Gaston County Education Foundation Inc
To provide enrichment opportunities for students.
Gaston County Education Foundation Inc at a glance
In short: Gaston County Education Foundation Inc gave $241K across 2 grants in 2025 (avg $121K), mostly in North Carolina. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $241,091
- Grants made (2025)
- 2
- Average grant
- $120,546
- Median grant
- $120,546
- Total assets
- $1,271,846
- Primary geography
- North Carolina (100% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990, 2025 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990, 2025; updated September 2026.
Who Gaston County Education Foundation Inc funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top recipient in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Gaston County Schools ($175K).
Grant Size Distribution
6 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 4 grants of 6 (67%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 2 itemized grants.
States
Cities
How Gaston County Education Foundation Inc gives
- Giving grew 444% from 2022 to 2025. Method
From the foundation's IRS Form 990 filings. Methodology.
Giving History
Giving Over Time
Total grant dollars and number of grants per year
From 2019 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $32K (2023) to $241K (2025). In 2025 it made 2 grants totaling $241K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Gaston County Schools Gastonia, NC | CT3 Initiative | $175,000 |
| Various Schools in Gaston County Gastonia, NC | Underfunded Programs | $66,091 |
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Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
| Filing year | Total Assets | Revenue | Expenses | Grants paid | Grants | Net Investment Income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $1,271,846 | $296,928 | $287,228 | $241,091 | 2 | $1 |
| 2023 | $1,074,846 | $92,096 | $77,915 | $31,592 | 1 | $19,394 |
| 2022 | $973,569 | $120,864 | $78,661 | $44,312 | 1 | $20,209 |
| 2021 | $57,186 | $65,165 | $67,548 | $35,267 | 1 | $49 |
| 2020 | $73,191 | $118,459 | $64,754 | $37,512 | 1 | $1 |
| 2019 | $19,486 | $79,977 | $84,429 | $47,117 | 1 | $1 |
About Gaston County Education Foundation Inc
Based on IRS filings
Gaston County Education Foundation Inc is a public charity, based in Gastonia, NC. IRS filing data is available from 2019 through 2025. As of 2025, the organization holds $1.3M in total assets. In 2025, it awarded 2 grants totaling $241K. Net investment income was $1.
Leadership & Key People
Officers and directors from IRS filings
Gaston County Education Foundation Inc is led by Lewis Efird, President since 2025 (on filings since 2022); none of the 19 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Lewis Efird
President
Board Member → President, 2025
On filings since 2022
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Amy Spencer
Executive Di
On filings since 2019
20 hrs/week
$25K (2019) → $0 (2025)
Anissa Manni
Board Member
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Edie Hancock
Board Member
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Emily Leazer
Board Member
Treasurer → Board Member, 2025
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Jennifer Grant
Board Member
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Chris Ashley
Board Member
On filings since 2021
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Robin Anderson
Board Member
On filings since 2021
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Roxann Rankin
Secretary
Board Member → Secretary, 2025
On filings since 2022
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Will Jones
Board Member
On filings since 2022
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Audrey Devine
Board Member
On filings since 2023
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Brian Levy
Vice President & Treasurer
Board Member → Vice President & Treasurer, 2025
On filings since 2023
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Genevive Duffy
Board Member
On filings since 2023
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Austin Biles
Board Member
New on the 2025 filing
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Ernest Sumner
Board Member
New on the 2025 filing
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
John Lipsey
Board Member
New on the 2025 filing
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Morgan Houchard
Board Member
New on the 2025 filing
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Steven Long
Board Member
New on the 2025 filing
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Tonya Kales
Board Member
New on the 2025 filing
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Former officers (25)
- Former: Ann Davis (2019–2023) — Board Member
- Former: Cathy Young (2019–2023) — Board Member
- Former: Jeff Booker (2019–2023) — Secretary
- Former: Jennifer Adams (2019–2023) — Board Member
- Former: John Bowyer (2019–2023) — Chairman
- Former: Melissa Balknight (2019–2023) — Board Member
- Former: Cindy Powell (2020–2023) — Board Member
- Former: Pamela Gaff (2020–2023) — Board Member
- Former: Jason Ramey (2021–2023) — Board Member
- Former: Lisa Clement-Bryant (2023) — Board Member
- Former: Elisabeth Hardin (2021–2022) — Board Member
- Former: Matt McKenzei (2022) — Board Member
- Former: Neil Stover (2022) — Board of Director
- Former: Christy Gliddon (2019–2021) — Board Member
- Former: Matt McKenzie (2019–2021) — Board Member
- Former: Ron Ensley (2019–2021) — Board Member
- Former: Stuart Lafrancis (2019–2021) — Board Member
- Former: Connie Heath (2019–2020) — Board Member
- Former: Lacey Galloway (2019–2020) — Board Member
- Former: Libby McCraw (2019–2020) — Board Member
- Former: Natalie Tindol (2019–2020) — Board Member
- Former: Shuan Randall (2019–2020) — Board Member
- Former: Ann Hoscheit (2019) — Board Member
- Former: Anthony Ballard (2019) — Board Member
- Former: Wendy Robinson (2019) — Board Member
Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2019–2025. "On filings since" is the earliest filing we hold that lists the person; hours are average hours per week as reported.
Compensation Overview
From 2023 IRS filing
The highest reported compensation on the 2023 filing was $25K, to Amy Spencer (Executive Di).
Frequently asked questions about Gaston County Education Foundation Inc
How much does Gaston County Education Foundation Inc give each year?
Gaston County Education Foundation Inc gave $241K across 2 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990.
How large is Gaston County Education Foundation Inc?
Gaston County Education Foundation Inc reported $1.3M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990. Its revenue that year was $297K.
Where does Gaston County Education Foundation Inc operate?
Gaston County Education Foundation Inc has awarded grants in North Carolina.
What is Gaston County Education Foundation Inc's EIN?
Gaston County Education Foundation Inc's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 56-1764830. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2019–2025.
Data last updated September 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990 filings.
Data update history
(4)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Added Form 990 for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 7, 2026)
- Added Form 990 for fiscal year 2019 (received by the IRS August 25, 2020)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS August 5, 2021)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2023
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Browse active grant opportunities in Gaston County Education Foundation Inc's focus areas in our free grants database
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Gaston County Education Foundation Inc down — hundreds of funders to go?