Massachusetts Service Alliance Inc
Boston, MA · EIN 04-3088234. Reported 168 grants totalling $58.5M to 70 organizations across tax years 2020-2023, on Form 990 Schedule I.
Does this grantmaker accept applications?
Its tax return does not say, and we will not guess. Private foundations file Form 990-PF, which asks outright whether they fund only organizations they select themselves -- 78% say yes, and that one answer is what lets the rest of this site tell you which foundations are worth approaching. Grantmaking charities like this one file a regular Form 990 instead, and the IRS never puts the question to them. Anyone claiming to know the answer from the filing is inventing it.
Three things in the filing do bear on it:
- What kind of organization it is. For Massachusetts Service Alliance Inc, the IRS classifies it under environment rather than as a grantmaker (NTEE C20Z) -- it is an operating charity that also makes grants.
- How spread out its giving is. 70 distinct organizations, with 29% of the dollars going to the largest single recipient. That is genuinely spread out -- the mark of a funder making many independent decisions rather than underwriting one institution.
- How much its list changes. 74% of one year's grantees are funded again the next, across 3 year-to-year transitions. That is well above the 57% median for grantmaking charities, and above the 67% private foundations manage. This list is close to settled, so a newcomer has to displace someone rather than fill a gap.
How big are its grants?
The median reported grant is $217,985. Half of what it reported fell between $15,500 and $423,645; the smallest was $5,489 and the largest $5,056,859. If you are asking for materially more than the top of that range, you are asking the wrong organization.
Every organization it funded
This is the complete list from its filings, largest first. Recipients are grouped by the EIN the filer reported, not by name, so an organization that was typed differently in two years appears once rather than twice.
| Organization | Location | Total received | Grants | Years funded | Last |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| City Year Inc | Boston, MA | $17.2M | 8 | 4 | 2023 |
| Jumpstart for Young Children Inc | Boston, MA | $6,104,966 | 4 | 4 | 2023 |
| Tenacity Inc | Allston, MA | $2,756,504 | 4 | 4 | 2023 |
| Trustees of Boston University | Boston, MA | $2,596,855 | 4 | 4 | 2023 |
| Student Conservation Association Inc | Arlington, VA | $2,390,178 | 7 | 4 | 2023 |
| South Coastal County Legal Services Inc | Fall River, MA | $2,262,653 | 4 | 4 | 2023 |
| Emerald Necklace Conservancy Inc | Jamaica Plain, MA | $2,209,535 | 4 | 4 | 2023 |
| Franklin County Dial Self Inc | Greenfield, MA | $2,061,673 | 4 | 4 | 2023 |
| Northeastern University | Boston, MA | $1,960,901 | 4 | 4 | 2023 |
| The Match Foundation Inc | Jamaica Plain, MA | $1,593,419 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Barnstable County | Barnstable, MA | $1,450,320 | 4 | 4 | 2023 |
| Social Capital Inc | Woburn, MA | $1,393,289 | 4 | 4 | 2023 |
| Springfield College | Springfield, MA | $1,298,231 | 4 | 4 | 2023 |
| Clark University | Worcester, MA | $1,184,571 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Mass Mentoring Partnership Inc | Boston, MA | $1,184,248 | 4 | 4 | 2023 |
| Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program Inc | Boston, MA | $1,177,745 | 4 | 4 | 2023 |
| United Way of Greater New Bedford Inc | New Bedford, MA | $1,127,943 | 4 | 4 | 2023 |
| Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition Inc | Boston, MA | $1,126,760 | 4 | 4 | 2023 |
| Playworks Education Energized | Oakland, CA | $1,068,767 | 4 | 4 | 2023 |
| 826 Boston Inc | Roxbury, MA | $1,019,090 | 4 | 4 | 2023 |
| Teach for America Inc | New York, NY | $698,197 | 4 | 4 | 2023 |
| Framingham State University | Framingham, MA | $667,670 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Epilepsy Foundation New England Inc | Lowell, MA | $522,286 | 3 | 3 | 2022 |
| United Way of Greater New Bedford | New Bedford, MA | $498,801 | 4 | 4 | 2023 |
| Habitat for Humanity International Inc | Pittsfield, MA | $484,611 | 4 | 4 | 2023 |
| Foodcorps Inc | Portland, OR | $448,818 | 2 | 2 | 2021 |
| City of Lawrence | Lawrence, MA | $306,530 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Walker Inc | Needham, MA | $261,340 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Citizen Schools Inc | Boston, MA | $191,466 | 2 | 2 | 2021 |
| Perkins School for the Blind | Watertown, MA | $165,747 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Old Sturbridge Inc | Sturbridge, MA | $158,028 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Teach Western Mass Inc | Holyoke, MA | $139,453 | 4 | 4 | 2023 |
| Points of Light Foundation | Atlanta, GA | $84,409 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Neighborhealth Corporation | Boston, MA | $83,351 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Kids in Tech | Lowell, MA | $54,573 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Boys and Girls Clubs of Metro South Inc | Taunton, MA | $48,412 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Health Resources in Action Inc | Boston, MA | $44,614 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Regional Environmental Council Inc | Worcester, MA | $40,000 | 4 | 4 | 2023 |
| United Way of Central Massachusetts Inc | Worcester, MA | $35,662 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| L U K Crisis Center Inc | Fitchburg, MA | $33,171 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Growing Places Garden Project Inc | Leominster, MA | $27,628 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Tech Goes Home Incorporated | Boston, MA | $24,168 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Junior Achievement of Western Massachusetts | Springfield, MA | $24,164 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Boston Project Ministries Inc | Dorchester, MA | $23,499 | 2 | 2 | 2021 |
