CA, 94563. 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 68-0168017 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this
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