The Schleyer Foundation
The Schleyer Foundation is a private foundation based in Rye Beach, New Hampshire. Its 2024 filing reports 45 grants totaling $963,500, including support for educational institutions, nonprofits, and community organizations.
The Schleyer Foundation at a glance
In short: The Schleyer Foundation gave $964K across 45 grants in 2024 (avg $21K), top state New Hampshire. 16% of 2024 grantees were new. Source: 2024 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2024)
- $963,500
- +6.7% vs 2023
- Grants made (2024)
- 45
- +12.5% vs 2023
- Average grant
- $21,411
- -5.2% vs 2023
- Median grant
- $5,000
- Total assets
- $19,925,726
- +14.1% vs 2023
- New grantees (estimate)
- 16% first-time grantees (7 of 45, 2024)
- Primary geography
- New Hampshire (42% 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 Schleyer Foundation
- Accepts unsolicited proposals
- No
- How to Apply
-
The filing says the foundation does not accept unsolicited requests and may not acknowledge or make awards to unsolicited grant requests. Applicants should contact William T. Schleyer. Grant recipients must provide documentation of 501(c)(3) status.
- Review Cycle
- No deadlines at this time, according to the filing.
- Deadline
- No deadlines at this time, according to the filing.
- Contact
Application contact: William T Schleyer
Mailing address: PO Box 222, Rye Beach, NH 03871
Phone: (732) 295-1000
Website: https://schleyer-stiftung.de
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who The Schleyer Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2024
The largest 2024 recipient was Drexel University ($300K). Together the top 10 received $762K.
Grant Size Distribution
192 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 170 grants of 192 (89%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
The 2024 grant dollars went primarily to recipients in New Hampshire (42%) and Pennsylvania (31%), followed by Maine (11%), Illinois (5%), and Massachusetts (4%). These figures describe the locations of recipients in that filing year.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2024 grant dollars across all 45 itemized grants.
States
Cities
Is The Schleyer Foundation open to new grantees?
16%
first-time grantees, 2024
In 2024, 7 of 45 grantees (16%) were first-time recipients. First grants averaged $8K; repeat grants $24K. How we count
Medians: $8K first-time, $5K repeat.
- 80% of 2024 grantees were also funded in 2023. Method
- Giving held roughly steady from 2021 to 2024 (−4%). Method
- In 2024 it paid out 69% 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
From 2020 to 2024, annual grant giving ranged from $573K (2022) to $1000K (2021). In 2024 it made 45 grants totaling $964K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Drexel University Philadelphia, PA | General | $300,000 |
| GoodWork Portsmouth, NH | General | $147,000 |
| Berwick Academy South Berwick, ME | General | $100,000 |
| Lydia's House of Hope Somersworth, NH | General | $50,000 |
| Wheaton College Wheaton, IL | General | $50,000 |
| Music Hall Portsmouth, NH | General | $30,000 |
| Exeter Hospital Exeter, NH | General | $25,000 |
| Amherst College Amherst, MA | General | $20,000 |
| Blue Ocean Society Portsmouth, NH | General | $20,000 |
| Phillips Exeter Academy Exeter, NH | General | $20,000 |
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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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $19,925,726 | $5,260,163 | $1,109,933 | $963,500 | 45 | $971,500 | $3,099,511 | $1,410,694 |
| 2023 | $17,457,136 | $3,898,803 | $1,049,863 | $903,054 | 40 | $923,054 | $2,613,408 | $1,152,060 |
| 2022 | $14,361,669 | $1,858,054 | $704,658 | $573,200 | 37 | $573,275 | $913,542 | $1,065,381 |
| 2021 | $14,066,675 | $4,837,237 | $1,177,871 | $999,625 | 38 | $1,043,700 | $2,718,736 | $1,038,262 |
| 2020 | $12,268,471 | $2,055,701 | $994,285 | $898,600 | 32 | — | $882,788 | $835,856 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, The Schleyer Foundation reported a distributable amount of $1.4M for 2024 — the minimum it must pay out in qualifying distributions.
Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated October 2026.
Mission & Focus Areas
The available filing information does not state the foundation’s mission. Its 2024 grants show support for a range of organizations. Among the grantees, GoodWork describes its work as strengthening nonprofits through customized strategic support; Berwick Academy says it promotes virtue and useful knowledge among rising generations; and the Seacoast Science Center says it works to spark curiosity, enhance understanding, and inspire conservation of the ocean. These are the grantees’ stated missions, not stated priorities of the foundation.
Grantmaking
In 2024, the foundation made 45 grants totaling $963,500. Awards ranged from $500 to $300,000, with a median grant of $5,000. The largest grants included $300,000 to Drexel University, $147,000 to GoodWork, $100,000 to Berwick Academy, and $50,000 each to Lydia’s House of Hope and Wheaton College. The filing lists the purposes of these grants as “General.”
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2024 filing lists William T. Schleyer and Mary Zygala as trustees.
The Schleyer Foundation's 2024 filing lists 2 officers; none of the 2 officers listed in 2024 report compensation.
Officers on the 2024 filing
Mary Zygala
Trustee
On filings since 2020
2 hrs/week
No compensation reported
William T Schleyer
Trustee
On filings since 2020
2 hrs/week
No compensation reported
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 Schleyer Foundation
How much does The Schleyer Foundation give each year?
The Schleyer Foundation gave $964K across 45 grants in 2024, according to its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2023 it gave $903K across 40 grants.
What is The Schleyer Foundation's typical grant size?
The Schleyer Foundation's median grant in 2024 was $5,000, and its average grant was $21,411, across 45 grants on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from The Schleyer Foundation that year got $8K on average.
Where does The Schleyer Foundation give grants?
The Schleyer Foundation's top state is New Hampshire, with 42% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. The next largest states were Pennsylvania (31%) and Maine (11%). The most frequent recipient cities were Portsmouth, NH (14 grants), Exeter, NH (3 grants), Monterey, CA (2 grants) and Rye, NH (2 grants).
Does The Schleyer Foundation give general operating support?
Yes: 100% of The Schleyer Foundation's 2024 grants with a stated purpose (45 of 45) were for general or operating support, per its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF.
Who are The Schleyer Foundation's largest grantees?
The Schleyer Foundation's largest 2024 grantees include Drexel University ($300,000), GoodWork ($147,000) and Berwick Academy ($100,000), according to its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 57% of its itemized 2024 grant dollars.
How large is The Schleyer Foundation?
The Schleyer Foundation reported $19.9M in total assets on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $972K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $1.4M (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 Schleyer Foundation fund?
The available filing information does not state the foundation’s mission. Its 2024 grants show support for a range of organizations. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from The Schleyer Foundation?
The filing says the foundation does not accept unsolicited requests and may not acknowledge or make awards to unsolicited grant requests. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑
What is The Schleyer Foundation's EIN?
The Schleyer Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 05-6132358. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2024.
Does The Schleyer 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 October 2026.
Data update history
(1)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). The Schleyer Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 11, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/the-schleyer-foundation-morg_fee41b566fae45568bda42132617e431
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_056132358_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{The Schleyer Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/the-schleyer-foundation-morg_fee41b566fae45568bda42132617e431},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-11. 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 Schleyer 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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