| Jmg Generation New England | Augusta, ME | $23,286 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Groundwork Lawrence Inc | Lawrence, MA | $19,994 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Mass Metrowest Inc | Worcester, MA | $16,711 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Greenagers Inc | S Egremont, MA | $15,340 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Raw Art Works Inc | Lynn, MA | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Community Action Pioneer Valley Inc | Greenfield, MA | $14,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Jewish Big Brother-Sister Association of Boston | Waltham, MA | $13,897 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Mill City Grows Inc | Lowell, MA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Mount Wachusett Community College | Gardner, MA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Sponsor Inc | Framingham, MA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Wellspring House Inc | Gloucester, MA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Boys & Girls Club of Greater Lowell Inc | Lowell, MA | $9,989 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Massachusetts Science & Engineering Fair Inc | Cambridge, MA | $9,900 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Collaborative for Educational Services Inc | Northampton, MA | $9,817 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Family Services of the Merrimack Valley Inc | Lawrence, MA | $9,369 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Habitat for Humanity International Inc | W Springfield, MA | $9,337 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Maverick Landing Community Servicesinc | East Boston, MA | $8,780 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Boston Medical Center Corporation | Boston, MA | $8,560 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Jewish Family Service of Metrowest Inc | Framingham, MA | $8,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Western Massachusetts Training Consortium Inc | Holyoke, MA | $7,600 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Girls on the Run Rhode Island | Warwick, RI | $6,754 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| New Hope United Methodist Church | North Adams, MA | $6,268 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Fairview Hospital | Pittsfield, MA | $6,145 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| International Institute of New England Inc | Boston, MA | $6,138 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Partners for Youth With Disabilities | Boston, MA | $5,562 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Polus Center for Social and Economic Development | Athol, MA | $5,489 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
40 of 70 (57%) received money in more than one year over the 4 years we hold. Remember the $5,000 floor: an organization funded every year at $3,000 shows up here as never funded at all.
What the money was for
Taken verbatim from the purpose column of its filings, largest first. This is the closest thing to a statement of what it funds, in its own words.
- City Year Boston
SUB-GRANT OF CNCS FEDERAL FUNDING AWARD
What kind of organizations it funds
By each recipient's own IRS classification, for the 47 of 70 recipients we could match to a registered organization. These are assigned categories, not our guesses -- Schedule I reports the recipient's EIN, so this is a lookup rather than a name match.
Giving by year
| Tax year | Grants reported | Total | Median grant |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 41 | $13.7M | $210,158 |
| 2021 | 40 | $15.2M | $217,985 |
| 2022 | 41 | $14.1M | $240,070 |
| 2023 | 46 | $15.5M | $161,035 |
Tax years, not calendar years, and the most recent year is usually incomplete -- Form 990 arrives about a year after the year it covers, so a low final year means late paperwork rather than a grantmaker winding down.
Where its money goes
92% of its giving went to organizations in Massachusetts. Community foundations and federated funds are usually the most geographically bounded funders there are -- being outside the footprint is normally disqualifying in a way that a weak programme fit is not.
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Funders that support the same organizations
These grantmakers and private foundations gave to organizations this one also funded. Shared grantees are the strongest signal available 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 grantmaker
- Look for a published programme first. Unlike most private foundations, organizations of this kind often do run open, deadlined grant cycles with written guidelines. Its own website is the authority on that; this page is the authority on who it has actually paid.
- Check you are its size. The median reported grant is $217,985 -- and because grants under $5,000 need not be reported, it very likely writes smaller cheques than this page can see.
- Check you are in its geography. Its giving concentrates in Massachusetts.
- Read the recipient list for organizations like yours. If nothing on it resembles your work, that is a real answer and a cheap one to get.
Related guides
Where these numbers come from
Everything above is taken from Massachusetts Service Alliance Inc's own Form 990 Schedule I filings, which the IRS publishes in bulk. We used 4 returns (tax years 2020-2023). Nothing here is scraped, inferred or estimated.
On its most recent return it told the IRS it made grants to 48 section 501(c)(3) organizations and 0 other organizations. That is the filer's own count for one year; the totals above cover every year we hold.
Address of record on the latest return: 98 N Washington St 400, Boston, MA, 02114.
EIN 04-3088234 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this
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