Leifur Eiriksson Foundation logo

Leifur Eiriksson Foundation

Private foundation · Grantmaker Charlottesville, VA EIN: 54-2056415 Website

The Leifur Eiríksson Foundation is a private foundation based in Charlottesville, Virginia. Established in 2001, it funds graduate-level scholarly exchanges between the United States and Iceland, supporting U.S. scholars studying or conducting research in Iceland and Icelandic scholars doing so in the United States.

Key facts about Leifur Eiriksson Foundation

In short: Leifur Eiriksson Foundation gave $261K across 11 grants in 2025 (avg $24K), top state California. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.

EIN
54-2056415
Latest 990 filing
Form 990-PF, 2025
Annual giving (2025)
$260,657
Grants made (2025)
11
Average grant
$23,696
Median grant
$25,000
Total assets
$8,446,383
Primary geography
California (18% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
How to apply
Apply through the fellowship program’s application process. Full details ↓
Deadline
The website lists November 20, 2026, for applications and December 4, 2026, for supporting documents.

Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2025; updated October 2026. Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.

Financial Overview

From 2025 IRS Form 990-PF · View filing

Total Assets

$8.4M

+6.6% YoY

Annual Giving

$261K

+6.4% YoY

Grant Count

11

+0.0% YoY

Avg Grant Size

$24K

+6.4% YoY

Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Leifur Eiriksson Foundation reported a distributable amount of $391K for 2025 — the minimum it must pay out in qualifying distributions.

How Leifur Eiriksson Foundation gives

  • Giving held roughly steady from 2022 to 2025 (+7%). Method
  • In 2025 it paid out 91% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Foundations have until the end of the next year to meet it. Method

From the foundation's IRS Form 990-PF filings. Methodology.

Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated October 2026.

Mission & Focus Areas

The foundation states that its mission is exclusively charitable, literary, educational, and scientific. Its purpose is to provide recognition and financial assistance for scholarly study and research through graduate student exchanges between Iceland and the United States.

Grantmaking

In filing year 2025, the foundation reported 11 grants totaling $260,657. Grants ranged from $19,600 to $25,000, with a median of $25,000. The 2025 filing lists all 11 recipients as individuals and identifies each grant’s purpose as a scholarship.

The fellowship program offers one-year awards of up to $25,000 for project costs, including travel to and from the study or research site. The foundation’s website says awards are intended to defray, but not exceed, attendance, research, and study costs. Applicants must be admitted to a graduate program at an accredited institution in the United States or Iceland, have a well-defined project requiring an exchange to the host country, demonstrate English proficiency, and have completed an undergraduate degree by the start of the exchange. Applicants are asked to provide official academic transcripts and three letters of reference. Applications may be submitted online or by mail; applicants submitting online must mail a signature page.

Review Cycle

The website lists November 20, 2026, for applications and December 4, 2026, for supporting documents.

How to Apply

Apply through the fellowship program’s application process. Applicants must submit the application separately from supporting documents.

Open Grants

2 open opportunities from Leifur Eiriksson Foundation

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Geographic Focus

Where this funder awards grants

The fellowship program supports exchanges between the United States and Iceland. In the 2025 filing, 54% of grant dollars are attributed to an unspecified recipient state; the listed shares for other recipient states are California, 18%; Illinois, 10%; Connecticut, 10%; and Wisconsin, 9%.

Grant Distribution by State

21states

Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 11 itemized grants.

Cities

AlamedaAmesburyBerkeleyBostonBrooklynCalifonCambridgeCharlottesvilleChatanoogaChicagoCokatoColorado SpringsDavisEdgertonGoleta Santa BarbaraHighlandIrmoKunaLittle RockLos Angeles

Giving Over Time

Total grant dollars and number of grants per year

$0$100K$200K$300K10 grants2020 11 grants2021 11 grants2022 11 grants2023 11 grants2024 11 grants2025

From 2020 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $237K (2023) to $261K (2025). In 2025 it made 11 grants totaling $261K.

Grant Insights

How this funder distributes its grants

Grant Size Distribution

55 grants across all recorded years

55<$50K$50–100K$100–250K$250–500K$500K–1M$1–5M$5M+

The most common grant size was under $50K: 55 grants of 55 (100%).

