FundersOhio

The George Foundation

Columbus, OH · EIN 31-1030194. Reported 200 grants totalling $1,597,184 to 63 organizations across tax years 2021-2024. This foundation did not tell the IRS it funds only preselected organizations.

Yesaccepts unsolicited requests
$150median grant
$1,597,184granted, 2021-2024
63organizations funded
83%of grantees funded again the next year
$7,237,264assets, 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. The George 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 $150. Half of everything it gave fell between $100 and $300; the smallest was $25 and the largest $300,650. If you are asking for materially more than the top of that range, you are asking the wrong foundation.

Under $1,000
166 grants
$1,000 - $5,000
14 grants
$5,000 - $10,000
5 grants
$25,000 - $50,000
8 grants
$50,000 - $100,000
3 grants
$100,000 and Up
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
Columbus Symphony Orchestra Columbus Symphony OrchestraColumbus, OH$1,100,500442024
Ballet Metropolitan Ballet MetropolitanColumbus, OH$160,000442024
The Columbus Foundation the Columbus FoundationColumbus, OH$150,000332023
Wosu Stations Fund Wosu Stations FundColumbus, OH$120,000442024
Kalona Historical Society Kalona Historical SocietyKalona, IA$20,200442024
Pro Musica Pro MusicaColumbus, OH$8,100442024
Sierra Club Foundation Sierra Club FoundationSan Francisco, CA$4,050442024
Capital Area Humane Society Capital Area Humane SocietyHilliard, OH$3,600442024
Columbus Museum of Art Columbus Museum of ArtColumbus, OH$3,000332024
Capa CapaColumbus, OH$2,150332024
Audubon Center for Birds of Prey Audubon Center for Birds of PreyMaitland, FL$1,600442024
Ohio State Univ Bucks for Charity Ohio State Univ Bucks for CharityColumbus, OH$1,500332023
National Audubon Society National Audubon SocietyNew York, NY$1,250442024
Bat Conservation International Bat Conservation InternationalAustin, TX$1,200442024
Colony Cats & Dogs Rescue Colony Cats & Dogs RescueColumbus, OH$1,150442024
St Louis Art Museum St Louis Art MuseumSt Louis, MO$1,010442024
Columbus Chamber Music Society Columbus Chamber Music SocietyColumbus, OH$1,000112021
Cozy Cat Cottage Cozy Cat CottagePowell, OH$1,000442024
Missouri Botanical Garden Missouri Botanical GardenSt Louis, MO$775442024
Nature Conservancy Nature ConservancyBaltimore, MD$750442024
Planned Parenthood Planned ParenthoodNew York, NY$700442024
St Louis Zoo St Louis ZooSt Louis, MO$698442024
St Louis Science Center St Louis Science CenterSt Louis, MO$618442024
Missouri Humane Society Missouri Humane SocietySt Louis, MO$600442024
Ohio Wildlife Center Ohio Wildlife CenterWorthington, OH$600442024
Raptor Resource Project Raptor Resource ProjectRidgeway, IA$600332024
Center of Science & Industry Center of Science & IndustryColumbus, OH$541332024
Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology Cornell Laboratory of OrnithologyIthica, NY$500442024
Environmental Defense Environmental DefenseHagerstown, MD$500442024
United Way of Central Ohio United Way of Central OhioColumbus, OH$500112024
Upper Arlington Public Library Upper Arlington Public LibraryUpper Arlington, OH$500442024
Alley Cat Allies Alley Cat AlliesWashington, DC$400332024
American Rivers American RiversWashington, DC$400442024
League of Women Voters League of Women VotersWashington, DC$400442024
Mid Ohio Food Bank Mid Ohio Food BankColumbus, OH$400442024
National Parks & Conservation Assoc National Parks & Conservation AssocWashington, DC$400442024
Natural Resources Defense Council Natural Resources Defense CouncilMerrifield, VA$400332024
Smithsonian Institution Smithsonian InstitutionBoulder, CO$375442024
Columbus Zoo Columbus ZooPowell, OH$350332024
Otterbein University Theatre Otterbein University TheatreWesterville, OH$350332024
World Wildlife Fund World Wildlife FundWashington, DC$350332024
Ohio State Univ Costumes & Textiles Ohio State Univ Costumes & TextilesColumbus, OH$315442024
ASPCA ASPCAWashington, DC$300442024
Early Music in Columbus Early Music in ColumbusColumbus, OH$300112022
Great Smokey Mtn History Society Great Smokey Mtn History SocietyGatlinburg, TN$300332023
NAACP NAACPBaltimore, MD$300332024
Franklin Park Conservatory Franklin Park ConservatoryColumbus, OH$292332023
Missouri Historical Society Missouri Historical SocietySt Louis, MO$225332023
Archaological Institute of America Archaological Institute of AmericaBoston, MA$210332023
Archaeological Conservancy Archaeological ConservancyAlbuqueque, NM$200442024
Ohio Div Natural Areas & Preserves Ohio Div Natural Areas & PreservesColumbus, OH$200332024
Ohio Environmental Council Ohio Environmental CouncilColumbus, OH$200222024
Ohio Historical Society Ohio Historical SocietyColumbus, OH$200332023
Sunday at Central Sunday at CentralColumbus, OH$200222023
Cleveland Museum of Art Cleveland Museum of ArtCleveland, OH$175112022
Cahokia Mounds Museum Society Cahokia Mounds Museum SocietyCollinsville, IL$150332023
Colonial Williamsburg Foundation Colonial Williamsburg FoundationWilliamsburg, VA$100222022
Friends of Natural History Foundati Friends of Natural History FoundationResearch Triangle, NC$100222024
Liszt Society Ohio Chapter Liszt Society Ohio ChapterColumbus, OH$100112021
Smithsonian National Zoo Smithsonian National ZooWashington, DC$100112024
Upper Arlington Civic Assoc Upper Arlington Civic AssocUpper Arlington, OH$75332023
Wexner Center Wexner CenterColumbus, OH$75112021
Carp Diem String Quartet Carp Diem String QuartetPowell, OH$50112023

55 of 63 (87%) 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 83%, across 3 year-to-year transitions. The median foundation retains about 67%, so this one is unusually consistent. 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 32 grants where we could identify the organization. These are assigned categories, not our guesses.

Arts & Culture
18 grants
Animal Welfare
8 grants
Philanthropy & Grantmaking
4 grants
Environment
2 grants

Giving by year

Tax yearGrantsTotalMedian grant
202154$416,045$100
202253$407,115$150
202347$385,966$125
202446$388,058$150

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. 98% of this one's giving went to organizations in Ohio. If you are outside its footprint, that matters more than how well your programme fits.

Ohio
$1.6M
Iowa
$21K
California
$4K
Missouri
$4K
New York
$2K
District of Columbia
$2K
Florida
$2K
Maryland
$2K

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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 Fund10 shared recipientsDonor Advised Charitable Giving Inc9 shared recipientsAmerican Online Giving Foundation Inc9 shared recipientsRaymond James Charitable Endowment Fund8 shared recipientsVanguard Charitable Endowment Program8 shared recipientsThe Bank of America Charitable Foundation Inc8 shared recipients

How to approach this foundation

  1. Check you are its size. The median grant is $150. 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 Ohio.
  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.

Where these numbers come from

Everything above is taken from The George 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: 2627 Johnston Road, Columbus, OH, 43220. 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 31-1030194 · 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.