Society of Photo Optical Instrumentation Engineers
SPIE is a public charity based in Bellingham, Washington. Founded in 1955, it is an international technical society that supports the optics and photonics community through research and education programs, technical events, publications, and grants.
Society of Photo Optical Instrumentation Engineers at a glance
In short: Society of Photo Optical Instrumentation Engineers gave $823K across 9 grants in 2025 (avg $91K), mostly in North Carolina. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $823,443
- -6.4% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 9
- -10.0% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $91,494
- +4.0% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $49,859
- Total assets
- $166,653,304
- +10.5% vs 2024
- Primary geography
- North Carolina (61% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990, 2025 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990, 2025; updated November 2026.
How to apply to Society of Photo Optical Instrumentation Engineers
- Contact
Mailing address: PO Box 10, Bellingham, WA 98227-0010
Phone: (360) 676-3290
Website: https://spie.org
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Society of Photo Optical Instrumentation Engineers funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 9 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Fdn of the Univ of North Carolina at Charlotte ($500K). Together the top 9 received $823K.
Grant Size Distribution
41 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 26 grants of 41 (63%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
SPIE describes itself as serving a global optics and photonics community. Its 2024 grants went to recipients in multiple states. By share of grant dollars, Massachusetts accounted for 58%, Alabama 11%, Colorado 11%, California 9%, and Texas 6%.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 9 itemized grants.
States
Cities
How Society of Photo Optical Instrumentation Engineers gives
- Giving grew 387% 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
From 2020 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $141K (2023) to $1.2M (2021). In 2025 it made 9 grants totaling $823K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Fdn of the Univ of North Carolina at Charlotte Charlotte, NC | Emerging Innovators in Optical Science & Engineering Endowment | $500,000 |
| Monroe Community College Foundation Rochester, NY | General Support and Scholarships | $96,024 |
| Washington University St. Louis, MO | Hillenkamp Fellowship | $75,000 |
| UT Southwestern Medical Ctr Dallas, TX | Grant | $50,000 |
| Thorlabs Inc Newton, NJ | General Support | $49,859 |
| Michigan Tech University Houghton, MI | General Support and Student Chapter Activity Grant | $22,200 |
| Ieee Piscataway, NJ | General Support | $15,000 |
| The Univ of Arizon Controllers Dep Acct Tucson, AZ | General Support and Student Travel Grants | $8,900 |
| Ithaka Harbors Boston, MA | General Support | $6,460 |
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Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
In describing several 2024 grantees, the organizations state their own missions: the University of Colorado Foundation manages philanthropic gifts and endowments for the benefit of the University of Colorado; Tuskegee University provides postsecondary educational opportunities and contributes to society through research and development; and Monroe Community College Foundation seeks philanthropic investment to advance academic achievement, innovation, and the college’s mission.
| Filing year | Total Assets | Revenue | Expenses | Grants paid | Grants | Net Investment Income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $166,653,304 | $64,378,785 | $54,680,672 | $823,443 | 9 | $11,733,288 |
| 2024 | $150,848,856 | $59,735,524 | $53,251,757 | $879,985 | 10 | $6,888,738 |
| 2023 | $136,740,026 | $52,668,388 | $51,312,414 | $141,439 | 5 | $5,086,782 |
| 2022 | $123,692,057 | $36,576,887 | $46,877,020 | $169,090 | 6 | $504,284 |
| 2021 | $144,509,119 | $33,050,614 | $35,580,999 | $1,205,140 | 11 | $7,705,519 |
| 2020 | $137,270,634 | $46,847,935 | $42,530,543 | $789,760 | 10 | $6,870,168 |
Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated September 2026.
Mission & Focus Areas
SPIE’s stated mission is to advance scientific research and engineering applications of optical, photonic, imaging, and optoelectronic technologies through meetings, education programs, and publications. Its website also describes its mission as partnering with researchers, educators, and industry to advance light-based research and technologies for the betterment of the human condition.
In 2024, SPIE reported organizing technical and scientific meetings with approximately 36,000 attendees, including 292 conferences and 113 in-person educational courses. It also reported publishing technical books and journals, awarding 80 education scholarships and 14 grants for outreach and related activities, and supporting student conference attendance and student chapter groups. Its website describes additional support through scholarships, travel grants, endowed gifts, public-policy development, and research and program funding.
Grantmaking
SPIE reported giving 10 grants totaling $879,985 in 2024. Grant amounts ranged from $5,175 to $501,500, with a median grant of $35,175. The largest awards included: Its 2025 filing, the latest on this page, reports 9 grants totaling $823,443.
Other 2024 recipients included Michigan Tech University ($20,350), Monroe Community College Foundation ($15,000), UR SPIE Student Chapter ($6,500), Ithaka Harbors Inc. ($6,460), and the Regents of the University of California ($5,175).
