The Dreamville Foundation
The Dreamville Foundation is a private foundation based in Los Angeles, California. It supports urban youth and families through charitable donations, programs, events, advocacy and awareness, and partnerships intended to help young people pursue their goals.
The Dreamville Foundation at a glance
In short: The Dreamville Foundation gave $123K across 12 grants in 2025 (avg $10K), mostly in California. 92% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $123,299
- +16.8% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 12
- +50.0% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $10,275
- -22.1% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $1,500
- Total assets
- $174,896
- +64.2% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 92% first-time grantees (11 of 12, 2025; small sample)
- Primary geography
- California (81% 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 The Dreamville Foundation
- Accepts unsolicited proposals
- No
- How to Apply
-
The foundation states that it makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds.
- Contact
Mailing address: Co Nksfb 10960 Wilshire Bl 5Th Fl, Los Angeles, CA 90024
Phone: (310) 277-4657
Website: https://www.thedreamvillefoundation.org
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who The Dreamville Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Divine Will Foundation ($100K). Together the top 10 received $120K.
Grant Size Distribution
37 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 36 grants of 37 (97%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
The foundation says it began serving children and families in and around Fayetteville and has expanded to other cities and states. In 2025, 81% of grant dollars went to recipients in California, 12% to recipients in North Carolina, and 7% to recipients in Texas.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 12 itemized grants.
Cities
Is The Dreamville Foundation open to new grantees?
92%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 11 of 12 grantees (92%) were first-time recipients. With only 12 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 8 points. First grants averaged $2K; repeat grants $100K. How we count
Medians: $2K first-time, $100K repeat.
- 8% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving grew 80% from 2022 to 2025. Method
- In 2025 it paid out well above its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). 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
From 2020 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $13K (2021) to $123K (2025). In 2025 it made 12 grants totaling $123K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Divine Will Foundation Encinitas, CA | Advance Youth Education and Welfare | $100,000 |
| For the Students Austin, TX | Donation for Dreamville University Workshops. | $8,300 |
| New Century Middle School Cameron, NC | Donation to Support Teacher Closet Program. | $1,614 |
| Warrenwood Elementary School Fayetteville, NC | Donation to Support Teacher Closet Program. | $1,505 |
| Reid Ross Classical School Fayetteville, NC | Donation to Support Teacher Closet Program. | $1,504 |
| Bill Hefner Elementary School Fayetteville, NC | Donation to Support Teacher Closet Program. | $1,500 |
| Manchester Elementary School Spring Lake, NC | Donation to Support Teacher Closet Program. | $1,500 |
| Luther Nick Jeralds Middle School Fayetteville, NC | Donation to Support Teacher Closet Program. | $1,499 |
| Cliffdale Elementary School Fayetteville, NC | Donation to Support Teacher Closet Program. | $1,499 |
| Ee Smith High School Fayetteville, NC | Donation to Support Teacher Closet Program. | $1,464 |
Ready to take the next step with The Dreamville Foundation?
Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
| Filing year | Total Assets | Revenue | Expenses | Grants paid | Grants | Qualifying Distributions | Net Investment Income | Distributable Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $174,896 | $245,728 | $177,338 | $123,299 | 12 | $172,554 | $243 | $2,919 |
| 2024 | $106,506 | $163,856 | $169,224 | $105,521 | 8 | $164,240 | $25 | $1,226 |
| 2023 | $112,686 | $105,947 | $164,799 | $112,500 | 8 | $142,314 | $25 | $2,788 |
| 2022 | $161,535 | $115,118 | $131,786 | $68,500 | 5 | $109,701 | $6 | $4,356 |
| 2021 | $177,394 | $8,710 | $69,816 | $13,000 | 4 | $41,536 | — | $5,465 |
| 2020 | $238,500 | $83,768 | $206,946 | $67,885 | 3 | — | $76 | $7,381 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, The Dreamville Foundation reported a distributable amount of $3K 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
The foundation’s mission is to “bridge the gap between the worlds of opportunity for urban youth.” It says its work includes advocacy and awareness, charitable donations to programs and organizations, and strategic partnerships.
Among its 2025 grantees, Divine Will Foundation received $100,000. Divine Will Foundation describes its mission as supporting charitable programs in India that provide free healthcare and education. The Dreamville Foundation also made 2025 donations to schools in North Carolina to support teacher closet programs and gave For the Students a donation for Dreamville University workshops.
Grantmaking
In 2025, the foundation reported 12 grants totaling $123,299. Grant amounts ranged from $1,454 to $100,000, with a median of $1,500.
The largest grant was $100,000 to Divine Will Foundation. Other notable grants included $8,300 to For the Students for Dreamville University workshops and donations to North Carolina schools for teacher closet programs, ranging from $1,454 to $1,614.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Jermaine Cole as president and Melissa Cole as director.
The Dreamville Foundation is led by Jermaine Cole, President on every filing since 2020; none of the 2 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Jermaine Cole
President
On filings since 2020
No compensation reported
Melissa Cole
Director
On filings since 2024
No compensation reported
Former officers (1)
- Former: Melissa Heholt (2020–2023) — 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.
Frequently asked questions about The Dreamville Foundation
How much does The Dreamville Foundation give each year?
The Dreamville Foundation gave $123K across 12 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $106K across 8 grants.
What is The Dreamville Foundation's typical grant size?
The Dreamville Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $1,500, and its average grant was $10,275, across 12 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from The Dreamville Foundation that year got $2K on average.
Where does The Dreamville Foundation give grants?
The Dreamville Foundation gives mostly in California: 81% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The next largest states were North Carolina (12%) and Texas (7%). The most frequent recipient cities were Fayetteville, NC (6 grants) and Spring Lake, NC (2 grants).
Does The Dreamville Foundation give general operating support?
Not in 2025: none of the 12 grants with a stated purpose on The Dreamville Foundation's 2025 IRS Form 990-PF were described as general or operating support. Recurring purposes include "Donation to Support Teacher Closet Program." (10 grants).
Who are The Dreamville Foundation's largest grantees?
The Dreamville Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include Divine Will Foundation ($100,000), For the Students ($8,300) and New Century Middle School ($1,614), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 89% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is The Dreamville Foundation?
The Dreamville Foundation reported $175K in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $173K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $3K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does The Dreamville Foundation fund?
The foundation’s mission is to “bridge the gap between the worlds of opportunity for urban youth.” It says its work includes advocacy and awareness, charitable donations to programs and organizations, and strategic partnerships. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from The Dreamville Foundation?
The foundation states that it makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑
What is The Dreamville Foundation's EIN?
The Dreamville Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 45-3703982. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2025.
Does The Dreamville Foundation accept unsolicited proposals?
No, according to Grantable's research on the foundation's published guidelines. See how to apply ↑
Data last updated October 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 November 11, 2021)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS May 10, 2022)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS November 14, 2023)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS November 13, 2024)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS November 12, 2025)
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 8, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024
Live grants for the work The Dreamville Foundation funds
Education Open opportunities, soonest deadline first.
Explore Open Grants
Browse active grant opportunities in The Dreamville Foundation's focus areas in our free grants database
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). The Dreamville Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 20, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/the-dreamville-foundation-morg_1c9b3635b79744b894f65f3dcb158283
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_453703982_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{The Dreamville Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/the-dreamville-foundation-morg_1c9b3635b79744b894f65f3dcb158283},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-20. 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 The Dreamville 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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