Rockwell Foundation

Private foundation · Grantmaker Worcester, MA EIN: 04-3369981

Rockwell Foundation is a private foundation based in Worcester, Massachusetts. Its 2025 filing lists grants to organizations in areas including youth services, arts, education, health, disability services, and recovery support.

Rockwell Foundation at a glance

In short: Rockwell Foundation gave $76K across 15 grants in 2025 (avg $5K), mostly in Massachusetts. 40% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.

Annual giving (2025)
$75,500
-5.6% vs 2024
Grants made (2025)
15
+15.4% vs 2024
Average grant
$5,033
-18.2% vs 2024
Median grant
$5,000
Total assets
$1,867,936
+9.3% vs 2024
New grantees (estimate)
40% first-time grantees (6 of 15, 2025; small sample)
Primary geography
Massachusetts (97% 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 Rockwell Foundation

How to Apply

The 2025 filing says to submit a request in the form of a letter and include proof of tax-exempt status. It lists restrictions on awards as “not applicable.”

Review Cycle
The filing says the request should be received prior to November 1 of each year.
Deadline
The filing says the request should be received prior to November 1 of each year.
Contact

Application contact: Phillips S Davis
Mailing address: 100 Front Street 5Th Floor, Worcester, MA 01608
Phone: (508) 459-8000

Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.

Who Rockwell Foundation funds

How this funder distributes its grants

Top Recipients

Top 10 recipients in 2025

New England Botanic Garden at Tower Hill: $10KNew England Botanic Garden atTower Hill$10KWorcester Youth Center: $10KWorcester Youth Center$10KMusic Worcester Inc: $7KMusic Worcester Inc$7KNativity School of Worcester Inc: $5KNativity School of WorcesterInc$5KBoys & Girs Club of Worcester: $5KBoys & Girs Club of Worcester$5KCarroll Center for the Blind: $5KCarroll Center for the Blind$5KPan-Massachusetts Challenge Inc: $5KPan-Massachusetts ChallengeInc$5KUmass Memorial Health Care Inc: $5KUmass Memorial Health Care Inc$5KNeads Inc: $5KNeads Inc$5KHanover Theatre for the Preforming Arts: $4KHanover Theatre for thePreforming Arts$4K

The largest 2025 recipient was New England Botanic Garden at Tower Hill ($10K). Together the top 10 received $61K.

Grant Size Distribution

67 grants across all recorded years

67<$50K$50–100K$100–250K$250–500K$500K–1M$1–5M$5M+

The most common grant size was under $50K: 67 grants of 67 (100%).

Geographic Focus

Where this funder awards grants

In 2025, 97% of grant dollars went to recipients in Massachusetts and 3% to recipients in Pennsylvania. The listed grants show substantial giving to organizations in Worcester and elsewhere in Massachusetts.

Grant Distribution by State

2states

Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 15 itemized grants.

Cities

WorcesterNeedhamNewtonBoylstonPrincetonSturbridgeBrightonLeominsterLincolnNorth GraftonPhiladelphiaWellesley

Is Rockwell Foundation open to new grantees?

40%

first-time grantees, 2025

In 2025, 6 of 15 grantees (40%) were first-time recipients. With only 15 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 7 points. First grants averaged $5K; repeat grants $5K. How we count

Medians: $4K first-time, $5K repeat.

  • 47% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
  • Giving held roughly steady from 2022 to 2025 (+9%). Method
  • In 2025 it paid out 89% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Foundations have until the end of the next year to meet it. 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

$0$25K$50K$75K$100K13 grants2020 14 grants2021 11 grants2022 14 grants2023 13 grants2024 15 grants2025

From 2020 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $70K (2022) to $91K (2023). In 2025 it made 15 grants totaling $76K.

Grants by year

Grant recipients and amounts by year

RecipientPurposeAmount
New England Botanic Garden at Tower Hill Boylston, MAGeneral Support$10,000
Worcester Youth Center Worcester, MAGeneral Public$10,000
Music Worcester Inc Worcester, MACampaign to Endow Artistic$7,000
Nativity School of Worcester Inc Worcester, MAGeneral Support$5,000
Boys & Girs Club of Worcester Worcester, MAYouth Development Programs$5,000
Carroll Center for the Blind Newton, MAGeneral Support$5,000
Pan-Massachusetts Challenge Inc Needham, MAGeneral Support$5,000
Umass Memorial Health Care Inc Worcester, MAGeneral Support$5,000
Neads Inc Princeton, MAGeneral Support$5,000
Hanover Theatre for the Preforming Arts Worcester, MAGeneral Support$4,000
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Financial History

