The Schnitzer Family Foundation
The Schnitzer Family Foundation is a private foundation based in Chicago, Illinois. Its 2025 grants supported organizations for general charitable, scientific, or educational purposes.
The Schnitzer Family Foundation at a glance
In short: The Schnitzer Family Foundation gave $97K across 38 grants in 2025 (avg $3K), top state Illinois. 24% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $96,831
- +12.8% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 38
- +35.7% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $2,548
- -16.9% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $2,000
- Total assets
- $878,509
- -6.0% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 24% first-time grantees (9 of 38, 2025)
- Primary geography
- Illinois (44% 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 Schnitzer Family Foundation
- How to Apply
-
The foundation does not restrict giving to preselected organizations. Applicants should submit a letter stating their intent and a resume or curriculum vitae. The filing states no restrictions on awards.
- Review Cycle
- Applications are considered as received.
- Deadline
- Applications are considered as received.
- Contact
Application contact: Barbara K Schnitzer
Mailing address: 910 S Laflin Street, Chicago, IL 60607
Phone: (312) 733-2072
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who The Schnitzer Family Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Reprotlc ($10K). Together the top 10 received $55K.
Grant Size Distribution
162 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 162 grants of 162 (100%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
In 2025, grant dollars went primarily to recipients in Illinois (44%), followed by New Hampshire (17%), New York (15%), Maryland (12%), and Washington, DC (10%).
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 38 itemized grants.
States
Cities
Is The Schnitzer Family Foundation open to new grantees?
24%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 9 of 38 grantees (24%) were first-time recipients. First grants averaged $3K; repeat grants $2K. How we count
Medians: $1K first-time, $2K repeat.
- 63% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving held roughly steady from 2022 to 2025 (+12%). Method
- In 2025 it paid out 87% 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 (2019–2025). 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 2019 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $69K (2019) to $97K (2025). In 2025 it made 38 grants totaling $97K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Reprotlc Berwyn, IL | General Charitable Scientific or Educational Purpose | $10,000 |
| 6TH and I Sinagogue DC Washington, DC | General Charitable Scientific or Educational Purpose | $5,000 |
| ACLU Chicago, IL | General Charitable Scientific or Educational Purpose | $5,000 |
| American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee Inc New York, NY | General Charitable Scientific or Educational Purpose | $5,000 |
| Doctors Without Borders New York, NY | General Charitable Scientific or Educational Purpose | $5,000 |
| Greater Chicago Food Depository Chicago, IL | General Charitable Scientific or Educational Purpose | $5,000 |
| Hias Silver Springs, MD | General Charitable Scientific or Educational Purpose | $5,000 |
| The Ark Chicago, IL | General Charitable Scientific or Educational Purpose | $5,000 |
| University of Chicago Chicago, IL | General Charitable Scientific or Educational Purpose | $5,000 |
| Yivo Institute for Jewish Research Manhattan, NY | General Charitable Scientific or Educational Purpose | $5,000 |
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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 | $878,509 | $48,313 | $104,396 | $96,831 | 38 | $96,831 | $42,310 | $111,117 |
| 2024 | $934,592 | $176,438 | $92,940 | $85,853 | 28 | $85,853 | $42,580 | $99,578 |
| 2023 | $851,094 | $42,953 | $96,184 | $90,000 | 32 | $90,000 | $39,300 | $86,362 |
| 2022 | $904,325 | $40,152 | $92,038 | $86,350 | 31 | $86,350 | $35,289 | $90,066 |
| 2021 | $956,211 | $27,967 | $79,639 | $73,925 | 33 | $73,925 | $28,180 | $87,418 |
| 2020 | $1,007,883 | $63,766 | $78,368 | $71,975 | 36 | — | $60,179 | $72,958 |
| 2019 | $1,022,485 | $69,800 | $74,439 | $69,227 | 37 | — | $65,803 | $71,156 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, The Schnitzer Family Foundation reported a distributable amount of $111K 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 grants went to organizations with varied activities. For example, HIAS describes its mission as welcoming and supporting refugees, while the Greater Chicago Food Depository says its mission is to end hunger. The University of Chicago describes its mission as communicating and creating knowledge and fostering a community of scholars and students. These are the grantees’ stated missions, not the foundation’s.
