Sterling Charitable Gift Fund
Herndon, VA · EIN 54-1978669. Reported 111 grants totalling $6,042,493 to 67 organizations across tax years 2021-2024, 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 Sterling Charitable Gift Fund, the IRS classifies it as a public foundation -- a grantmaker that raises its money from many sources rather than from one donor (NTEE T30).
- How spread out its giving is. 67 distinct organizations, with 14% 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. 41% of one year's grantees are funded again the next, across 3 year-to-year transitions. That is below the 57% median for grantmaking charities, and well below the 67% private foundations manage. A list that turns over this much is one a newcomer can realistically join.
How big are its grants?
The median reported grant is $16,162. Half of what it reported fell between $10,000 and $58,500; the smallest was $6,000 and the largest $845,240. If you are asking for materially more than the top of that range, you are asking the wrong organization.
1 of those grants was non-cash -- goods, property or services worth $845,240 in total. In-kind giving is real support but it is not a cheque.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Mirza Family Foundation | Herndon, VA | $845,240 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Center for Islam in the Contemporary World | Herndon, VA | $790,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Foundation for Appropriate and Immediate Temporary Help Faith | Herndon, VA | $763,412 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Shenandoah University | Winchester, VA | $582,900 | 5 | 3 | 2024 |
| Georgetown University | Washington, DC | $300,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Maqasid Institute | Nashville, TN | $212,500 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Mosul Recovery Foundation | Leesburg, VA | $200,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| North American Imam Federation | Dearborn, MI | $150,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| All Dulles Area Muslim Society | Sterling, VA | $148,750 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Unity Productions Foundation | Sn Jun Batsta, CA | $120,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| 25 Miscellanous Organixed Charities Less Then 2500 | Various, VA | $106,443 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| International Interfaith Peace Corps Inc | Herndon, VA | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Light House Group Inc | Cary, NC | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Multifaith Neighbors Network Inc | Keller, TX | $100,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Singh Family Charitable Fund | Los Gatos, CA | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Altalib Family Foundation Aff | Reston, VA | $97,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Cair Foundation Inc | Washington, DC | $93,500 | 3 | 2 | 2023 |
| Universal School | Bridgeview, IL | $87,500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Emgage Foundation Inc | Lakeland, FL | $75,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| George Mason University Foundation Inc | Fairfax, VA | $72,500 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Center for Islamophobia Studies | Berkeley, CA | $60,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Mas Chicago | Bridgeview, IL | $60,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Institute for Social Policy and Understanding | Dearborn, MI | $50,500 | 3 | 2 | 2023 |
| Sfusa | Willowbrook, IL | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Huron University College Foundation USA | Buffalo, NY | $49,700 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Muslim Education Resource Council | Reston, VA | $44,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| The Maqasid Institute | Nashville, TN | $42,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Muslim Aid America | Mclean, VA | $40,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| The Asu Foundation | Tempe, AZ | $35,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| National Religious Campaign Against Torture | Washington, DC | $31,300 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| The Compassionate Friends - Tcf | Los Gatos, CA | $30,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Muslim Life at Penn | Philadelphia, PA | $27,500 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Birmingham Islamic Society | Hoover, AL | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Muslim Educational Cultural Center of America | Willowbrook, IL | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| The Cleveland Clinic Foundation | Independence, OH | $20,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| The Human Development Foundation of North America | Oak Brook, IL | $20,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Women for Women International | Washington, DC | $20,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| B Desh Foundation Inc | Sterling, VA | $19,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Islamic Relief USA | Alexandria, VA | $19,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Adams Endowment Fund Inc | Sterling, VA | $17,500 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Mozaic | Sterling, VA | $17,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Al-Salaam Center | Ellicott City, MD | $16,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Al-Salaam Center | Ellicott City, MD | $16,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Equallyable Foundation | Chantilly, VA | $16,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Arizona State University Foundation for a New American University | Tempe, AZ | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| UCLA Foundation | Pasadena, CA | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| University of Karachi Alumni Assn of Balt Wa Metro Area Inc | Greenbelt, MD | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Unus Family Foundation | Herndon, VA | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| William & Mary Foundation | Williamsburg, VA | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| William and Mary - Global Research Institute Fund | Williamsburg, VA | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| W D Mohammed Islamic Center | Greensboro, NC | $12,500 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| American Islamic College | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Anniston Islamic Center | Anniston, AL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Foodbank of Monmouth and Ocean Counties Inc | Neptune, NJ | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Human Development Fund | Canton, MI | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Icna Relief USA Programs Inc | New Hyde Park, NY | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Islamic Academy of Alabama | Homewood, AL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Islamic Center of Owings Mills-Icom | Owings Mills, MD | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Islamic Leadership Institue of America | Clarksville, MD | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Islamic Society of Baltimore MD | Baltimore, MD | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Pearl Foundation | Sterling, VA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Sams Foundation | Washington, DC | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Tranquil Hearts Inc | Sterling, VA | $7,500 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Indian Muslim Relief and Charities | Mountain View, CA | $7,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Mosque Masjid Saffat Inc | Baltimore, MD | $7,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| The Islamic Seminary of America Inc | Richardson, TX | $6,748 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Imran Khan Cancer Appeal Inc | Farmington, CT | $6,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
30 of 67 (45%) 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.
- The Mirza Family Foundation
PROGRAM ASSISTANCE - COMMUNITY / SOCIAL SERVICES - Center of Islam in the Contemporary World - Cicw
PROGRAM ASSISTANCE - EDUCATIONAL SERVICES - Shenandoah University
PROGRAM ASSISTANCE - BARZINJI INSTITUTE OF INTERNATIONAL COLLABORATION - Faith
PROGRAM ASSISTANCE - SOCIAL SERVICES - Georgetown University
PROGRAM ASSISTANCE - BRIDGE INITIATIVE CURRENT USE FUND - Mosul Recovery Foundation
PROGRAM ASSISTANCE - ORPHAN SUPPORT IN MOSUL
What kind of organizations it funds
By each recipient's own IRS classification, for the 45 of 67 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 17 | $770,000 | $25,000 |
| 2022 | 35 | $2,652,894 | $17,500 |
| 2023 | 28 | $1,394,439 | $21,500 |
| 2024 | 31 | $1,225,160 | $15,000 |
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
65% of its giving went to organizations in Virginia. 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 $16,162 -- 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 Virginia.
- 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 Sterling Charitable Gift Fund's own Form 990 Schedule I filings, which the IRS publishes in bulk. We used 4 returns (tax years 2021-2024). Nothing here is scraped, inferred or estimated.
On its most recent return it told the IRS it made grants to 46 section 501(c)(3) organizations and 50 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: 459 Herndon Parkway 22, Herndon, VA, 20170.
EIN 54-1978669 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this
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