Holly Peterson Foundation
The Holly Peterson Foundation is a private foundation based in New York, NY. Its 2025 grants supported arts and cultural organizations, a university scholarship, and other charitable activities.
Holly Peterson Foundation at a glance
In short: Holly Peterson Foundation gave $1.8M across 37 grants in 2025 (avg $48K), mostly in New York. 40% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $1,768,000
- +21.6% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 37
- +19.4% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $47,784
- +1.9% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $27,500
- Total assets
- $3,909,215
- -25.7% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 40% first-time grantees (10 of 25, 2025)
- Primary geography
- New York (77% 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 Holly Peterson 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: 399 Park Avenue 14Th Floor, New York, NY 10022
Phone: (212) 542-9243
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Holly Peterson Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was American Friends of Zeitz Mocaa ($295K across 2 grants). Together the top 10 received $1.5M.
Grant Size Distribution
169 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 117 grants of 169 (69%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
In 2025, the reported shares of grant dollars by recipient state were New York, 77%; Rhode Island, 11%; Maryland, 11%; Connecticut, 1%; and Florida, 0%.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 37 itemized grants.
States
Cities
Is Holly Peterson Foundation open to new grantees?
40%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 10 of 25 grantees (40%) were first-time recipients. First grants averaged $67K; repeat grants $74K. How we count
Medians: $10K first-time, $50K repeat.
- 48% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving grew 22% from 2022 to 2025. Method
- In 2025 it paid out 616% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Method
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990-PF filings (2020–2025). 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 2020 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $575K (2020) to $1.8M (2025). In 2025 it made 37 grants totaling $1.8M.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| American Friends of Zeitz Mocaa New York, NY | To Support the Portia Zvavahera Acquisition. | $280,000 |
| National Gallery of Art Hyattsville, MD | To Support the Charity's Core Activities. | $200,000 |
| Brown University Providence, RI | To Support the Charity's Endowed Scholarship. | $175,000 |
| The Studio Museum in Harlem New York, NY | To Support the Charity's Core Activities. | $150,000 |
| Metropolitan Museum of Art New York, NY | To Support the Lorna Simpson Acquisition. | $100,000 |
| Friends of the High Line New York, NY | To Support the High Line Art/Plinth Committee. | $50,000 |
| Gordon Parks Foundation Pleasantville, NY | To Support the Awards Dinner and Auction. | $50,000 |
| Metropolitan Museum of Art New York, NY | To Support the Arts & Artists Gala. | $50,000 |
| Museum of Modern Art New York, NY | To Support the Mayhew Acquisition. | $50,000 |
| The Brooklyn Museum Brooklyn, NY | To Support the Brooklyn Artists Ball. | $50,000 |
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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 | $3,909,215 | $424,141 | $1,776,371 | $1,768,000 | 37 | $1,776,371 | $424,114 | $288,530 |
| 2024 | $5,261,445 | $217,339 | $1,477,605 | $1,454,309 | 31 | $1,461,605 | $217,339 | $351,582 |
| 2023 | $6,521,711 | $844,314 | $1,135,054 | $1,098,500 | 44 | $1,113,728 | $833,988 | $341,726 |
| 2022 | $6,812,451 | $518,913 | $1,465,609 | $1,449,000 | 32 | $1,449,585 | $502,898 | $408,541 |
| 2021 | $7,759,147 | $249,872 | $658,306 | $624,300 | 25 | — | $231,808 | $477,433 |
| 2020 | $8,167,581 | $270,631 | $601,196 | $574,500 | 20 | — | $255,639 | $430,401 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Holly Peterson Foundation reported a distributable amount of $289K for 2025 — the minimum it must pay out in qualifying distributions.
Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated September 2026.
Mission & Focus Areas
The foundation’s own mission is not stated in the available information. Its 2025 grants show support for museums and other arts organizations, including acquisitions, core activities, events, and an endowed scholarship.
Among its grantees, American Friends of Zeitz MOCAA describes its mission as promoting art and cultural education relating to contemporary African art and the African diaspora. The Studio Museum in Harlem describes its work as focusing on artists of African descent and art influenced by African culture, through exhibitions, artist-in-residence programs, education, public programming, collections, and research. The Metropolitan Museum of Art says it collects, studies, conserves, and presents significant works of art across times and cultures. These are grantee descriptions, not stated missions of the foundation.
Grantmaking
In 2025, the foundation awarded 37 grants totaling $1,768,000. Grants ranged from $500 to $280,000, with a median of $27,500.
Among its largest 2025 grants were $280,000 to American Friends of Zeitz MOCAA for the Portia Zvavahera acquisition; $200,000 to the National Gallery of Art for core activities; $175,000 to Brown University for an endowed scholarship; and $150,000 to the Studio Museum in Harlem for core activities. Other grants included $100,000 to the Metropolitan Museum of Art for the Lorna Simpson acquisition, and $50,000 each to Friends of the High Line, the Gordon Parks Foundation, the Museum of Modern Art, the Brooklyn Museum, the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, and the Whitney Museum of American Art for purposes including art programs, events, and fundraising.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Holly Peterson as director, chairwoman, and president; Michael A. Peterson as director and secretary; and Michael Shankman as treasurer.
Holly Peterson Foundation is led by Holly Peterson, Director, Chairwoman & President on every filing since 2020; none of the 3 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Holly Peterson
Director, Chairwoman & President
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Michael A. Peterson
Director & Secretary
On filings since 2020
0.1 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Michael Shankman
Treasurer
On filings since 2020
2 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 Holly Peterson Foundation
How much does Holly Peterson Foundation give each year?
Holly Peterson Foundation gave $1.8M across 37 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $1.5M across 31 grants.
What is Holly Peterson Foundation's typical grant size?
Holly Peterson Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $27,500, and its average grant was $47,784, across 37 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from Holly Peterson Foundation that year got $67K on average.
Where does Holly Peterson Foundation give grants?
Holly Peterson Foundation gives mostly in New York: 77% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The next largest states were Rhode Island (11%) and Maryland (11%). The most frequent recipient cities were New York, NY (25 grants), Brooklyn, NY (4 grants) and Providence, RI (2 grants).
Does Holly Peterson Foundation give general operating support?
Occasionally: 3% of Holly Peterson Foundation's 2025 grants with a stated purpose (1 of 37) were for general or operating support, per its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Recurring purposes include "To Support the Charity's Core Activities." (14 grants).
Who are Holly Peterson Foundation's largest grantees?
Holly Peterson Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include American Friends of Zeitz Mocaa ($295,000 across 2 grants), Brown University ($200,000 across 2 grants) and National Gallery of Art ($200,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 39% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is Holly Peterson Foundation?
Holly Peterson Foundation reported $3.9M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $1.8M in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $289K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does Holly Peterson Foundation fund?
The foundation’s own mission is not stated in the available information. Its 2025 grants show support for museums and other arts organizations, including acquisitions, core activities, events, and an endowed scholarship. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Holly Peterson 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 Holly Peterson Foundation's EIN?
Holly Peterson Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 26-1607014. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2025.
Does Holly Peterson 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 September 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 August 5, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024
Explore Open Grants
Browse active grant opportunities in Holly Peterson Foundation's focus areas in our free grants database
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). Holly Peterson Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 14, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/holly-peterson-foundation-morg_fd9b20fc4f0f4277bb17f1b275e81c1d
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_261607014_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Holly Peterson Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/holly-peterson-foundation-morg_fd9b20fc4f0f4277bb17f1b275e81c1d},
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 Holly Peterson 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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