Grantmaking
In filing year 2025, the foundation reported 38 grants totaling $96,831. Grants ranged from $250 to $10,000, with a median of $2,000. Its largest grant was $10,000 to REPROTLC in Berwyn, Illinois. Other notable 2025 grants included $5,000 each to 6th and I Sinagogue DC, ACLU in Chicago, the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, Doctors Without Borders, the Greater Chicago Food Depository, HIAS, The Ark, the University of Chicago, and the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research.
The foundation’s 2024 grants included $10,000 to HIAS, $7,500 to the University of Chicago, and $5,000 each to The Ark, the Greater Chicago Food Depository, the Southern Poverty Law Center, and the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Thomas J Schnitzer as president, Barbara K Schnitzer as treasurer, and Andrea Schnitzer as secretary.
The Schnitzer Family Foundation is led by Thomas J. Schnitzer, President on every filing since 2019; none of the 3 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Thomas J. Schnitzer
President
On filings since 2019
2 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Andrea Schnitzer
Secretary
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Barbara K. Schnitzer
Treasurer
On filings since 2019
2 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2019–2025. "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 Schnitzer Family Foundation
How much does The Schnitzer Family Foundation give each year?
The Schnitzer Family Foundation gave $97K across 38 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $86K across 28 grants.
What is The Schnitzer Family Foundation's typical grant size?
The Schnitzer Family Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $2,000, and its average grant was $2,548, across 38 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from The Schnitzer Family Foundation that year got $3K on average.
Where does The Schnitzer Family Foundation give grants?
The Schnitzer Family Foundation's top state is Illinois, with 44% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. The next largest states were New Hampshire (17%) and New York (15%). The most frequent recipient cities were Chicago, IL (10 grants), Concord, NH (5 grants), Washington, DC (4 grants) and New York, NY (2 grants).
Does The Schnitzer Family Foundation give general operating support?
Yes: 100% of The Schnitzer Family Foundation's 2025 grants with a stated purpose (38 of 38) were for general or operating support, per its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Who are The Schnitzer Family Foundation's largest grantees?
The Schnitzer Family Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include Reprotlc ($10,000), 6TH and I Sinagogue DC ($5,000) and ACLU ($5,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 21% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is The Schnitzer Family Foundation?
The Schnitzer Family Foundation reported $879K in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $97K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $111K (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 Schnitzer Family Foundation fund?
No mission statement for the foundation is provided. Its grants went to organizations with varied activities. For example, HIAS describes its mission as welcoming and supporting refugees, while the Greater Chicago Food Depository says its mission is to end hunger. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from The Schnitzer Family Foundation?
The foundation does not restrict giving to preselected organizations. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑
What is The Schnitzer Family Foundation's EIN?
The Schnitzer Family Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 36-3486315. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2019–2025.
Data last updated October 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990-PF filings. Research dossier generated September 2026.
Data update history
(3)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2019 (received by the IRS May 26, 2020)
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 13, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024
Live grants for the work The Schnitzer Family Foundation funds
Philanthropy, Voluntarism & Grantmaking Open opportunities, soonest deadline first.
Explore Open Grants
Browse active grant opportunities in The Schnitzer Family Foundation's focus areas in our free grants database
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). The Schnitzer Family Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 16, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/the-schnitzer-family-foundation-morg_86b7e1dbca524bc1bddcf6108cbbcecf
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_363486315_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{The Schnitzer Family Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/the-schnitzer-family-foundation-morg_86b7e1dbca524bc1bddcf6108cbbcecf},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-16. 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 Schnitzer Family 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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