The Melinda & William J Vanden Heuvel
The Melinda & William J Vanden Heuvel is a private foundation based in New York, NY. Its 2025 grants went to organizations including schools, a university, a church, an environmental group, and cultural and policy organizations.
The Melinda & William J Vanden Heuvel at a glance
In short: The Melinda & William J Vanden Heuvel gave $99K across 14 grants in 2025 (avg $7K), mostly in New York. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $98,500
- +88.5% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 14
- +40.0% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $7,036
- +34.7% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $5,000
- Total assets
- $881,748
- +28.4% vs 2024
- Primary geography
- New York (89% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990-PF, 2025 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2025; updated October 2026.
How to apply to The Melinda & William J Vanden Heuvel
- 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: 812 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10021
Phone: (917) 750-6260
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who The Melinda & William J Vanden Heuvel funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Opera Foundation ($47K). Together the top 10 received $97K.
Grant Size Distribution
134 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 134 grants of 134 (100%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
In 2025, 89% of grant dollars went to recipients in New York, 6% to recipients in Washington, DC, and 5% to recipients in Massachusetts.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 14 itemized grants.
States
Cities
How The Melinda & William J Vanden Heuvel gives
- 71% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving grew 66% from 2022 to 2025. Method
- In 2025 it paid out 203% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Method
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990-PF filings (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 $52K (2024) to $153K (2020). In 2025 it made 14 grants totaling $99K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Opera Foundation Watermill, NY | General | $47,000 |
| Grace Church School New York, NY | General | $11,000 |
| Trinity School New York, NY | General | $10,000 |
| Church of St Ignatius Loyola New York, NY | General | $5,000 |
| Council on Foreign Relations New York, NY | General | $5,000 |
| Georgetown University Law Center Washington, DC | General | $5,000 |
| Group for the East End Southold, NY | General | $5,000 |
| Milton Academy Milton, MA | General | $5,000 |
| New York University New York, NY | General | $2,500 |
| Marymount School New York, NY | General | $1,000 |
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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 | $881,748 | $577,818 | $107,575 | $98,500 | 14 | $107,203 | $32,316 | $52,891 |
| 2024 | $686,553 | $226,889 | $58,801 | $52,250 | 10 | $58,614 | $26,797 | $35,123 |
| 2023 | $518,430 | $528,123 | $103,812 | $103,600 | 26 | $103,782 | $6,638 | $12,349 |
| 2022 | $94,119 | $2,153 | $60,877 | $59,464 | 34 | $59,701 | $2,153 | $8,561 |
| 2021 | $152,843 | $244,833 | $74,938 | $71,789 | 50 | — | $138,293 | $7,770 |
| 2020 | $87,194 | $334,802 | $157,340 | $153,346 | 1 | — | $165,752 | $4,668 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, The Melinda & William J Vanden Heuvel reported a distributable amount of $53K 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 include support for organizations with varied missions. Grace Church School says it teaches intellectual excellence and ethical virtue; Group for the East End says it protects and restores eastern Long Island’s environment through education, citizen action, and advocacy. Milton Academy describes its mission as cultivating a passion for learning and respect for others. The Council on Foreign Relations describes itself as a nonpartisan membership organization, think tank, and publisher, while New York University identifies education, research and scholarship, and patient care as its primary missions. The Society of the Cincinnati says it promotes the memory and ideals of the American Revolution through museum, library, and educational programs.
Grantmaking
In filing year 2025, the foundation reported 14 grants totaling $98,500. Grant amounts ranged from $250 to $47,000, with a median of $5,000. The largest grants included $47,000 to Opera Foundation; $11,000 to Grace Church School; and $10,000 to Trinity School. Other reported grants included $5,000 each to Church of St Ignatius Loyola, Council on Foreign Relations, Georgetown University Law Center, Group for the East End, and Milton Academy; $2,500 to New York University; and $1,000 each to Marymount School and St Davids School.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists John C Pierce as president, Melinda F Vanden Heuvel as chairman, Ashley Von Perfall as secretary, and Barbara Nienaltowski as assistant secretary.
The Melinda & William J Vanden Heuvel is led by John C. Pierce, President since 2022 (on filings since 2020); none of the 4 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
John C. Pierce
President
Treasurer → President, 2022
On filings since 2020
No compensation reported
Melinda F. Vanden Heuvel
Chairman
On filings since 2020
No compensation reported
Ashley Von Perfall
Secretary
On filings since 2020
No compensation reported
Barbara Nienaltowski
Assistant Secretary
On filings since 2020
No compensation reported
Former officers (1)
- Former: William J. Vanden Heuvel (2020–2021) — President
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 Melinda & William J Vanden Heuvel
How much does The Melinda & William J Vanden Heuvel give each year?
The Melinda & William J Vanden Heuvel gave $99K across 14 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $52K across 10 grants.
What is The Melinda & William J Vanden Heuvel's typical grant size?
The Melinda & William J Vanden Heuvel's median grant in 2025 was $5,000, and its average grant was $7,036, across 14 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Where does The Melinda & William J Vanden Heuvel give grants?
The Melinda & William J Vanden Heuvel gives mostly in New York: 89% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The next largest states were District of Columbia (6%) and Massachusetts (5%). The most frequent recipient cities were New York, NY (9 grants) and Washington, DC (2 grants).
Does The Melinda & William J Vanden Heuvel give general operating support?
Yes: 100% of The Melinda & William J Vanden Heuvel's 2025 grants with a stated purpose (14 of 14) were for general or operating support, per its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Who are The Melinda & William J Vanden Heuvel's largest grantees?
The Melinda & William J Vanden Heuvel's largest 2025 grantees include Opera Foundation ($47,000), Grace Church School ($11,000) and Trinity School ($10,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 69% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is The Melinda & William J Vanden Heuvel?
The Melinda & William J Vanden Heuvel reported $882K in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $107K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $53K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does The Melinda & William J Vanden Heuvel fund?
No mission statement for the foundation is provided. Its 2025 grants include support for organizations with varied missions. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from The Melinda & William J Vanden Heuvel?
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 Melinda & William J Vanden Heuvel's EIN?
The Melinda & William J Vanden Heuvel's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 13-3980534. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2025.
Does The Melinda & William J Vanden Heuvel 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 May 6, 2021)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS February 3, 2022)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS February 15, 2023)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS February 13, 2024)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS February 18, 2025)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS February 16, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2025
Live grants for the work The Melinda & William J Vanden Heuvel funds
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). The Melinda & William J Vanden Heuvel funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved November 8, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/the-melinda-and-william-j-vanden-heuvel-morg_8d423c59cdcf4974b1ff36c6b54d3e3c
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_133980534_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{The Melinda \& William J Vanden Heuvel funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/the-melinda-and-william-j-vanden-heuvel-morg_8d423c59cdcf4974b1ff36c6b54d3e3c},
note = {Accessed 2026-11-08. 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 Melinda & William J Vanden Heuvel'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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