Caroline Alexander Buck Foundation
Philadelphia, PA · EIN 23-6257115. Reported 76 grants totalling $2,937,419 to 61 organizations 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. Caroline Alexander Buck 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 $25,000. Half of everything it gave fell between $20,000 and $50,000; the smallest was $5,000 and the largest $100,000. 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. 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.
| Organization | Location | Total received | Grants | Years funded | Last |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St James School | Philadelphia, PA | $300,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| A Book a Day | Philadelphia, PA | $225,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Collective Climb | Philadelphia, PA | $200,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Project Home | Philadelphia, PA | $200,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Inn Dwelling Inc | Philadelphia, PA | $135,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Thomas Jefferson University | Philadelphia, PA | $120,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Big Picture Philadelphia | Philadelphia, PA | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Gateway Horseworks | Malvern, PA | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Reading Allowed | Philadelphia, PA | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Settlement Music School | Philadelphia, PA | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Youth Empowerment for Advancement Hangout | Philadelphia, PA | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Jubilee School | Philadelphia, PA | $79,456 | 5 | 4 | 2024 |
| Community Partnerships School | Philadelphia, PA | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Heights Philadelphia | Philadelphia, PA | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Thorncroft Therapeutic Riding | Malvern, PA | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Tree House Books | Philadelphia, PA | $50,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Youth Mentorship and Partnership | Exton, PA | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| The Adoption Center | Philadelphia, PA | $40,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Unscripted Project | Philadelphia, PA | $37,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Feast of Justice | Philadelphia, PA | $35,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Brighter Horizon Foundation | Philadelphia, PA | $30,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Connectedly | Philadelphia, PA | $30,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Mercy Neighborhood Ministries | Philadelphia, PA | $30,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Philadelphia Futures | Philadelphia, PA | $30,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Students Run Philly Style | Philadelphia, PA | $30,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Anti-Violence Partnership | Philadelphia, PA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Book Trust | Denver, CO | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Chester Charter Scholars Academy | Chester, PA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Chester Eastside | Chester, PA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Community Volunteers in Medicine | West Chester, PA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Drueding Center | Philadelphia, PA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Envision Success | Philadelphia, PA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Family Promise of Philadelphia | Philadelphia, PA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Mindfulness Through Movement | Wayne, PA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Norris Square Community Alliance | Philadelphia, PA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Philadelphia Mural Arts Advocates | Philadelphia, PA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Police Athletic League | Philadelphia, PA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Southwest Community Development Corporation | Philadelphia, PA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| The Education Culture Opportunity Foundation | Philadelphia, PA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| The Lighthouse | St Paul, MN | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Art Sphere Inc | Philadelphia, PA | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Centro De Cultura | Blue Bell, PA | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Girls Justice League | Philadelphia, PA | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Girls on the Run Philadelphia | Philadelphia, PA | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Providence Center | Philadelphia, PA | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Sankofa Healing Studio | Philadelphia, PA | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Supportive Older Womans Network | Philadelphia, PA | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Yoga for Philly | Philadelphia, PA | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Bridge Academy and Community Center | Coatesville, PA | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Eclose Institute | Wyncote, PA | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Horizons at Springside | Philadelphia, PA | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Oxford Area Neighborhood Services Center | Oxford, PA | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Achieve Now | Philadelphia, PA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Philadelphia Children's Alliance | Philadelphia, PA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Playworks Education Energized | Oakland, CA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Support Center for Child Advocates | Philadelphia, PA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Vanguard Charitable Fund | Warwick, RI | $7,963 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Gemma Services | Plymouth Mtng, PA | $7,500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Breakthrough of Greater Philadelphia | Philadelphia, PA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Girls on the Run Southeastern Suburban Pa | Fort Washington, PA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Kamp for Kids | Feasterville, PA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
10 of 61 (16%) 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 14%, across 3 year-to-year transitions. The median foundation retains about 67%, so this one is less consistent than most. 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 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.
- Collective Climb
TO EMPOWER BIPOC TEENAGERS AND YOUNG ADULTS IN WEST PHILADELPHIA - Project Home
TO BREAK THE CYCLE OF HOMELESSNESS AND POVERTY IN PHILADELPHIA - Reading Allowed
TO PROVIDE SPECIALIZED, STRUCTURED LITERACY TUTORING TO CHILDREN AND ADULTS - St James School
TO EDUCATE TRADITIONALLY UNDERRESOURCED STUDENTS - A Book a Day
ENGAGE THE ARTS TO EXPAND LITERACY. - Big Picture Philadelphia
SUPPORT TRANSFORMATIVE EDUCATIONAL EXPERIENCES FOR UNDERSERVED HS YOUTH.
What kind of organizations it funds
By the recipient's own IRS classification, for the 56 grants where we could identify the organization. These are assigned categories, not our guesses.
Giving by year
| Tax year | Grants | Total | Median grant |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 22 | $789,864 | $22,500 |
| 2022 | 12 | $640,327 | $40,000 |
| 2023 | 15 | $698,940 | $28,940 |
| 2024 | 27 | $808,288 | $25,000 |
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
Foundations concentrate geographically far more than their mission statements suggest. 98% of this one's giving went to organizations in Pennsylvania. If you are outside its footprint, that matters more than how well your programme fits.
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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.
How to approach this foundation
- Check you are its size. The median grant is $25,000. Asking for ten times that is the most common way small organizations waste a submission.
- Check you are in its geography. Its giving is concentrated in Pennsylvania.
- 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 Caroline Alexander Buck 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: Co N Doolittle 30 S 17TH St 820, Philadelphia, PA, 19103. 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 23-6257115 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this
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