The New England Foundation

Private foundation · Grantmaker Chestnut Hill, MA EIN: 22-2757391

The New England Foundation is a private foundation based in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. In 2025, it gave grants to organizations in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Connecticut, New York, and Pennsylvania, with listed purposes including general welfare, education, religious, and medical support.

Key facts about The New England Foundation

In short: The New England Foundation gave $575K across 28 grants in 2025 (avg $21K), mostly in Massachusetts. 39% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.

EIN
22-2757391
Latest 990 filing
Form 990-PF, 2025
Annual giving (2025)
$575,000
Grants made (2025)
28
Average grant
$20,536
Median grant
$17,500
New grantees (estimate)
39% first-time grantees (11 of 28, 2025)
Total assets
$5,429,641
Primary geography
Massachusetts (61% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
How to apply
Submit a written form indicating the amount requested and projected use. Full details ↓
Deadline
None.

Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2025; updated September 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology). Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.

Financial Overview

From 2025 IRS Form 990-PF · View filing

Total Assets

$5.4M

-0.9% YoY

Annual Giving

$575K

-4.2% YoY

Grant Count

28

+12.0% YoY

Avg Grant Size

$21K

-14.4% YoY

Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, The New England Foundation reported a distributable amount of $339K for 2025 — the minimum it must pay out in qualifying distributions.

Is The New England Foundation open to new grantees?

39%

first-time grantees, 2025

In 2025, 11 of 28 grantees (39%) were first-time recipients. First grants averaged $16K; repeat grants $23K. How we count

Medians: $15K first-time, $20K repeat.

  • 57% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
  • Giving fell 60% from 2022 to 2025. Method
  • In 2025 it paid out 175% of 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.

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 included support for organizations with purposes identified as general welfare, education, religious, and medical.

The Boston Symphony Orchestra describes its mission as making music and providing educational and training programs. Tenacity describes its mission as youth development and life-skill development. The Park School says it is dedicated to excellence in education, and Boston Ballet describes its work in terms of forging human connections through art.

Grantmaking

In 2025, the foundation made 28 grants totaling $575,000. Grant amounts ranged from $1,000 to $81,000, with a median of $17,500. Among the largest grants were $81,000 to the Boston Symphony Orchestra for general welfare; $50,000 to Dartmouth College for education; and $30,000 each to the Church of the Redeemer for religious purposes, Dana-Farber Cancer and Massachusetts General Hospital for medical purposes, the New York Historical Society for general welfare, and Tenacity for education.

Review Cycle

None.

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Geographic Focus

Where this funder awards grants

In 2025, 61% of grant dollars went to recipients in Massachusetts, 17% to New Hampshire, 11% to Connecticut, 5% to New York, and 3% to Pennsylvania.

Grant Distribution by State

9states

Share of all 28 itemized 2025 grant dollars.

Cities

BostonHanoverNew HavenMontereyChestnut HillManchesterNew YorkWest RoxburyBryn MawrBrooklineCambridgeFrankfortNewtonPittsfieldBrightonClearmontFraminghamLymeNew BedfordPalm Beach

Giving Over Time

Total grant dollars and number of grants per year

$0$500K$1M$1.5M22 grants202013 grants202121 grants202215 grants202325 grants202428 grants2025

From 2020 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $268K (2023) to $1.4M (2022). In 2025 it made 28 grants totaling $575K.

Grant Insights

How this funder distributes its grants

Top Recipients

Top 10 recipients in 2025

Boston Symphony Orchestra: $81KBoston Symphony Orchestra$81KDartmouth College: $50KDartmouth College$50KChurch of the Redeemer: $30KChurch of the Redeemer$30KDana Farber Cancer: $30KDana Farber Cancer$30KMassachusetts General Hospital: $30KMassachusetts General Hospital$30KNY Historical Soc: $30KNY Historical Soc$30KTenacity: $30KTenacity$30KBidwell House Museum: $25KBidwell House Museum$25KMonterey Meeting House: $25KMonterey Meeting House$25KRoxbury Latin School: $25KRoxbury Latin School$25K

The largest 2025 recipient was Boston Symphony Orchestra ($81K). Together the top 10 received $356K.