Giving History

Grant recipients and amounts by year

RecipientPurposeAmount
11 individual scholarships Recipients not named —$260,657

Financial History

Multi-year comparison from IRS filings

Filing year Assets Revenue Expenses Grants Grant count
2025 $8,446,383 $337,173 $380,236 $260,657 11
2024 $7,921,547 $338,023 $383,833 $245,050 11
2023 $7,750,217 $308,848 $366,431 $237,240 11
Revenue
Expenses
Qualifying Distributions
Net Investment Income
$0$200K$400K$600K2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
Metric202520242023
Total Assets$8,446,383$7,921,547$7,750,217
Revenue$337,173$338,023$308,848
Expenses$380,236$383,833$366,431
Qualifying Distributions$354,609$340,273$331,668
Net Investment Income$318,051$308,968$279,389
Distributable Amount$390,596$381,201$379,001

Data update history

When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable

  1. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS February 7, 2021)
  2. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS November 9, 2021)
  3. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS November 14, 2022)
  4. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS November 15, 2023)
  5. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS March 24, 2025)
  6. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS March 30, 2026)
  7. IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2025

Leadership & Key People

Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings

The 2025 filing lists Kristrun Heimisdottir, Susan G. Harris, Margo E. Eppard, Jennifer N. Grayburn, Ragnhildur Helgadottir, and James E. Ryan as trustees. Harris is listed as secretary, Eppard as treasurer, and Grayburn as chair.

Leifur Eiriksson Foundation is led by Jennifer N. Grayburn, Trustee & Chair since 2025 (on filings since 2023); none of the 6 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.

Officers on the 2025 filing

  • Jennifer N. Grayburn

    Trustee & Chair

    Trustee → Trustee & Chair, 2025

    On filings since 2023

    0.5 hrs/week

    No compensation reported

  • Kristrun Heimisdottir

    Trustee

    On filings since 2020

    0.5 hrs/week

    No compensation reported

  • Susan G. Harris

    Trustee & Secretary

    On filings since 2020

    2 hrs/week

    No compensation reported

  • James E. Ryan

    Trustee

    New on the 2025 filing

    0.5 hrs/week

    No compensation reported

  • Ragnhildur Helgadottir

    Trustee

    New on the 2025 filing

    0.5 hrs/week

    No compensation reported

  • Margo E. Eppard

    Treasurer

    On filings since 2020

    3.3 hrs/week

    No compensation reported

Former officers (3)
  • Former: John T. Casteen III (2020–2024) — Trustee
  • Former: Kristin Ingolfsdottir (2020–2024) — Chair & Trustee
  • Former: Nancy Marie Brown (2020–2024) — Trustee

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.

Contact

Application contact: Karen E Torgersen
Mailing address: 1209 Redbud Road, Blacksburg, VA 24060
Phone: (434) 981-2061
Website: https://www.leifureirikssonfoundation.org

Frequently asked questions about Leifur Eiriksson Foundation

How much does Leifur Eiriksson Foundation give each year?

Leifur Eiriksson Foundation gave $261K across 11 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $245K across 11 grants.

What is Leifur Eiriksson Foundation's typical grant size?

Leifur Eiriksson Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $25,000, and its average grant was $23,696, across 11 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.

Where does Leifur Eiriksson Foundation give grants?

Leifur Eiriksson Foundation's top state is California, with 18% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. The next largest states were Illinois (10%) and Connecticut (10%).

Does Leifur Eiriksson Foundation give general operating support?

Not in 2025: none of the 11 grants with a stated purpose on Leifur Eiriksson Foundation's 2025 IRS Form 990-PF were described as general or operating support. Recurring purposes include "Scholarship" (11 grants).

How large is Leifur Eiriksson Foundation?

Leifur Eiriksson Foundation reported $8.4M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $355K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $391K (roughly 5% of its investment assets). Falling short in one year is not a violation: foundations have until the end of the next year to meet the minimum.

What does Leifur Eiriksson Foundation fund?

The foundation states that its mission is exclusively charitable, literary, educational, and scientific. Its purpose is to provide recognition and financial assistance for scholarly study and research through graduate student exchanges between Iceland and the United States. See mission & focus areas ↑

How do I apply for a grant from Leifur Eiriksson Foundation?

Apply through the fellowship program’s application process. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑

What is Leifur Eiriksson Foundation's EIN?

Leifur Eiriksson Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 54-2056415. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2025.

Data last updated October 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990-PF filings. Research dossier generated October 2026.

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