Multi-year comparison from IRS filings

Figures from IRS filings, by filing year
Filing yearTotal AssetsRevenueExpensesGrants paidGrantsQualifying DistributionsNet Investment IncomeDistributable Amount
2025$1,867,936$261,796$104,567$75,50015$86,162$245,329$96,998
2024$1,709,649$154,765$105,143$80,00013$91,696$141,489$95,249
2023$1,661,445$70,124$115,261$91,00014$100,770$55,633$88,878
2022$1,706,582$81,384$98,265$69,50011$78,527$64,509$90,103
2021$1,723,463$178,619$109,933$86,00014$94,790$163,372$100,796
2020$1,654,777$87,349$107,768$81,00013—$70,524$86,149

Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Rockwell Foundation reported a distributable amount of $97K 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

No mission statement for the foundation is provided. Its 2025 grants went to organizations whose work spans several areas. For example, Worcester Youth Center says its mission is to provide services for disadvantaged youth; Music Worcester says it brings musical experiences to audiences through concerts, performances, and educational programs; and NEADS says its service dogs provide independence, companionship, and connection to people with disabilities.

Other 2025 grantees describe work in education, cancer research and treatment, recovery support, food justice, and environmental sustainability. These are the grantees’ stated missions, not a stated mission of the foundation.

Grantmaking

In 2025, the foundation reported 15 grants totaling $75,500. Grants ranged from $2,500 to $10,000, with a median grant of $5,000.

Notable 2025 grants included $10,000 to New England Botanic Garden at Tower Hill and $10,000 to Worcester Youth Center; $7,000 to Music Worcester; and $5,000 each to Nativity School of Worcester, Boys & Girls Club of Worcester, Carroll Center for the Blind, Pan-Massachusetts Challenge, UMass Memorial Health Care, and NEADS. Other listed grants included $4,000 each to Hanover Theatre for the Performing Arts and Jeremiah’s Inn, and $3,000 to Worcester Rise for Health.

Leadership & Key People

Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings

The 2025 filing lists Phillips S. Davis as trustee.

Rockwell Foundation is led by Phillips S. Davis, Trustee on every filing since 2020 — the only officer listed, and uncompensated.

Officers on the 2025 filing

  • Phillips S. Davis

    Trustee

    On filings since 2020

    1 hr/week

    $18K (2024) → $0 (2025)

Former officers (1)
  • Former: Brenda B. Clapp (2020–2023) — 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.

Compensation Overview

From 2024 IRS filing

Phillipe S Davis — Trustee: $18KPhillipe S DavisTrustee$18K

The highest reported compensation on the 2024 filing was $18K, to Phillipe S Davis (Trustee).

Frequently asked questions about Rockwell Foundation

How much does Rockwell Foundation give each year?

Rockwell Foundation gave $76K across 15 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $80K across 13 grants.

What is Rockwell Foundation's typical grant size?

Rockwell Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $5,000, and its average grant was $5,033, across 15 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from Rockwell Foundation that year got $5K on average.

Where does Rockwell Foundation give grants?

Rockwell Foundation gives mostly in Massachusetts: 97% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The most frequent recipient cities were Worcester, MA (9 grants).

Does Rockwell Foundation give general operating support?

Yes: 87% of Rockwell Foundation's 2025 grants with a stated purpose (13 of 15) were for general or operating support, per its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.

Who are Rockwell Foundation's largest grantees?

Rockwell Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include New England Botanic Garden at Tower Hill ($10,000), Worcester Youth Center ($10,000) and Music Worcester Inc ($7,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 36% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.

How large is Rockwell Foundation?

Rockwell Foundation reported $1.9M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $86K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $97K (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 Rockwell Foundation fund?

No mission statement for the foundation is provided. Its 2025 grants went to organizations whose work spans several areas. See mission & focus areas ↑

How do I apply for a grant from Rockwell Foundation?

The 2025 filing says to submit a request in the form of a letter and include proof of tax-exempt status. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑

What is Rockwell Foundation's EIN?

Rockwell Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 04-3369981. 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 September 2026.

Data update history

(6)

When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable

  1. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS July 15, 2021)
  2. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS May 11, 2022)
  3. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS May 11, 2023)
  4. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS May 15, 2024)
  5. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS May 13, 2025)
  6. Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 12, 2026)

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Cite this profile

Grantable. (2026). Rockwell Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 16, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/rockwell-foundation-morg_51c4f59bac4244f8917ecbd470edda15

BibTeX
@misc{grantable_043369981_2026,
  author       = {{Grantable}},
  title        = {{Rockwell Foundation funder profile}},
  howpublished = {GrantGraph},
  year         = {2026},
  url          = {https://grantable.co/funders/rockwell-foundation-morg_51c4f59bac4244f8917ecbd470edda15},
  note         = {Accessed 2026-10-16. 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 Rockwell 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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