SPIE’s website describes several research and program funding opportunities. The SPIE Endowment Matching Program offers matching contributions of up to $500,000 per award to colleges and universities with degree programs in optics and photonics or allied disciplines. The SPIE-Franz Hillenkamp Postdoctoral Fellowship is an annual $75,000 award for work translating biomedical optics and biophotonics technologies to clinical practice. The IBM-SPIE HBCU Faculty Accelerator Award is a $100,000 annual award supporting quantum optics and photonics research and education at member institutions of the IBM-HBCU Quantum Center. Berns-SPIE SPARK Grants support young research scientists working in biophotonics.
The SPIE Outreach Grants Program offers up to $7,500 for optics and photonics outreach activities. Applicants must be current SPIE members, and eligible applicants include qualifying not-for-profit organizations such as universities, science centers, schools, youth clubs, industry associations, and international optical societies. The application requires an endorsement from a staff member or advisor at the applying organization. Proposals are evaluated on their potential impact and awareness-building, project clarity, and timeline and budget. Deadline: The 2026 application cycle closed on December 1, 2025; this is a past cycle.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2024 filing lists Kent Rochford as Chief Executive Officer and Bradley Ferguson as COO & COFO. Other listed officers and directors are Scott C H Ritchey, Sr Director, Information Technology; Andrew Brown, Sr Director, Events & Global Business Development; Jeffrey Nichols, Director, Sales; Allison Romanyshyn, Sr Director, Community Engagement, Chief Inclusion Officer; Patrick Franzen, Director, Publications and Platform; Marilyn Gorsuch, Sr Director, Technical Programs; Robert F Hainsey, Director, Science & Technology; and Lara Miles, Director, Business Services, Systems & Data Governance.
Society of Photo Optical Instrumentation Engineers is led by Kent Rochford, Chief Executive Officer on every filing since 2020; 16 of 35 officers listed in 2025 are compensated.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Kent Rochford
Chief Executive Officer
On filings since 2020
36 hrs/week
$646K (2020) → $800K (2025)
Peter de Groot
President
Vice President → President-Elect, 2024
President-Elect → President, 2025
On filings since 2023
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Allison Romanyshyn
Senior Director, Community Engagement & Chief Inclusion Officer
Senior Director Community Engagement & Chief Inclusion → Senior Director, Community Engagement & Chief Inclusion Officer, 2023
On filings since 2020
36 hrs/week
$148K (2020) → $244K (2025)
Andrew Brown
Senior Director, Events & Global Business Devlopment
Senior Director & Global Business Development → Senior Director, Events & Global Business Development, 2023
Senior Director, Events & Global Business Development → Senior Director, Events & Global Business Devlopment, 2025
On filings since 2020
36 hrs/week
$234K (2020) → $236K (2025)
Jill Stanton
Director & Software Development
On filings since 2020
36 hrs/week
$163K (2020) → $200K (2025)
Marilyn Gorsuch
Senior Director & Technical Programs
Director, Technical Programs & Proceedings → Senior Director & Technical Programs, 2023
On filings since 2020
36 hrs/week
$195K (2020) → $233K (2025)
Patrick Franzen
Director, Publications & Platform
On filings since 2020
36 hrs/week
$168K (2020) → $235K (2025)
Robert F Hainsey
Director, Science & Technology
Science & Technology Strategist → Director, Science & Technology, 2023
On filings since 2020
36 hrs/week
$196K (2020) → $245K (2025)
Scott C H Ritchey
Senior Director & Information Technology
Director & Information Technology → Senior Director & Information Technology, 2023
On filings since 2020
36 hrs/week
$240K (2020) → $348K (2025)
Lara Miles
Director, Business Services, Systems & Data Governance
Director, Business Services, Systems & Data Governor → Director, Business Services, Systems & Data Governance, 2023
On filings since 2021
36 hrs/week
$159K (2021) → $224K (2025)
Jeffrey Nichols
Director & Sales
On filings since 2022
36 hrs/week
$185K (2022) → $208K (2025)
Jessica DeGroote Nelson
Director
On filings since 2023
1 hr/week
$2K (2023) → $3K (2025)
Laura Waller
Director
On filings since 2023
1 hr/week
$429 (2024) → $0 (2025)
Daewook Kim
Director
On filings since 2024
1 hr/week
$3K (2024) → $700 (2025)
Alexis Vogt
Director
New on the 2025 filing
1 hr/week
$3K (2025)
Jen Dodds
Senior Director, Events & Global Business Development
New on the 2025 filing
36 hrs/week
$190K (2025)
David Hagan
Director
On filings since 2023
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Miles Padgett
Director
On filings since 2023
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Paul Montgomery
Director
On filings since 2023
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Agnes Hubscher
Director
On filings since 2024
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Keisuke Goda
Director
On filings since 2024
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Michelle Lynn Stock
Director
On filings since 2024
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Samuel Achilefu
Director
On filings since 2024
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Brian Pogue
Director
New on the 2025 filing
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Deborah Gustafson
Director
New on the 2025 filing
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Kemao Qian
Director
New on the 2025 filing
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Kishan Dholakia
Director
New on the 2025 filing
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Nicholas Petrick
Director
New on the 2025 filing
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Sharon Weiss
Director
New on the 2025 filing
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Victoria Uthe
Director
New on the 2025 filing
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Bradley Ferguson
