Donald a Strauss Scholarship Foundation
The Donald A Strauss Scholarship Foundation is a private foundation based in Irvine, California. It supports California college sophomores and juniors through annual $15,000 awards that combine educational support with funding for student-led public service projects.
Donald a Strauss Scholarship Foundation at a glance
In short: Donald a Strauss Scholarship Foundation gave $168K across 21 grants in 2025 (avg $8K), mostly in Washington. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $168,010
- -7.6% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 21
- +31.3% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $8,000
- -29.6% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $2,500
- Total assets
- $3,703,621
- +1.7% vs 2024
- Primary geography
- Washington (62% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990-PF, 2025 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2025; updated October 2026.
How to apply to Donald a Strauss Scholarship Foundation
- How to Apply
-
The website directs applicants to submit the six application documents as separate PDFs through its submission portal, and requires letter writers to submit recommendation and support letters directly. The filing lists a resume, autobiographical material, proposal, and three recommendation letters among application materials.
- Review Cycle
- The website listed February 9, 2026, as the application due date. This deadline is past.
- Deadline
- The website listed February 9, 2026, as the application due date.
- Contact
Application contact: Venita De Souza
Mailing address: 8 Zola Court, Irvine, CA 92617
Phone: (949) 955-1930
Email: admin@straussfoundation.org
Website: HTTPS://WWW.STRAUSSFOUNDATION.ORG/
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Donald a Strauss Scholarship Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top recipient in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Omprakash ($105K).
Organizations only. It also paid 20 grants to individuals ($63,310), which are not listed by name.
Grant Size Distribution
112 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 110 grants of 112 (98%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
The student award is for California college sophomores and juniors, and the website lists participating California schools. In filing year 2025, 35% of grant dollars went to recipients in California. The largest share, 62%, went to Washington recipients; Texas accounted for 2% and Indiana 1%.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 21 itemized grants.
Cities
How Donald a Strauss Scholarship Foundation gives
- Giving held roughly steady from 2022 to 2025 (−5%). Method
- In 2025 it paid out 158% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Method
From the foundation's IRS Form 990-PF filings. Methodology.
Giving History
Giving Over Time
Total grant dollars and number of grants per year
From 2020 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $144K (2023) to $196K (2021). In 2025 it made 21 grants totaling $168K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Omprakash Seattle, WA | Educational Grant | $104,700 |
| 20 grants to individuals Recipients not named | — | $63,310 |
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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 | $3,703,621 | $226,168 | $290,032 | $168,010 | 21 | $279,792 | $222,673 | $177,320 |
| 2024 | $3,641,957 | $354,962 | $272,218 | $181,890 | 16 | $268,231 | $353,205 | $176,302 |
| 2023 | $3,653,255 | $230,341 | $230,592 | $144,000 | 22 | $227,103 | $230,071 | $170,374 |
| 2022 | $3,545,257 | $195,372 | $302,521 | $176,750 | 26 | $298,970 | $191,541 | $165,261 |
| 2021 | $4,358,531 | $301,801 | $284,348 | $196,369 | 27 | $281,463 | $301,398 | $192,387 |
| 2020 | $4,398,298 | $278,771 | $263,072 | $177,631 | 26 | — | $278,353 | $182,559 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Donald a Strauss Scholarship Foundation reported a distributable amount of $177K 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
The foundation says it promotes public service in the education and preparation of future leaders by financing innovative student-generated projects. It looks for projects focused on social change, public service, or social entrepreneurship; innovation; collaboration; a personal connection to the applicant; and sustainability over the school year. Proposals should include a budget, timeline, impact measures, and implementation plans.
The foundation’s website describes awards as $8,000 for project expenses and up to $7,000 for educational costs. Students may shift some scholarship funds to the project grant. The website also says $2,000 is withheld until the scholar’s presentation the following April.
Grantmaking
In filing year 2025, the foundation reported 21 grants totaling $168,010. Grant amounts ranged from $1,000 to $104,700, with a median of $2,500. The largest grant was $104,700 to OMPRAKASH INC in Seattle, Washington, for an educational grant. The next-largest listed awards were to individual recipients: two grants of $7,000 and three of $5,000. Other listed grants included $4,510, $3,500, $3,000, $2,800, $2,500, and $2,000, all for educational grants to individual recipients.
