Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation
Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation is a private family foundation based in San Francisco, California. Founded in 2008, it supports education, with a stated emphasis on investing in teachers and strengthening teaching and learning opportunities in California and beyond.
Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation at a glance
In short: Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation gave $620K across 48 grants in 2025 (avg $13K), mostly in California. 60% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $620,000
- +16.3% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 48
- +2.1% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $12,917
- +13.8% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $10,000
- Total assets
- $714,265
- -46.2% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 60% first-time grantees (27 of 45, 2025)
- Primary geography
- California (93% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990-PF, 2025 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2025; updated September 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology).
How to apply to Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation
- Invitation Only
-
The foundation’s general grant applications are by invitation only. Teachers may apply through the LIGHT Awards program. For application materials, the foundation specifies information submitted by email covering organizational priorities, project scope if applicable, budget, and organizational financials and tax-exempt documentation. Grants may not be used for lobbying.
- Review Cycle
- General requests are considered case by case; no fixed deadline is listed. For the LIGHT Awards, the deadline applies to the Letter of Inquiry, and the program offers updates about application openings and approaching deadlines.
- Deadline
- General requests are considered case by case; no fixed deadline is listed.
- Contact
Application contact: Sahar Momand Wendy Yu Einhorn
Mailing address: 1660 Bush Street, San Francisco, CA 94109
Phone: (415) 561-6540
Website: https://intrepid-philanthropy.org
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Open Grants
1 open opportunity from Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation
Who Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Philanthropic Ventures Foundation ($125K). Together the top 10 received $360K.
Organizations only. It also paid 2 grants to individuals ($20,000), which are not listed by name.
Grant Size Distribution
259 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 253 grants of 259 (98%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
The foundation says its geographic focus is mainly, but not exclusively, California. In 2025, 93% of grant dollars went to recipients in California, 6% to New York, 1% to Pennsylvania, and less than 1% to Louisiana.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 48 itemized grants.
States
Cities
Is Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation open to new grantees?
60%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 27 of 45 grantees (60%) were first-time recipients. First grants averaged $13K; repeat grants $15K. How we count
Medians: $10K first-time, $10K repeat.
- 38% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving grew 23% from 2022 to 2025. Method
- In 2025 it paid out 647% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Method
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990-PF filings (2019–2025). 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 2019 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $482K (2023) to $908K (2019). In 2025 it made 48 grants totaling $620K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Philanthropic Ventures Foundation Oakland, CA | For Agency by Design - Oakland | $125,000 |
| Uc Berkeley Foundation Berkeley, CA | For Center for Research on Expanding Educational Opportunity | $50,000 |
| Breakthrough Silicon Valley San Jose, CA | General Operating Support | $25,000 |
| Albany Unified School District Albany, CA | Glad Training for Eld Teachers | $20,000 |
| Castro Valley High School Castro Valley, CA | Creating Culture Through Collaboration | $20,000 |
| Central Park Elementary Parent Teacher Association (PTA) Santa Clara, CA | Collaborative problem solving: help ignite a future of hope | $20,000 |
| College Park Elementary School San Mateo, CA | PLC Global Ambassadors - College Park Elementary | $20,000 |
| Education Foundation of Cotati-Rohnert Park Rohnert Park, CA | Engaging Minds: Multisensory Learning Interventions for Elementary Classrooms | $20,000 |
| Franklin-McKinley School District San Jose, CA | Developing Strong Mathematical Thinking in the Classroom | $20,000 |
| Gateway Public Schools San Francisco, CA | Building equitable access to learning for multilingual learners in the secondary classroom | $20,000 |
Ready to take the next step with Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation?
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 | $714,265 | $456,895 | $1,384,340 | $620,000 | 48 | $920,295 | $116,579 | $142,213 |
| 2024 | $1,328,608 | $261,707 | $784,234 | $533,332 | 47 | $899,090 | $237,242 | $160,104 |
| 2023 | $1,967,480 | $909,569 | $683,878 | $482,000 | 48 | $894,754 | $166,702 | $221,963 |
| 2022 | $1,882,007 | $416,843 | $1,007,308 | $505,000 | 50 | $821,915 | $40,376 | $197,510 |
| 2021 | $2,254,699 | $-3,943 | $681,124 | $699,500 | 66 | $916,242 | $154,357 | $207,677 |
| 2020 | $3,183,422 | $792,121 | $1,006,187 | $819,873 | 82 | — | $127,476 | $220,601 |
| 2019 | $3,448,886 | $806,430 | $1,007,283 | $907,864 | 50 | — | $96,805 | $229,473 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation reported a distributable amount of $142K 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 grantmaking vision is to support a thriving, effective, equitable, and respected education system in California and beyond, where all students have the opportunity to learn and succeed. It highlights respect for educators, collaboration, continuous learning, best practice, leverage, and innovation among its values.
