The Poetry Foundation
Chicago, IL · EIN 36-2490808. Reported 977 grants totalling $13.2M to 713 organizations across tax years 2021-2024. This foundation did not tell the IRS it funds only preselected organizations.
Yesaccepts unsolicited requests
$5,000median grant
$13.2Mgranted, 2021-2024
713organizations funded
32%of grantees funded again the next year
$313.2Massets, 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 Poetry 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 $5,000. Half of everything it gave fell between $500 and $20,000; the smallest was $100 and the largest $500,000. If you are asking for materially more than the top of that range, you are asking the wrong foundation.
Every organization it funded
All 713 recipients appear in its filings; the 250 largest are listed here. Years funded is the number of separate tax years in which this organization received money -- the clearest signal of who this foundation actually has a relationship with.
| Organization | Location | Total received | Grants | Years funded | Last |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mid Atlantic Arts | Baltimore, MD | $500,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Woodland Pattern Inc | Milwaukee, WI | $270,000 | 5 | 3 | 2024 |
| Minnesota Public Radio | St Paul, MN | $225,000 | 2 | 1 | 2021 |
| University of Nebraska Foundation | Lincoln, NE | $216,250 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| University of Nebraska | Lincoln, NE | $192,970 | 3 | 2 | 2022 |
| Cave Canem Foundation Inc | Brooklyn, NY | $180,000 | 4 | 3 | 2023 |
| Academy of American Poets Inc | New York, NY | $171,500 | 5 | 4 | 2024 |
| O Miami Inc | Miami, FL | $150,000 | 5 | 3 | 2024 |
| Community Literature Initiative | Los Angeles, CA | $145,000 | 5 | 4 | 2024 |
| Poetry Center of Chicago | Chicago, IL | $144,500 | 5 | 3 | 2024 |
| Citylit Project Inc | Baltimore, MD | $130,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Poetic Justice Incorporated | Tulsa, OK | $130,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Third World Press Foundation Inc | Chicago, IL | $125,000 | 4 | 3 | 2024 |
| Kuumba Lynx | Chicago, IL | $110,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| National Poetry Series Inc | Princeton, NJ | $110,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Writers Without Margins Inc | Plymouth, MA | $105,000 | 4 | 3 | 2023 |
| Angela Jackson | North Chicago, IL | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Arthur Sze | Santa Fe, NM | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Craig Conrad | Greenfield, MA | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Haki Madhubuti | Chicago, IL | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Juan Felipe Herrera | Fresno, CA | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Nikki Giovanni | Christiansburg, VA | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Patricia Smith | New York, NY | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Rita Frances Dove | Charlottesville, VA | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Sandra Cisneros | San Antonio, TX | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Sharon Olds | New York, NY | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Sonia Sanchez | Philadelpia, PA | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Verse Video Education Inc | Brookline, MA | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Community of Literary Magazines and Presses | New York, NY | $96,000 | 3 | 2 | 2024 |
| Fusion Partnerships Inc | Baltimore, MD | $95,000 | 5 | 3 | 2023 |
| The Care Center | Holyoke, MA | $95,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Mizna | Saint Paul, MN | $92,500 | 5 | 4 | 2024 |
| Contextos Nfp | Chicago, IL | $90,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Radical Reversal | Bloomfield, NJ | $90,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Resilience Partners Nfp | Chicago, IL | $90,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Young Chicago Authors | Chicago, IL | $90,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Noemi Press | Tucson, AZ | $85,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| The Diatribe Inc | Grand Rapids, MI | $85,000 | 3 | 2 | 2022 |
| California Poets in the Schools | Santa Rosa, CA | $80,000 | 3 | 2 | 2022 |
| Minnesota Prison Writing Worksho | St Paul, MN | $80,000 | 3 | 2 | 2022 |
| Minnesota Prison Writing Workshop | Minneapolis, MN | $80,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Near South Planning Board | Chicago, IL | $80,000 | 5 | 4 | 2024 |
| Split This Rock Inc | Washington, DC | $80,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| The Beautiful Project Inc | Durham, NC | $80,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Torch Literary Arts | Austin, TX | $80,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Board of Trustees Isu | Normal, IL | $72,500 | 3 | 2 | 2022 |
| Bamboo Ridge Press | Honolulu, HI | $70,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Kearny Street Workshop Inc | San Francisco, CA | $70,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Ugly Duckling Presse Ltd | Brooklyn, NY | $67,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Burst Into Books | Chicago, IL | $65,000 | 3 | 2 | 2024 |
| Cardboard House Press | Providence, RI | $65,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Kundiman | New York, NY | $65,000 | 2 | 1 | 2022 |