Grant Size Distribution

102 grants across all recorded years

87<$50K9$50–100K2$100–250K3$250–500K1$500K–1M$1–5M$5M+

The most common grant size was under $50K: 87 grants of 102 (85%).

Giving History

Grant recipients and amounts by year

RecipientPurposeAmount
Boston Symphony Orchestra Boston, MAGeneral Welfare$81,000
Dartmouth College Hanover, NHEducation$50,000
Church of the Redeemer Chestnut Hill, MAReligious$30,000
Dana Farber Cancer Boston, MAMedical$30,000
Massachusetts General Hospital Boston, MAMedical$30,000
NY Historical Soc New York, NYGeneral Welfare$30,000
Tenacity Boston, MAEducation$30,000
Bidwell House Museum Monterey, MAGeneral Welfare$25,000
Monterey Meeting House Monterey, MAGeneral Welfare$25,000
Roxbury Latin School West Roxbury, MAEducation$25,000

Financial History

Multi-year comparison from IRS filings

Filing year Assets Revenue Expenses Grants
2025 $5,429,641 $627,948 $678,890 $575,000
2024 $5,480,583 $102,219 $685,960 $600,000
2023 $6,064,324 -$1,046,355 $390,005 $267,626
Revenue
Expenses
Qualifying Distributions
Net Investment Income
$0$500K$1M$1.5M$2M202020212022202320242025
Metric202520242023
Total Assets$5,429,641$5,480,583$6,064,324
Revenue$627,948$102,219$-1,046,355
Expenses$678,890$685,960$390,005
Qualifying Distributions$592,147$608,453$282,991
Net Investment Income$541,204$92,047—
Distributable Amount$338,776$316,613$258,376

Data update history

When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable

  1. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS May 10, 2021)
  2. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS May 16, 2022)
  3. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS May 5, 2023)
  4. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS May 10, 2024)
  5. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS May 8, 2025)
  6. Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 14, 2026)

Leadership & Key People

Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings

The 2025 filing lists Joseph McNay, Anne McNay, and Colin McNay as trustees.

The New England Foundation's 2025 filing lists 3 officers; none of the 3 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.

Officers on the 2025 filing

  • Anne McNay

    Trustee

    On filings since 2024

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Colin McNay

    Trustee

    On filings since 2024

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Joseph McNay

    Trustee

    On filings since 2024

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

Former officers (3)
  • Former: Anne McNay Co Essex Inv Mgmt (2020–2023) — Trustee
  • Former: Colin McNay Co Essex Inv Mgmt (2020–2023) — Trustee
  • Former: Joseph McNay Co Essex Inv Mgmt (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.

Contact

Application contact: The New England Foundation
Mailing address: 206 Chestnut Hill Road, Chestnut Hill, MA 02467
Phone: (617) 342-3200

Frequently asked questions about The New England Foundation

How much does The New England Foundation give each year?

The New England Foundation gave $575K across 28 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $600K across 25 grants.

What is The New England Foundation's typical grant size?

The New England Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $17,500, and its average grant was $20,536, across 28 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from The New England Foundation that year got $16K on average.

Where does The New England Foundation give grants?

The New England Foundation gives mostly in Massachusetts: 61% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The next largest states were New Hampshire (17%) and Connecticut (11%). The most frequent recipient cities were Boston, MA (10 grants), Hanover, NH (3 grants), New Haven, CT (3 grants) and Monterey, MA (2 grants).

Does The New England Foundation give general operating support?

Yes: 39% of The New England Foundation's 2025 grants with a stated purpose (11 of 28) were for general or operating support, per its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Recurring purposes include "Education" (13 grants).

Who are The New England Foundation's largest grantees?

The New England Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include Boston Symphony Orchestra ($81,000), Dartmouth College ($50,000) and Church of the Redeemer ($30,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 28% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.

How large is The New England Foundation?

The New England Foundation reported $5.4M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $592K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $339K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).

What does The New England Foundation fund?

No mission statement for the foundation is provided. Its 2025 grants included support for organizations with purposes identified as general welfare, education, religious, and medical. See mission & focus areas ↑

How do I apply for a grant from The New England Foundation?

Submit a written form indicating the amount requested and projected use. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑

What is The New England Foundation's EIN?

The New England Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 22-2757391. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2025.

Data last updated September 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990-PF filings. Research dossier generated September 2026.

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