The Hacker and Kitty Caldwell
Chattanooga, TN · EIN 20-1245843. Reported 213 grants totalling $1,486,407 to 80 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. The Hacker and Kitty Caldwell 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 $1,000. Half of everything it gave fell between $500 and $5,000; the smallest was $100 and the largest $114,100. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Mccallie School | Chattanooga, TN | $295,100 | 7 | 4 | 2024 |
| Stove Works | Chattanooga, TN | $194,833 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Hunter Museum of American Art | Chattanooga, TN | $116,500 | 6 | 4 | 2024 |
| The Creative Discovery Museum | Chattanooga, TN | $107,500 | 7 | 4 | 2024 |
| United Way of Greater Chattanooga | Chattanooga, TN | $105,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Church of the Good Shepherd | Lookout Mountain, TN | $95,700 | 5 | 4 | 2024 |
| Winous Point Marsh Conservancy | Port Clinton, OH | $80,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Public Education Foundation | Chattanooga, TN | $57,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Smithsonian Institution | Washington, DC | $45,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Randolph College | Lynchburg, VA | $35,724 | 6 | 4 | 2024 |
| Atlantic Salmon Federation | Calais, ME | $32,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Girls Preparatory School | Chattanooga, TN | $28,000 | 6 | 4 | 2024 |
| Chattanooga Church Ministries | Chattanooga, TN | $25,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Delta Waterfowl Foundation | Bismark, ND | $25,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| The University of the South | Sewanee, TN | $19,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Metropolitan Ministries | Chattanooga, TN | $17,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| The Pop Up Project | Chattanooga, TN | $16,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Lookout Mountain School | Lookout Mountain, TN | $13,300 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Artsbuild | Chattanooga, TN | $10,500 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| A Step Ahead Chattanooga | Chattanooga, TN | $10,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Chattanooga Community Kitchen | Chattanooga, TN | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Enough Pie | Charleston, SC | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Kenan-Flagler Business School Foundation | Chapel Hill, NC | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| UC Foundation | Chattanooga, TN | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Saam American Art Forum | Washington, DC | $9,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Virginia Episcopal School | Lynchburg, VA | $8,500 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Darden School Foundation | Charlottesville, VA | $7,500 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| The Community Foundation of Western North Carolina | Ashville, NC | $7,500 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| The Boys and Girls Clubs of Chattanooga | Chattanooga, TN | $6,500 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Earth & Soul | Casper, WY | $6,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Castleton Festival | Castleton, VA | $5,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| The Baylor School | Chattanooga, TN | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Southern Environmental Law Center | Charlottesville, VA | $4,500 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Habitat for Humanity Greater Chattanooga | Chattanooga, TN | $4,200 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Boys and Girls Clubs of the Plateau | Cashiers, NC | $3,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| St Margarets School | Tappahannock, VA | $3,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Cardigan Mountain School | Canaan, NH | $3,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Kavod | Denver, CO | $3,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Solit | Chattanooga, TN | $3,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Tall Timbers | Tallahassee, FL | $3,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Veriditas | Petaluma, CA | $3,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Reflection Riding | Chattanooga, TN | $2,600 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Beta Chapter of Pdt Inc | Chapel Hill, NC | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Holy Trinity Episcopal Church | West Palm Beach, FL | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Chattanooga Girls Leadership Academy | Chattanooga, TN | $2,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Sculpture Fields at Montague Park | Chattanooga, TN | $1,750 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Lookout Mountain Conservancy | Chattanooga, TN | $1,500 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Lula Lake Land Trust | Lookout Mountain, GA | $1,500 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Boy Scouts of America - Cherokee Area Council | Chattanooga, TN | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Chattanooga Fellowship of Christian Athletes | Hixson, TN | $1,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Childrens Nutrition Program of Haiti | Chattanooga, TN | $1,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Millwald Theatre Inc | Wytheville, VA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Palm Beach United Way | Palm Beach, FL | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| The Women's Fund of Greater Chattanooga | Chattanooga, TN | $1,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Cornell Lab of Ornithology | Ithaca, NY | $750 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Highlands Cashiers Health Foundation | Highlands, NC | $750 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Highlands Cashiers Land Trust | Highlands, NC | $750 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Outreach Haiti | Norwich, CT | $750 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Center for Action and Contemplation | Albuquerque, NM | $600 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| American Public Education Foundation | Collierville, TN | $500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Crc Recovery Foundation | Delray Beach, FL | $500 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Ella Library | Chattanooga, TN | $500 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Riley Foundation | Highland, UT | $500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Splash | Chattanooga, TN | $500 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| The Generosity Trust | Chattanooga, TN | $500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Heart Gallery | Chattanooga, TN | $350 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Choate Rosemary Hall | Wallingford, CT | $300 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Crabtree Farms | Chattanooga, TN | $300 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Freinds of Hale County | Birmingham, AL | $250 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Hart Gallery | Chattanooga, TN | $250 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Ibu Foundation | Charleston, SC | $250 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Skyuka Hall | Chattanooga, TN | $250 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| The Dawn Redwoods Charitable Trust | Belvedere Tiburon, CA | $250 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Voices for a Safer Tennessee Coalition | Nashville, TN | $250 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Chattanooga Bach Choir Inc | Chattanooga, TN | $150 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Garden Club of Lookout Mountain | Lookout Mountain, TN | $100 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| The Community Foundation for the Central Savannah River Area Inc | Augusta, GA | $100 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Unc Hussman School of Journalism and Media Foundation | Chapel Hill, NC | $100 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Ussga Memorial Fund | Elmsford, NY | $100 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Wassaic Project | Wassaic, NY | $100 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
53 of 80 (66%) 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 80%, across 3 year-to-year transitions. The median foundation retains about 67%, so this one is unusually consistent. 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.
- The Mccallie School
MICHAELS-DICKSON OPERATING SCHOLARSHIP - United Way of Greater Chattanooga
TRANSFORMING UNITED WAY CAMPAIGN - The Creative Discovery Museum
IGNITE DISCOVERY CAMPAIGN - Kenan-Flagler Business School Foundation
ANNUAL FUND ON BEHALF OF BUNKY HENDERSON - Girls Preparatory School
ANNUAL FUND ON BEHALF OF KATE CALDWELL NEVIN - UC Foundation
WOLFORD FAMILY ATHLETICS COMPLEX
What kind of organizations it funds
By the activity category the IRS assigns each recipient, for the 132 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 | 73 | $500,850 | $2,500 |
| 2022 | 58 | $450,027 | $1,225 |
| 2023 | 55 | $367,026 | $1,000 |
| 2024 | 27 | $168,504 | $1,000 |
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
78% of its giving went to organizations in Tennessee. 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 $1,000. 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 Tennessee.
- 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.
Where these numbers come from
Everything above is taken from The Hacker and Kitty Caldwell'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: 736 Market Street 1400, Chattanooga, TN, 37402. 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 20-1245843 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this
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