Jesselson Foundation
The Jesselson Foundation is a private foundation based in New York, NY. Its 2025 filing lists grants to organizations in New York and Florida; all listed grant purposes are general charitable.
Jesselson Foundation at a glance
In short: Jesselson Foundation gave $274K across 9 grants in 2025 (avg $30K), mostly in New York. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $274,045
- -50.0% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 9
- +28.6% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $30,449
- -61.1% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $12,550
- Total assets
- $6,501,889
- -7.6% vs 2024
- Primary geography
- New York (95% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990-PF, 2025 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2025; updated September 2026.
How to apply to Jesselson Foundation
- How to Apply
-
The foundation’s filing states that it does not restrict giving to preselected organizations. It lists Michael G Jesselson as the contact and says application materials should be typed. Restrictions on awards: none stated.
- Review Cycle
- None stated.
- Deadline
- None stated.
- Contact
Application contact: Michael G Jesselson
Mailing address: C/O Jesselson Capital-445 Park, Ave-Ste 1502, New York, NY 10022
Phone: (212) 751-3666
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Jesselson Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 9 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was The Netherland American Fdtn ($100K). Together the top 9 received $274K.
Grant Size Distribution
48 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 38 grants of 48 (79%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
In 2025, 95% of grant dollars went to recipients in New York and 5% to recipients in Florida.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 9 itemized grants.
Cities
How Jesselson Foundation gives
- Giving grew 4919% from 2022 to 2025. Method
- In 2025 it paid out 141% 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 $5K (2022) to $2.4M (2021). In 2025 it made 9 grants totaling $274K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| The Netherland American Fdtn New York, NY | General Charitable | $100,000 |
| Cteen Upper West Side Inc New York, NY | General Charitable | $86,300 |
| PEF Israel Endowment FDS New York, NY | General Charitable | $37,975 |
| Center for Jewish History New York, NY | General Charitable | $25,000 |
| Chabad of Key Biscayne Key Biscayne, FL | General Charitable | $12,550 |
| Americn Friends of Israel Philharmonic New York, NY | General Charitable | $5,000 |
| Jewish Community Relations Council of NY New York, NY | Genweral Charitable | $3,600 |
| The Tikvah Fund New York, NY | General Charitable | $2,000 |
| National Library of Israel New York, NY | General Charitable | $1,620 |
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Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
The filing identifies the organization as a private foundation and lists its EIN as 13-6075098.
| Filing year | Total Assets | Revenue | Expenses | Grants paid | Grants | Qualifying Distributions | Net Investment Income | Distributable Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $6,501,889 | $-396,564 | $351,758 | $274,045 | 9 | $279,045 | $48,882 | $197,359 |
| 2024 | $7,040,011 | $-201,150 | $601,138 | $548,550 | 7 | $555,168 | — | $225,312 |
| 2023 | $7,842,299 | $-448,864 | $224,715 | $195,850 | 9 | $201,020 | — | $246,948 |
| 2022 | $8,497,878 | $548,443 | $29,711 | $5,460 | 3 | $10,460 | — | $236,825 |
| 2021 | $7,979,146 | $168 | $2,485,374 | $2,363,062 | 20 | — | — | $243,231 |
| 2020 | $10,464,352 | $-432,996 | $768,945 | $748,105 | 15 | — | $5,049 | $349,836 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Jesselson Foundation reported a distributable amount of $197K for 2025 — the minimum it must pay out in qualifying distributions.
Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated September 2026.
Grantmaking
In 2025, the foundation reported 9 grants totaling $274,045. Grants ranged from $1,620 to $100,000, with a median of $12,550. Recent reported giving was:
The largest 2025 grants were $100,000 to The Netherland American Foundation, $86,300 to CTeen Upper West Side Inc., $37,975 to PEF Israel Endowment Funds, and $25,000 to Center for Jewish History. Each was listed as general charitable.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Michael Jesselson as president, Ted Mirvis as vice president, Claire Strauss as secretary/treasurer, and Steven Chill as director.
Jesselson Foundation is led by Michael Jesselson, President since 2022 (on filings since 2020); none of the 4 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Michael Jesselson
President
1st Vice President & Secretary → President, 2022
On filings since 2020
No compensation reported
Steven Chill
Director
On filings since 2020
No compensation reported
Claire Strauss
Secretary & Treasurer
Director → Secretary & Treasurer, 2022
On filings since 2020
No compensation reported
Ted Mirvis
Vice President
Director → Vice President, 2022
On filings since 2020
No compensation reported
Former officers (1)
- Former: Benjamin Jesselson (2021) — 1st Vice President & Treasurer
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 Jesselson Foundation
How much does Jesselson Foundation give each year?
Jesselson Foundation gave $274K across 9 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $549K across 7 grants.
What is Jesselson Foundation's typical grant size?
Jesselson Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $12,550, and its average grant was $30,449, across 9 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Where does Jesselson Foundation give grants?
Jesselson Foundation gives mostly in New York: 95% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The most frequent recipient cities were New York, NY (8 grants).
Does Jesselson Foundation give general operating support?
Yes: 89% of Jesselson Foundation's 2025 grants with a stated purpose (8 of 9) were for general or operating support, per its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Who are Jesselson Foundation's largest grantees?
Jesselson Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include The Netherland American Fdtn ($100,000), Cteen Upper West Side Inc ($86,300) and PEF Israel Endowment FDS ($37,975), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 82% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is Jesselson Foundation?
Jesselson Foundation reported $6.5M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $279K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $197K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
How do I apply for a grant from Jesselson Foundation?
The foundation’s filing states that it does not restrict giving to preselected organizations. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑
What is Jesselson Foundation's EIN?
Jesselson Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 13-6075098. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2025.
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 2020 (received by the IRS March 11, 2021)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS March 15, 2022)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS March 15, 2023)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS March 14, 2024)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS March 12, 2025)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS March 12, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2025
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