| Lambda Literary Foundation | New York, NY | $65,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Smithsonian Institution | Washington, DC | $65,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| United States Artists Inc | Chicago, IL | $65,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| University of Guam Endowment Fou | Mangilao, GU | $65,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Culturetrust Greater Philadelphi | Philadelphia, PA | $60,000 | 3 | 2 | 2022 |
| Street Poets Inc | Los Angeles, CA | $60,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Urban Word Nyc Inc | New York, NY | $60,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Beyond Baroque Foundation | Venice, CA | $59,500 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| 826CHI Inc Nfp | Chicago, IL | $57,500 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Nebraska Writers Collective | Omaha, NE | $57,500 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| 826 New Orleans | New Orleans, LA | $55,000 | 3 | 2 | 2022 |
| Alice James Poetry Cooperative | New Gloucester, ME | $55,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Cave Canem | Brooklyn, NY | $55,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Insideout Literary Arts | Detroit, MI | $55,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Under the Volcano International Inc | New York, NY | $55,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| University of Notre Dame Du Lac | Notre Dame, IN | $55,000 | 2 | 1 | 2022 |
| Youth Speaks Inc | San Francisco, CA | $55,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Boa Editions Ltd | Rochester, NY | $50,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Board of Trustees at Illinois State University | Normal, IL | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Board of Trustees of Illinois State University (obsidian Literature & Arts | Normal, IL | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Board of Trustees Univ of Ill | Urbana, IL | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Chiarts Foundation | Chicago, IL | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Chicago Theatre Group Inc | Chicago, IL | $50,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Community Partners | Los Angeles, CA | $50,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Hub City Writers Project | Spartanburg, SC | $50,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Ideas Xlab | Louisville, KY | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Insideout Literary Arts Project (insideout Literary Arts) | Detroit, MI | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| James Madison University Foundat | Harrisonburg, VA | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Lugar Comun Inc | Miami Beach, FL | $50,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Pennsylvania Avenue Black Arts | Baltimore, MD | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Poets House Inc | New York, NY | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Ragdale Foundation | North Chicago, IL | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Seventh Generation Fund for Indigenous Peoples Inc | Santa Fe, NM | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Sisters in Cinema Nfp | Chicago, IL | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Word a Storytelling Sanctuary Inc | Denver, CO | $50,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Words Beats and Life | Washington, DC | $50,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Teachers and Writers Collab | New York, NY | $48,000 | 3 | 2 | 2022 |
| Massachusetts Poetry Outreach | Boston, MA | $47,500 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Freedom Reads | Hamden, CT | $45,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Gemini Series Inc | San Antonio, TX | $45,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Poetry Society of America | Brooklyn, NY | $45,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Taller Comunidad La Goyco Inc | San Juan, PR | $45,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| The Poetry Project Ltd | New York, NY | $45,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Wordplay Cincy | Cincinnati, OH | $45,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Words Without Borders | Brooklyn, NY | $45,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| American Poetry Museum | Washington, DC | $42,500 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Comm of Literary Magazines & P | New York, NY | $40,000 | 2 | 1 | 2022 |
| Copper Canyon Press | Port Townsend, WA | $40,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Crownkeepers | Charlotte, NC | $40,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Diasporic Vietnamese Artists Network | San Francisco, CA | $40,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Floating Museum Nfp | Chicago, IL | $40,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Fractured Atlas Inc | New York, NY | $40,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Guild Complex | Chicago, IL | $40,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| James Madison University Foundation | Harrisonburg, VA | $40,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Mass Poetry | Boston, MA | $40,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Milkweed Editions Inc | Minneapolis, MN | $40,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| National Book Foundation Inc | New York, NY | $40,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Nuyorican Poets Cafe | New York, NY | $40,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Pen America Center | New York, NY | $40,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Philadelphia