Its 2025 grants included support for teacher training, educator collaboration, multilingual-learner instruction, literacy, and mathematical thinking. The grantees’ own descriptions illustrate the range of organizations supported: Breakthrough Silicon Valley says it prepares highly motivated students to become first-generation college graduates and inspires emerging leaders to become educators and equity advocates. Gateway Public Schools describes its mission as preparing a broad range of learners for success in college and beyond. The Oakland Literacy Coalition says it works to ensure every Oakland child learns and loves to read.
Grantmaking
In 2025, the foundation awarded 48 grants totaling $620,000. Grant amounts ranged from $1,000 to $125,000, with a median of $10,000. The largest award was $125,000 to Philanthropic Ventures Foundation for Agency by Design–Oakland. Other notable awards included $50,000 to UC Berkeley Foundation for the Center for Research on Expanding Educational Opportunity; $25,000 to Breakthrough Silicon Valley for general operating support; and $20,000 each to Albany Unified School District, Castro Valley High School, Central Park Elementary Parent Teacher Association, College Park Elementary School, Education Foundation of Cotati-Rohnert Park, Franklin-McKinley School District, Gateway Public Schools (for two projects), and Oakland Unified School District.
The LIGHT Awards provide up to $30,000 over two years for teacher-designed professional learning projects. The program targets teams of full-time California teachers and supports projects intended to strengthen teaching effectiveness and inspire students.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Karen Leshner as founder and president, David Wagonfeld as treasurer, and Joanne Schneider as secretary. Leshner founded the foundation in 2008 and has been involved in philanthropy since 1997 through a predecessor organization. Wagonfeld joined the foundation in 2013.
Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation is led by Karen Leshner, Founder & President on every filing since 2019; none of the 3 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Karen Leshner
Founder & President
On filings since 2019
8 hrs/week
No compensation reported
David Wagonfeld
Treasurer
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Joanne Schneider
Secretary
On filings since 2019
1.3 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Former officers (1)
- Former: Rebecca K. Payne (2019–2021) — Director
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.
Frequently asked questions about Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation
How much does Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation give each year?
Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation gave $620K across 48 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $533K across 47 grants.
What is Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation's typical grant size?
Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $10,000, and its average grant was $12,917, across 48 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation that year got $13K on average.
Where does Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation give grants?
Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation gives mostly in California: 93% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The next largest state was New York (6%). The most frequent recipient cities were Oakland, CA (9 grants), New York, NY (7 grants), San Jose, CA (4 grants) and San Francisco, CA (4 grants).
Does Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation give general operating support?
Yes: 38% of Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation's 2025 grants with a stated purpose (18 of 48) were for general or operating support, per its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Who are Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation's largest grantees?
Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include Philanthropic Ventures Foundation ($125,000), Uc Berkeley Foundation ($50,000) and Gateway Public Schools ($40,000 across 2 grants), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It also paid 2 grants to individuals ($20,000), which are not listed by name. Together they received 35% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation?
Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation reported $714K in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $920K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $142K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation fund?
The foundation’s grantmaking vision is to support a thriving, effective, equitable, and respected education system in California and beyond, where all students have the opportunity to learn and succeed. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation?
The foundation’s general grant applications are by invitation only. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑
What is Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation's EIN?
Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 30-0527867. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2019–2025.
Data last updated September 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990-PF filings. Research dossier generated September 2026.
Data update history
(7)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2019 (received by the IRS May 29, 2020)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 11, 2026)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS May 13, 2021)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS May 14, 2022)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS May 9, 2023)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS July 2, 2024)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS May 12, 2025)
Live grants for the work Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation funds
Philanthropy, Voluntarism & Grantmaking Open opportunities, soonest deadline first.
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Browse active grant opportunities in Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation's focus areas in our free grants database
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 17, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/intrepid-philanthropy-foundation-morg_a26d40a99991482da6a47945f2f0ccba
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_300527867_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Intrepid Philanthropy Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/intrepid-philanthropy-foundation-morg_a26d40a99991482da6a47945f2f0ccba},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-17. 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 Intrepid Philanthropy 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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