COO & Cofo
On filings since 2023
36 hrs/week
$348K (2023) → $381K (2025)
Julie L Bentley
President-Elect
Vice President → President-Elect, 2025
On filings since 2024
1 hr/week
$9K (2024) → $9K (2025)
Jim McNally
Secretary & Treasurer
Director → Secretary & Treasurer, 2023
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Cather Simpson
Vice President
Director → Vice President, 2025
On filings since 2021
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Jennifer Barton
Immediate Past President
President-Elect → President, 2024
President → Immediate Past President, 2025
On filings since 2022
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Former officers (34)
- Former: Peter Hallett (2020–2024) — Director, Marketing & Industry Relations
- Former: Bernard Kress (2021–2024) — Past President
- Former: Allison Barto (2022–2024) — Director
- Former: Audrey Bowden (2022–2024) — Director
- Former: Gong-Ru Lin (2022–2024) — Director
- Former: Rebecca Fahrig (2022–2024) — Director
- Former: William Roach (2022–2024) — Director
- Former: Anita Mahadevan-Jansen (2020–2023) — Past President
- Former: Kyle Myers (2020–2023) — Director
- Former: Joseph Shaw (2021–2023) — Director
- Former: Ruth Houbertz (2021–2023) — Director
- Former: Donis Flagello (2023) — Director
- Former: Maryellen Giger (2023) — Director
- Former: Scott Bass (2023) — Director
- Former: Brad Ferguson (2020–2022) — Cofo
- Former: Byoungho Lee (2020–2022) — Director
- Former: Cristina Solano (2020–2022) — Director
- Former: David Andrews (2020–2022) — Past President
- Former: Halina Rubinsztein-Dunlop (2020–2022) — Director
- Former: Jason Mulliner (2020–2022) — Secretary & Treasurer
- Former: Katie Schwertz (2020–2022) — Director
- Former: Scott Tyo (2020–2022) — Director
- Former: Elizabeth Krupinski (2021–2022) — Director
- Former: John Greivenkamp (2020–2021) — Past President
- Former: Judy Fennelly (2020–2021) — Director
- Former: Julia Craven (2020–2021) — Director
- Former: Marta de la Fuente (2020–2021) — Director
- Former: Peter DeGroot (2020–2021) — Director
- Former: Stephen Anderson (2020–2021) — Director & Industry Development
- Former: Chris Mack (2020) — Director
- Former: Jim Oschmann (2020) — Past President
- Former: Kazuo Kuroda (2020) — Director
- Former: Kristen Maitland (2020) — Director
- Former: Leonard Chen (2020) — Director
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 2025 IRS filing
The highest reported compensation on the 2025 filing was $800K, to Kent Rochford (Chief Executive Officer). 16 officers or directors reported compensation on that filing.
Frequently asked questions about Society of Photo Optical Instrumentation Engineers
How much does Society of Photo Optical Instrumentation Engineers give each year?
Society of Photo Optical Instrumentation Engineers gave $823K across 9 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990. In 2024 it gave $880K across 10 grants.
What is Society of Photo Optical Instrumentation Engineers's typical grant size?
Society of Photo Optical Instrumentation Engineers's median grant in 2025 was $49,859, and its average grant was $91,494, across 9 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990.
Where does Society of Photo Optical Instrumentation Engineers give grants?
Society of Photo Optical Instrumentation Engineers gives mostly in North Carolina: 61% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990 went to recipients there. The next largest states were New York (12%) and Missouri (9%).
Does Society of Photo Optical Instrumentation Engineers give general operating support?
Yes: 67% of Society of Photo Optical Instrumentation Engineers's 2025 grants with a stated purpose (6 of 9) were for general or operating support, per its 2025 IRS Form 990.
Who are Society of Photo Optical Instrumentation Engineers's largest grantees?
Society of Photo Optical Instrumentation Engineers's largest 2025 grantees include Fdn of the Univ of North Carolina at Charlotte ($500,000), Monroe Community College Foundation ($96,024) and Washington University ($75,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990. Together they received 81% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is Society of Photo Optical Instrumentation Engineers?
Society of Photo Optical Instrumentation Engineers reported $166.7M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990. Its revenue that year was $64.4M.
What does Society of Photo Optical Instrumentation Engineers fund?
SPIE’s stated mission is to advance scientific research and engineering applications of optical, photonic, imaging, and optoelectronic technologies through meetings, education programs, and publications. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Society of Photo Optical Instrumentation Engineers?
Society of Photo Optical Instrumentation Engineers has no public application process in the sources Grantable reviewed. Check spie.org for current guidelines, or contact the foundation directly before submitting a request.
What is Society of Photo Optical Instrumentation Engineers's EIN?
Society of Photo Optical Instrumentation Engineers's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 95-2142678. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2025.
Data last updated November 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990 filings. Research dossier generated September 2026.
Data update history
(7)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Added Form 990 for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS September 9, 2026)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS August 16, 2021)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS September 7, 2022)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS September 7, 2023)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS September 4, 2024)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS August 25, 2025)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024
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