Contemporary | Philadelphia, PA | $40,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Poetry Center of Chicago (chicago Poetry Center) | Chicago, IL | $40,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Snow City Arts Foundation | Chicago, IL | $40,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Steppenwolf Theater Co | Chicago, IL | $40,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| The University of Arizona Foundation | Tucson, AZ | $40,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Hurston Wright Foundation | Washington, DC | $37,500 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Guild Complex (guild Literary Complex) | Chicago, IL | $36,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| 826 Michigan Inc | Ann Arbor, MI | $35,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Artes De Mexico En Utah | Salt Lake City, UT | $35,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Center for Book Arts Incorporated 1974 | New York, NY | $35,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Court Theatre Fund | Chicago, IL | $35,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| DC Creative Writing Workshop | Washington, DC | $35,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Deep Center Incorporated | Savannah, GA | $35,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Desert Island Supply Co | Birmingham, AL | $35,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Letras Latinas at University of Notre Dames Institute for Latino Studies | Notre Dame, IN | $35,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Love Now Media Inc | Philadelphia, PA | $35,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Public Media Institute | Chicago, IL | $35,000 | 3 | 2 | 2024 |
| Puha Hubiya | Albuquerque, NM | $35,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Reading Between the Lines | Chicago, IL | $35,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Roil Dba Maine Inside Out | Portland, ME | $35,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Shout Mouse Press Inc | Washington, DC | $35,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Small Press Traffic | San Francisco, CA | $35,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Sundress Publications | Oak Ridge, TN | $35,000 | 3 | 2 | 2024 |
| Words of the People | Tulsa, OK | $35,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| World Poetry Books | New York, NY | $35,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| City of Asylum Pittsburgh | Pittsburgh, PA | $32,500 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| 826CHI | Chicago, IL | $30,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Art From Ashes Inc | Denver, CO | $30,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Artistyear | Philadelphia, PA | $30,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Breathe Ink | Charlotte, NC | $30,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| City of Chicago - Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events | Chicago, IL | $30,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Dreamyard Project Inc | Bronx, NY | $30,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Ecotheo Collective | Houston, TX | $30,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Hope at Hand Inc | Jax, FL | $30,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Illinois Humanities | Chicago, IL | $30,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Just Buffalo Literary Center Inc | Buffalo, NY | $30,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Nightboat Books Inc | Brooklyn, NY | $30,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Northwest New Mexico Arts Council | Farmington, NM | $30,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Ny Writers Coalition Inc | Brooklyn, NY | $30,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Path With Art | Seattle, WA | $30,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Teachers and Writers Collaborative | New York, NY | $30,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Voices of Our Nations Arts Foundation Inc | Miami, FL | $30,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| The Thurber House Inc | Columbus, OH | $29,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Missoula Writing Collaborative | Missoula, MT | $27,500 | 3 | 2 | 2022 |
| Poetry Society of New York | Brooklyn, NY | $27,500 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Zoeglossia | Las Cruces, NM | $27,500 | 3 | 2 | 2022 |
| Bronzeville Black Chicagoan Historical Society | Chicago, IL | $26,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Alan C Pelaez | Oakland, CA | $25,800 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Diamond Forde | Asheville, NC | $25,800 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Tarik Octavio Dobbs | Dearborn, MI | $25,800 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Tariq Luthun | Northville, MI | $25,800 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Troy Osaki | Seattle, WA | $25,800 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Alegria Bilingual Bookstores & Arts Collective Corp | Pacific Palisades, CA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| American Writers Museum | Chicago, IL | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Arts and Literature Laboratory I | Madison, WI | $25,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Elizabeth Acevedo | Washington, DC | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Foglifter Press | San Francisco, CA | $25,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Girls Write Now Inc | New York, NY | $25,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Grantmakers in the Arts | Bronx, NY | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Kent State University (wick Poetry Center) | Kent, OH | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Kitchen Table Literary Arts | Tampa, FL | $25,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Macdowell | Peterborough, NH | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Make Literary Productions Nfp | Chicago, IL | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Pen America | New York, NY | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Southern Word Inc | Nashville, TN | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| The Arts Area | San Dimas, CA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| The Watering Hole Poetry Organization | Columbia, SC | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| The Watering Hole Poetry Organziation | Columbia, SC | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Georgia Tech Foundation | Atlanta, GA | $24,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| The Poetry Forum Inc | Evanston, IL | $22,500 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Arts Council of Princeton | Princeton, NJ | $22,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Fonograf Editions | Portland, OR | $21,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Mia Ronn | Santa Monica, CA | $20,200 | 2 | 1 | 2022 |
| American Library Association | Chicago, IL | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Arizona State University Foundation | Tempe, AZ | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Association of Writers and Writi | Riverdale Park, MD | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Before Columbus Foundation | Oakland, CA | $20,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Bowery Arts and Science Ltd | New York, NY | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Cambridge Community Center Inc | Cambridge, MA | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Cavankerry Press Ltd | Fort Lee, NJ | $20,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Cavankerry Press Office | Fort Lee, NJ | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Council to Advance and Support Tier III Dba Words to Power | Denver, CO | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Gemini Series Inc (gemini Ink) | San Antonio, TX | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Guernica Inc | Brooklyn, NY | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Hermitage Artist Retreat Inc | Englewood, FL | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| John Walt Foundation Inc | Chicago, IL | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Make Literary Productions | Chicago, IL | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Mano Amiga Sm | San Marcos, TX | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Motor City Sings | Detroit, MI | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Museum of Contemporary Art | Chicago, IL | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Parachute Literary Arts Inc | Brooklyn, NY | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Peace Development Fund Inc | Greenfield, MA | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Pen Parentis | New York, NY | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Pennsylvania Avenue Black Arts and Entertainment District Inc | Baltimore, MD | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| People & Storiesgente Y Cuentos | Lawrenceville, NJ | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Poets in Need | Berekely, CA | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Regents of Univ of Michigan | Ann Arbor, MI | $20,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Small Press Distribution Inc | Berkeley, CA | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| St Louis Poetry Center | St Louis, MO | $20,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| The Breakbread Literacy Project | Oxnard, CA | $20,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| The Poetry Project Limited | New York, NY | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Twelve Literary Arts | Cleveland, OH | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Good Journey Development Foundation | Saint Louis, MO | $18,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Southern Fried Poetry Inc | Duluth, GA | $18,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Kent State University | Kent, OH | $17,500 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| The Lab Sf | San Francisco, CA | $17,500 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Chicago Literary Hall of Fame | Chicago, IL | $16,000 | 4 | 3 | 2024 |
| Writers in the Schools | Houston, TX | $15,200 | 2 | 1 | 2021 |
