The Middleton Foundation

Private foundation · Grantmaker San Mateo, CA EIN: 94-3117882

The Middleton Foundation is a private foundation based in San Mateo, California. In 2024, it gave $783,500 in grants to 28 charitable organizations, including organizations working in community services, science, education, international development, and other areas.

The Middleton Foundation at a glance

In short: The Middleton Foundation gave $784K across 28 grants in 2024 (avg $28K), mostly in California. 7% of 2024 grantees were new. Source: 2024 IRS Form 990-PF.

Annual giving (2024)
$783,500
-1.4% vs 2023
Grants made (2024)
28
+0.0% vs 2023
Average grant
$27,982
-1.4% vs 2023
Median grant
$1,000
Total assets
$14,082,751
+2.6% vs 2023
New grantees (estimate)
7% first-time grantees (2 of 28, 2024)
Primary geography
California (68% of itemized 2024 grant dollars)
Latest 990 filing
Form 990-PF, 2024 View filing

Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2024; updated October 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology).

How to apply to The Middleton Foundation

Accepts unsolicited proposals
No
How to Apply

The foundation makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds.

Contact

Mailing address: 1300 South El Camino Real Ste 203, San Mateo, CA 94402
Phone: (650) 401-2000

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

Who The Middleton Foundation funds

How this funder distributes its grants

Top Recipients

Top 10 recipients in 2024

Silicon Valley Community Foundation: $500KSilicon Valley CommunityFoundation$500KMIT (Eaps): $100KMIT (Eaps)$100KUnited States Olympic Committee: $75KUnited States OlympicCommittee$75KOpportunity International: $50KOpportunity International$50KKyoto Prize Symposium: $10KKyoto Prize Symposium$10KScience History Institute: $10KScience History Institute$10KAnanda Church: $5KAnanda Church$5KHarward University Gift: $5KHarward University Gift$5KViewpoint School: $5KViewpoint School$5KJames Beard Foundation: $4KJames Beard Foundation$4K

The largest 2024 recipient was Silicon Valley Community Foundation ($500K). Together the top 10 received $764K.

Grant Size Distribution

144 grants across all recorded years

129<$50K8$50–100K2$100–250K$250–500K5$500K–1M$1–5M$5M+

The most common grant size was under $50K: 129 grants of 144 (90%).

Geographic Focus

Where this funder awards grants

In 2024, 68% of grant dollars went to recipients in California, 13% to Massachusetts, 10% to Minnesota, 6% to Illinois, and 1% to Pennsylvania.

Grant Distribution by State

15states

Share of 2024 grant dollars across all 28 itemized grants.

Cities

San FranciscoWashingtonCambridgeHillsboroughNew YorkAlberta LeaCalabasasMountain ViewPhiladelphiaSacramentoSan MateoSanta CruzStanfordWiltonSolana BeachWoodsideCarol StreamDallasSouth Lake TahoePalo Alto

Is The Middleton Foundation open to new grantees?

7%

first-time grantees, 2024

In 2024, 2 of 28 grantees (7%) were first-time recipients. First grants averaged $2K; repeat grants $30K. How we count

Medians: $2K first-time, $1K repeat.

  • 89% of 2024 grantees were also funded in 2023. Method
  • Giving grew 27% from 2021 to 2024. Method
  • In 2024 it paid out 94% 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 (2020–2024). 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$200K$400K$600K$800K33 grants2020 27 grants2021 28 grants2022 28 grants2023 28 grants2024

From 2020 to 2024, annual grant giving ranged from $617K (2021) to $795K (2023). In 2024 it made 28 grants totaling $784K.

Grants by year

Grant recipients and amounts by year

RecipientPurposeAmount
Silicon Valley Community Foundation Mountain View, CACharity$500,000
MIT (Eaps) Cambridge, MACharity$100,000
United States Olympic Committee Alberta Lea, MNCharity$75,000
Opportunity International Carol Stream, ILCharity$50,000
Kyoto Prize Symposium San Diego, CACharity$10,000
Science History Institute Philadelphia, PACharity$10,000
Ananda Church Palo Alto, CACharity$5,000
Harward University Gift Cambridge, MACharity$5,000
Viewpoint School Calabasas, CACharity$5,000
James Beard Foundation New York, NYCharity$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
2024$14,082,751$1,221,863$933,618$783,50028$802,558$1,100,803$852,426
2023$13,724,800$595,752$937,037$794,56428$807,891$524,146$757,811
2022$13,233,900$2,219,783$829,981$673,71828$689,660$1,429,482$774,201
2021$12,459,916$3,200,134$747,550$616,52027$628,754$1,080,678$844,526
2020$11,325,456$927,556$788,544$662,01033—$619,104$654,272

Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, The Middleton Foundation reported a distributable amount of $852K for 2024 — 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 or specific funding focus areas are stated. Its 2024 grants went to organizations with varied missions. For example, Silicon Valley Community Foundation describes its work as addressing systemic inequities in the region, including through housing, early childhood development, financial stability, and equity and social justice. Opportunity International says it provides financial solutions, support, and training to help people living in poverty in developing countries build sustainable incomes. The Science History Institute says it works to expand knowledge of the history of science and catalyze new thinking about scientific and technological futures.

Grantmaking

In 2024, the foundation reported 28 grants totaling $783,500. Grant amounts ranged from $100 to $500,000, with a median grant of $1,000. Its largest awards included $500,000 to Silicon Valley Community Foundation, $100,000 to MIT (EAPS), $75,000 to the United States Olympic Committee, and $50,000 to Opportunity International.

Other reported grants included $10,000 each to the Kyoto Prize Symposium and the Science History Institute, and $5,000 each to Ananda Church, Harward University Gift, and Viewpoint School.

Leadership & Key People

Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings

Fred A. Middleton is listed as president on the 2024 filing.

The Middleton Foundation is led by Fred A. Middleton, President on every filing since 2020 — the only officer listed, and uncompensated.

Officers on the 2024 filing

  • Fred A. Middleton

    President

    On filings since 2020

    4 hrs/week

    No compensation reported

Former officers (1)
  • Former: Betty Bloxham (2020–2022) — Secretary

Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2020–2024. "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 Middleton Foundation

How much does The Middleton Foundation give each year?

The Middleton Foundation gave $784K across 28 grants in 2024, according to its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2023 it gave $795K across 28 grants.

What is The Middleton Foundation's typical grant size?

The Middleton Foundation's median grant in 2024 was $1,000, and its average grant was $27,982, across 28 grants on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from The Middleton Foundation that year got $2K on average.

Where does The Middleton Foundation give grants?

The Middleton Foundation gives mostly in California: 68% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The next largest states were Massachusetts (13%) and Minnesota (10%). The most frequent recipient cities were San Francisco, CA (5 grants), Washington, DC (3 grants), Cambridge, MA (2 grants) and New York, NY (2 grants).

Does The Middleton Foundation give general operating support?

Not in 2024: none of the 28 grants with a stated purpose on The Middleton Foundation's 2024 IRS Form 990-PF were described as general or operating support. Recurring purposes include "Charity" (28 grants).

Who are The Middleton Foundation's largest grantees?

The Middleton Foundation's largest 2024 grantees include Silicon Valley Community Foundation ($500,000), MIT (Eaps) ($100,000) and United States Olympic Committee ($75,000), according to its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 86% of its itemized 2024 grant dollars.

How large is The Middleton Foundation?

The Middleton Foundation reported $14.1M in total assets on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $803K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $852K (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 The Middleton Foundation fund?

No mission statement or specific funding focus areas are stated. Its 2024 grants went to organizations with varied missions. See mission & focus areas ↑

How do I apply for a grant from The Middleton Foundation?

The foundation 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 Middleton Foundation's EIN?

The Middleton Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 94-3117882. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2024.

Does The Middleton 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

(1)

When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable

  1. IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024

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Funders with grantees in common, and similar funders in California

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Cite this profile

Grantable. (2026). The Middleton Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/the-middleton-foundation-morg_13d356111dc94b259ae01b9d59b83f61

BibTeX
@misc{grantable_943117882_2026,
  author       = {{Grantable}},
  title        = {{The Middleton Foundation funder profile}},
  howpublished = {GrantGraph},
  year         = {2026},
  url          = {https://grantable.co/funders/the-middleton-foundation-morg_13d356111dc94b259ae01b9d59b83f61},
  note         = {Accessed 2026-10-12. 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 Middleton 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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