The foundation’s website describes an application for its student scholarship and service-project award. Applicants submit an application summary, one-page resume, one-page personal essay, project proposal of no more than four pages including budget and timeline, transcripts, signed acceptance agreement, two recommendation letters, and an endorsement letter. A letter of support is requested when a project involves a partner organization. The website says applicants must be sophomores or juniors at participating schools; it also encourages fourth-year juniors with one undergraduate year remaining to apply. It permits shared projects for up to two students, with each responsible for a distinct project aspect. The filing lists no restrictions on awards.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Ankur Luthra as board chair; Aram Nadjarian as secretary; Gordon Strauss as treasurer; and Sally Reeder, Duncan Strauss, Matt Strauss, Nancy Strauss Tietge, G. Jennifer Wilson, and Sonia Lewis as trustees. Venita De Souza is listed as administrative director.
Donald a Strauss Scholarship Foundation is led by Ankur Luthra, Board Chair since 2023 (on filings since 2020); 8 of 10 officers listed in 2025 are compensated.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Ankur Luthra
Board Chair
Trustee → Board Chair, 2023
On filings since 2020
2 hrs/week
$500 (2020) → $500 (2025)
Duncan Strauss
Trustee
On filings since 2020
2 hrs/week
$500 (2020) → $500 (2025)
Matt Strauss
Trustee
On filings since 2020
2 hrs/week
$500 (2020) → $1K (2025)
Nancy Strauss Tietge
Trustee
On filings since 2020
2 hrs/week
$500 (2020) → $500 (2025)
Sally Reeder
Trustee
Board Chair → Trustee, 2023
On filings since 2020
2 hrs/week
$500 (2020) → $500 (2025)
Venita De Souza
Adminstrative Director
Executive Director → Adminstrative Director, 2024
On filings since 2023
15 hrs/week
$12K (2023) → $40K (2025)
Sonia Lewis
Trustee
On filings since 2024
2 hrs/week
$500 (2025)
G. Jennifer Wilson
Trustee
On filings since 2020
2 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Aram Nadjarian
Secretary
Trustee → Secretary, 2023
On filings since 2020
2 hrs/week
$500 (2020) → $500 (2025)
Gordon Strauss
Treasurer
Trustee → Treasurer, 2023
On filings since 2020
2 hrs/week
$500 (2020) → $0 (2025)
Former officers (6)
- Former: Jonathan Graham (2021–2023) — Trustee
- Former: Josue Franco (2022–2023) — Trustee
- Former: Kathleen Harris (2023) — Former Excutive Director
- Former: Tracy Tietge Schreiner (2020–2022) — Trustee
- Former: David Fanning (2020–2021) — Trustee
- Former: Tess Bridgeman (2020–2021) — Trustee
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.
Compensation Overview
From 2025 IRS filing
The highest reported compensation on the 2025 filing was $40K, to Venita De Souza (Adminstrative Director). 8 officers or directors reported compensation on that filing.
Frequently asked questions about Donald a Strauss Scholarship Foundation
How much does Donald a Strauss Scholarship Foundation give each year?
Donald a Strauss Scholarship Foundation gave $168K across 21 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $182K across 16 grants.
What is Donald a Strauss Scholarship Foundation's typical grant size?
Donald a Strauss Scholarship Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $2,500, and its average grant was $8,000, across 21 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Where does Donald a Strauss Scholarship Foundation give grants?
Donald a Strauss Scholarship Foundation gives mostly in Washington: 62% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The next largest state was California (35%).
Does Donald a Strauss Scholarship Foundation give general operating support?
Not in 2025: none of the 21 grants with a stated purpose on Donald a Strauss Scholarship Foundation's 2025 IRS Form 990-PF were described as general or operating support. Recurring purposes include "Educational Grant" (21 grants).
How large is Donald a Strauss Scholarship Foundation?
Donald a Strauss Scholarship Foundation reported $3.7M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $280K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $177K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does Donald a Strauss Scholarship Foundation fund?
The foundation says it promotes public service in the education and preparation of future leaders by financing innovative student-generated projects. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Donald a Strauss Scholarship Foundation?
The website directs applicants to submit the six application documents as separate PDFs through its submission portal, and requires letter writers to submit recommendation and support letters directly. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑
What is Donald a Strauss Scholarship Foundation's EIN?
Donald a Strauss Scholarship Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 33-0734363. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2025.
Data last updated October 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990-PF filings. Research dossier generated October 2026.
Data update history
(2)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 14, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024
Live grants for the work Donald a Strauss Scholarship Foundation funds
Education Open opportunities, soonest deadline first.
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Browse active grant opportunities in Donald a Strauss Scholarship Foundation's focus areas in our free grants database
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). Donald a Strauss Scholarship Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 18, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/donald-a-strauss-scholarship-foundation-morg_492edd5499fe40788f5dec566cf73988
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_330734363_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Donald a Strauss Scholarship Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/donald-a-strauss-scholarship-foundation-morg_492edd5499fe40788f5dec566cf73988},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-18. 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 Donald a Strauss Scholarship 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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