| Alternative Field Inc | Los Angeles, CA | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Asian American Writer Workshop | New York, NY | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Autumn House Press | Boca Raton, FL | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Center for Narrative and Lyric a | Anchorage, AK | $15,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Center for the Art of Translatio | San Francisco, CA | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Chicago All Against Sexual Expl | Chicago, IL | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Chicago Hopes for Kids | Chicago, IL | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Community Justice Project Inc | Miami, FL | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Community Word Project Inc | New York, NY | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Flood Editions Nfp | Chicago, IL | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Illinois Arts Alliance | Chicago, IL | $15,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Imagine for All | Wimberely, TX | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Kalamazoo Poetry Festival | Kalamazoo, MI | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| National Council of Teachers of | Champaign, IL | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Peace Development Fund | San Francisco, CA | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Poets and Writers Inc | New York, NY | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Prison & Neighborhood Arts Proje | Chicago, IL | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Prison and Neighborhood Arts Project | Chicago, IL | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Prison and Neighborhood Arts-Education Project | Chicago, IL | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Radius of Arab American Writers Inc | Houston, TX | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Sinister Wisdom Inc | Dover, FL | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| The Griot Collective of West Tennessee | Jackson, TN | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| YMCA of Central New York Inc | Syracuse, NY | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Hips Road | New York, NY | $14,000 | 2 | 1 | 2024 |
| Marian and Edward Macdowell Inc | Peterborough, NH | $12,500 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Northwest New Mexico Arts Counci | Farmington, NM | $12,500 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| The Writers Center (poet Lore) | Bethesda, MD | $11,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Association of Writers and Writing Programs | Norfolk, VA | $10,975 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Indiana Writers Center | Indianapolis, IN | $10,400 | 4 | 2 | 2022 |
| Aidyn Reid | Woodland Park, CO | $10,200 | 2 | 1 | 2022 |
| 916 Ink | Sacramento, CA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
139 of 713 (19%) 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 32%, 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.
Plus 59 grants to individuals totalling $851,323 -- scholarships, hardship and emergency assistance. We deliberately do not publish the names of people who received them, even though the filings do.
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.
- Mid Atlantic Arts
GRANT FOR POETRY OUT LOUD - University of Nebraska
3 YEAR GRANT - AFRICAN POETRY BOOK DISTRIBUTION PROJECT - University of Nebraska Foundation
SPECIAL PROJECTS AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR AFRICAN POETRY BOOK FUND AT THE UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA - Patricia Smith
RUTH LILLY PRIZE 2022 - SONIA SANCHEZ - Rita Frances Dove
RUTH LILLY PRIZE 2022 - RITA DOVE - Sharon Olds
RUTH LILLY PRIZE 2022 - SHARON OLDS
What kind of organizations it funds
By the recipient's own IRS classification, for the 405 grants where we could identify the organization. These are assigned categories, not our guesses.
Giving by year
| Tax year | Grants | Total | Median grant |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 280 | $1,997,470 | $3,000 |
| 2022 | 414 | $4,312,460 | $500 |
| 2023 | 121 | $3,096,503 | $25,000 |
| 2024 | 162 | $3,784,122 | $20,000 |
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.
Already committed for future years
Form 990-PF has a separate schedule for grants approved but not yet paid. The Poetry Foundation has 3 of them, worth $276,250. This is the one part of the filing that looks forward rather than back -- and it also tells you how much of the next year's budget is already spoken for.
| Organization | Location | Approved |
|---|---|---|
| University of Nebraska | Lincoln, NE | $231,250 |
| Steppenwolf Theatre Company | Chicago, IL | $25,000 |
| Motor City Sings | Detroit, MI | $20,000 |
Where its money goes
Foundations concentrate geographically far more than their mission statements suggest. 18% of this one's giving went to organizations in Illinois. 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.
Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund138 shared recipientsDonor Advised Charitable Giving Inc104 shared recipientsAmerican Online Giving Foundation Inc81 shared recipientsNational Philanthropic Trust72 shared recipientsVanguard Charitable Endowment Program65 shared recipientsMorgan Stanley Global Impact Funding Trust Inc56 shared recipients
How to approach this foundation
- Check you are its size. The median grant is $5,000. 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 Illinois.
- 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
Foundations funding education in IllinoisEvery funder in this group, rankedFoundations funding human services in IllinoisEvery funder in this group, rankedFoundations funding arts & culture in New YorkEvery funder in this group, rankedFoundations funding education in New YorkEvery funder in this group, ranked
Where these numbers come from
Everything above is taken from The Poetry 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: 61 West Superior St, Chicago, IL, 60654. 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 36-2490808 · 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 [email protected] and we will correct it.