Daniel Cowles Charitable Foundation
The Daniel Cowles Charitable Foundation is a private foundation based in New York, NY. Its 2025 filing reports grants to charitable organizations including groups working in disability services, religious and community service, international relief, and criminal justice.
Daniel Cowles Charitable Foundation at a glance
In short: Daniel Cowles Charitable Foundation gave $1.6M across 15 grants in 2025 (avg $109K), top state Colorado. 40% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $1,629,000
- -25.6% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 15
- -65.1% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $108,600
- +113.2% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $56,000
- Total assets
- $2,188,867
- -15.7% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 40% first-time grantees (6 of 15, 2025; small sample)
- Primary geography
- Colorado (46% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990-PF, 2025 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2025; updated October 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology).
How to apply to Daniel Cowles Charitable Foundation
- Accepts unsolicited proposals
- No
- How to Apply
-
The foundation does not accept unsolicited requests for funds and makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations.
- Contact
Mailing address: 23 East 10Th Street 903, New York, NY 10003
Phone: (212) 995-2704
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Daniel Cowles Charitable Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Alliance ($744K). Together the top 10 received $1.6M.
Grant Size Distribution
156 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 114 grants of 156 (73%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
The 2025 grants went to recipients in multiple states. By share of grant dollars, Colorado accounted for 46%, Maryland 12%, Wisconsin 10%, Virginia 6%, and South Dakota 6%. These figures describe recipient locations, not necessarily the foundation’s geographic priorities.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 15 itemized grants.
States
Cities
Is Daniel Cowles Charitable Foundation open to new grantees?
40%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 6 of 15 grantees (40%) were first-time recipients. With only 15 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 7 points. First grants averaged $90K; repeat grants $121K. How we count
Medians: $78K first-time, $54K repeat.
- 53% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving fell 25% from 2022 to 2025. Method
- In 2025 it paid out well above its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Method
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990-PF filings (2021–2025). Recipient names are matched across years, so a renamed or misspelled grantee can look new; grants to individuals are left out. Methodology.
Giving History
Giving Over Time
Total grant dollars and number of grants per year
From 2021 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $824K (2021) to $2.2M (2024). In 2025 it made 15 grants totaling $1.6M.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Alliance Denver, CO | In Support of Organization's Mission | $744,000 |
| World Relief Corp of National Association of Evangelicals Towson, MD | In Support of Organization's Mission | $200,000 |
| Intervarsity Christian Fellowship USA Madison, WI | In Support of Organization's Mission | $156,000 |
| Prison Fellowship Ministries Merrifield, VA | In Support of Organization's Mission | $100,000 |
| Neighborhood Church Watertown, SD | In Support of Organization's Mission | $96,000 |
| Wycliffe Bible Translators Orlando, FL | In Support of Organization's Mission | $96,000 |
| Bowery Mission New York, NY | In Support of Organization's Mission | $75,000 |
| Samaritan's Purse Boone, NC | In Support of Organization's Mission | $56,000 |
| Mission to the World Lawrenceville, GA | In Support of Organization's Mission | $54,000 |
| Frontiers USA Phoenix, AZ | In Support of Organization's Mission | $24,000 |
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Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
| Filing year | Total Assets | Revenue | Expenses | Grants paid | Grants | Qualifying Distributions | Net Investment Income | Distributable Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $2,188,867 | $1,244,765 | $1,651,188 | $1,629,000 | 15 | $1,632,152 | $230,259 | $147,645 |
| 2024 | $2,595,290 | $1,729,810 | $2,210,546 | $2,190,000 | 43 | $2,192,224 | $213,645 | $179,048 |
| 2023 | $3,076,026 | $-26,313 | $2,016,637 | $1,993,000 | 36 | $1,995,407 | $102,257 | $201,314 |
| 2022 | $5,116,476 | $27,173 | $2,231,675 | $2,181,500 | 47 | $2,183,610 | $91,595 | $293,509 |
| 2021 | $7,322,672 | $164,427 | $877,153 | $824,000 | 15 | $833,485 | $142,717 | $384,931 |
| 2020 | $8,036,076 | $8,037,348 | $1,272 | — | — | — | $36,076 | $24,486 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Daniel Cowles Charitable Foundation reported a distributable amount of $148K for 2025 — the minimum it must pay out in qualifying distributions.
Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated October 2026.
Mission & Focus Areas
No foundation mission statement is provided. Its 2025 grants show support for organizations with varied missions. For example, Alliance describes itself as an association dedicated to strengthening community services and supports for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. World Relief says it engages with global crises in partnership with the church, while InterVarsity Christian Fellowship USA describes its mission as establishing and advancing Christian communities at colleges and universities. Prison Fellowship Ministries says it works to restore the criminal justice system and support people affected by it. These are the grantees’ descriptions of their own missions.
Grantmaking
In 2025, the foundation made 15 grants totaling $1,629,000. Grant amounts ranged from $3,000 to $744,000, with a median of $56,000. The largest grants included $744,000 to Alliance, $200,000 to World Relief Corp of National Association of Evangelicals, $156,000 to InterVarsity Christian Fellowship USA, $100,000 to Prison Fellowship Ministries, and $96,000 to Neighborhood Church.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Daniel Cowles as president and Robert Paul Schaeffer as treasurer.
Daniel Cowles Charitable Foundation is led by Daniel Cowles, President on every filing since 2020; none of the 2 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Daniel Cowles
President
On filings since 2020
4 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Robert Paul Schaeffer
Treasurer
On filings since 2021
0.1 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2020–2025. "On filings since" is the earliest filing we hold that lists the person; hours are average hours per week as reported.
Frequently asked questions about Daniel Cowles Charitable Foundation
How much does Daniel Cowles Charitable Foundation give each year?
Daniel Cowles Charitable Foundation gave $1.6M across 15 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $2.2M across 43 grants.
What is Daniel Cowles Charitable Foundation's typical grant size?
Daniel Cowles Charitable Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $56,000, and its average grant was $108,600, across 15 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from Daniel Cowles Charitable Foundation that year got $90K on average.
Where does Daniel Cowles Charitable Foundation give grants?
Daniel Cowles Charitable Foundation's top state is Colorado, with 46% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. The next largest states were Maryland (12%) and Wisconsin (10%).
Does Daniel Cowles Charitable Foundation give general operating support?
Not in 2025: none of the 15 grants with a stated purpose on Daniel Cowles Charitable Foundation's 2025 IRS Form 990-PF were described as general or operating support. Recurring purposes include "In Support of Organization's Mission" (15 grants).
Who are Daniel Cowles Charitable Foundation's largest grantees?
Daniel Cowles Charitable Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include Alliance ($744,000), World Relief Corp of National Association of Evangelicals ($200,000) and Intervarsity Christian Fellowship USA ($156,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 68% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is Daniel Cowles Charitable Foundation?
Daniel Cowles Charitable Foundation reported $2.2M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $1.6M in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $148K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does Daniel Cowles Charitable Foundation fund?
No foundation mission statement is provided. Its 2025 grants show support for organizations with varied missions. For example, Alliance describes itself as an association dedicated to strengthening community services and supports for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Daniel Cowles Charitable Foundation?
The foundation does not accept unsolicited requests for funds and makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑
What is Daniel Cowles Charitable Foundation's EIN?
Daniel Cowles Charitable Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 85-1598884. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2025.
Does Daniel Cowles Charitable Foundation accept unsolicited proposals?
No, according to Grantable's research on the foundation's published guidelines. See how to apply ↑
Data last updated October 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990-PF filings. Research dossier generated October 2026.
Data update history
(7)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS November 3, 2021)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS April 1, 2022)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS March 11, 2023)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS March 22, 2024)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS March 27, 2025)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS March 2, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2025
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). Daniel Cowles Charitable Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 14, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/daniel-cowles-charitable-foundation-morg_ac3beb867c784388a06a1b6e7fa0f900
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_851598884_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Daniel Cowles Charitable Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/daniel-cowles-charitable-foundation-morg_ac3beb867c784388a06a1b6e7fa0f900},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-14. Data licensed CC BY 4.0}
}The figures on this page are open data under CC BY 4.0: reuse them with credit to Grantable and a link. Download the data.
Figures come from Daniel Cowles Charitable Foundation's IRS filings (methodology). AI-written summaries, news items and logos are not covered by the open licence. Spot an error? Email hello@grantable.co.
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