Jefferson County Public Education Foundation Inc

Public charity · Grantmaker Louisville, KY EIN: 61-1021128

Support of Jefferson county, Kentucky public schools

Jefferson County Public Education Foundation Inc at a glance

In short: Jefferson County Public Education Foundation Inc gave $3.1M across 4 grants in 2025 (avg $767K), mostly in Kentucky. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990.

Annual giving (2025)
$3,066,907
+51.0% vs 2024
Grants made (2025)
4
+33.3% vs 2024
Average grant
$766,727
+13.3% vs 2024
Median grant
$229,676
Total assets
$22,207,932
+0.2% vs 2024
Primary geography
Kentucky (100% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
Latest 990 filing
Form 990, 2025 View filing

Data from IRS Form 990, 2025; updated September 2026.

Who Jefferson County Public Education Foundation Inc funds

How this funder distributes its grants

Top Recipients

Top 4 recipients in 2025

Jefferson County Public Schools: $2.6MJefferson County PublicSchools$2.6MEVOLVE502 Inc: $400KEVOLVE502 Inc$400KCommunity Foundation of Louisville: $59KCommunity Foundation ofLouisville$59KRita June Foundation Inc: $18KRita June Foundation Inc$18K

The largest 2025 recipient was Jefferson County Public Schools ($2.6M). Together the top 4 received $3.1M.

Grant Size Distribution

12 grants across all recorded years

5<$50K1$50–100K2$100–250K1$250–500K$500K–1M3$1–5M$5M+

The most common grant size was under $50K: 5 grants of 12 (42%).

Geographic Focus

Where this funder awards grants

Grant Distribution by State

1state

Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 4 itemized grants.

States

Cities

Louisville

How Jefferson County Public Education Foundation Inc gives

  • Giving grew 1988% 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

$0$1M$2M$3M$4M2 grants2021 1 grant2022 2 grants2023 3 grants2024 4 grants2025

From 2021 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $63K (2021) to $3.1M (2025). In 2025 it made 4 grants totaling $3.1M.

Grants by year

Grant recipients and amounts by year

RecipientPurposeAmount
Jefferson County Public Schools Louisville, KYTo Fund Various Educational Programs$2,589,555
EVOLVE502 Inc Louisville, KYTo provide care, belief,access and supports to students in need$400,000
Community Foundation of Louisville Louisville, KY2025 state of the district scholarship - jcps employee sponsored student scholarship fund$59,352
Rita June Foundation Inc Louisville, KYTo provide relief for underserved communities in the louisville area$18,000
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Financial History

Multi-year comparison from IRS filings

Figures from IRS filings, by filing year
Filing yearTotal AssetsRevenueExpensesGrants paidGrantsNet Investment Income
2025$22,207,932$1,279,351$3,425,643$3,066,9074$888,282
2024$22,154,827$979,621$2,407,263$2,030,6283$702,990
2023$21,584,986$20,886,826$1,531,884$1,252,1442$580,238
2022$1,993,627$266,340$313,503$146,8631$56,300
2021$2,278,942$267,739$344,425$62,5982$68,991

About Jefferson County Public Education Foundation Inc

Based on IRS filings

Jefferson County Public Education Foundation Inc is a public charity, based in Louisville, KY. IRS filing data is available from 2021 through 2025. As of 2025, the organization holds $22.2M in total assets. In 2025, it awarded 4 grants totaling $3.1M. Net investment income was $888K.

Leadership & Key People

Officers and directors from IRS filings

Jefferson County Public Education Foundation Inc is led by Franklin Jelsma, Chairman on every filing since 2021; none of the 21 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.

Officers on the 2025 filing

  • Franklin Jelsma

    Chairman

    On filings since 2021

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Alex Cornish

    Member

    On filings since 2021

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Audwin Helton

    Member

    Vice Chairman → Member, 2023

    On filings since 2021

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Carl Thomas

    Member

    On filings since 2021

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Carol Timmons

    Member

    On filings since 2021

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Elizabeth Mays

    Vice Chair

    Member → Vice Chair, 2023

    On filings since 2021

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Henry Heuser Jr.

    Member

    On filings since 2021

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • James R. Allen

    Immediate Past Chair

    On filings since 2021

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • John Marshall

    Member

    On filings since 2021

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Ken Selvaggi

    Member

    On filings since 2021

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Kevin Joynt

    Member

    On filings since 2021

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Kevin Shurn

    Member

    On filings since 2021

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Lynn Huether

    Secretary Treasurer

    On filings since 2021

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Mark Shirkness

    Member

    On filings since 2021

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Mitch Rue

    Member

    On filings since 2021

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Marty Pollio

    Member

    On filings since 2022

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Ryan Jones

    Member

    On filings since 2022

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Brigitte Owens

    Member

    On filings since 2023

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Christi Lanier-Robinson

    Member

    On filings since 2023

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Justin Morris

    Member

    On filings since 2023

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Seema Sheth

    Member

    On filings since 2023

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

Former officers (7)
  • Former: Robert J. Arnold (2021–2024) — Member
  • Former: Alex Gerassimides MD (2021–2023) — Member
  • Former: Cynthia Benedict (2021–2023) — Member
  • Former: Meredith Erickson (2021–2023) — Member
  • Former: Vidya Ravichandran (2021–2023) — Member
  • Former: Malcom Chancey Jr. (2021–2022) — Member
  • Former: Tiffany Robinson (2021) — Member

Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2021–2025. "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 Jefferson County Public Education Foundation Inc

How much does Jefferson County Public Education Foundation Inc give each year?

Jefferson County Public Education Foundation Inc gave $3.1M across 4 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990. In 2024 it gave $2.0M across 3 grants.

What is Jefferson County Public Education Foundation Inc's typical grant size?

Jefferson County Public Education Foundation Inc's median grant in 2025 was $229,676, and its average grant was $766,727, across 4 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990.

Where does Jefferson County Public Education Foundation Inc give grants?

Jefferson County Public Education Foundation Inc gives mostly in Kentucky: 100% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990 went to recipients there. The most frequent recipient cities were Louisville, KY (4 grants).

Does Jefferson County Public Education Foundation Inc give general operating support?

Not in 2025: none of the 4 grants with a stated purpose on Jefferson County Public Education Foundation Inc's 2025 IRS Form 990 were described as general or operating support.

How large is Jefferson County Public Education Foundation Inc?

Jefferson County Public Education Foundation Inc reported $22.2M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990. Its revenue that year was $1.3M.

What is Jefferson County Public Education Foundation Inc's EIN?

Jefferson County Public Education Foundation Inc's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 61-1021128. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2021–2025.

Data last updated September 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990 filings.

Data update history

(6)

When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable

  1. Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS November 15, 2021)
  2. Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS November 8, 2022)
  3. Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS October 12, 2023)
  4. Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS September 27, 2024)
  5. Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS September 26, 2025)
  6. IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2021–2025

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The filing figures on this page are open data under CC BY 4.0. About GrantGraph Open

Figures come from Jefferson County Public Education Foundation Inc'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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