The Wallace Foundation is an independent, national philanthropy based in New York City that works to foster improvements in learning and enrichment for young people and the vitality of the arts for everyone. Established in 1965, the foundation traces its origins to DeWitt and Lila Acheson Wallace, founders of The Reader's Digest Association, who contributed generously to artistic, cultural, and educational causes during their lifetimes.
Financial Overview
From 2024 IRS Form 990-PF · View filing
Total Assets
$1.8B
+3.0% YoY
Annual Giving
$54.6M
-11.1% YoY
Grant Count
318
+49.3% YoY
Avg Grant Size
$172K
-40.4% YoY
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, The Wallace Foundation reported a distributable amount of $83.5M for 2024 — the minimum it must pay out in qualifying distributions.
Mission & Focus Areas
Mission: To help all communities build a more vibrant and just future by fostering advances in the arts, education leadership, and youth development.
The foundation carries out most of its grantmaking through initiatives in three core areas of interest:
Arts: The foundation believes the arts foster captivation, empathy, and strengthened social bonds. It supports arts organizations in introducing more people and communities to the gifts of the arts.
Arts Education: The foundation works to ensure that every young person deserves to learn about and make art, partnering with schools and nonprofits to make this possible.
School Leadership: Supporting improvements in education leadership practices and policies.
Youth Development: Including afterschool and summer learning programs. The foundation supports citywide systems of afterschool programs that enable nonprofits, government agencies, program providers, and others to work in sync, resulting in better programming for more young people.
Additional focus areas include social/emotional learning and research into how arts programs help young people thrive.
Grantmaking
Grant Range
of $26,000 and a range from $34,000 to $3,000,000.
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Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
Grant Distribution by State
States
Cities
Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
As of Fiscal Year 2024:
- Total Assets: $1.76 billion
- Total Revenue: $124.1 million
- Total Expenses: $85.9 million
- Total Liabilities: $30.3 million
| Metric | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total Assets | $1,756,582,199 | $1,706,055,092 | $1,669,140,184 |
| Revenue | $124,078,120 | $57,299,382 | $132,616,879 |
| Expenses | $85,949,821 | $89,575,254 | $112,719,157 |
| Qualifying Distributions | $78,894,071 | $84,526,293 | $105,691,847 |
| Net Investment Income | $98,271,894 | $85,530,224 | $3,104,192 |
| Distributable Amount | $83,491,508 | $80,792,336 | $87,464,541 |
Giving Over Time
Total grant dollars and number of grants per year
Grant Insights
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2024
Grant Size Distribution
250 grants across all recorded years
Open Grants
2 open opportunities from The Wallace Foundation
Arts Organizations Founded By/With/For Communities of Color - Research Practice Partnerships
The Wallace Foundation
Amount
Varies
Deadline
Rolling / Open
Field Studies by Arts Service Organizations Rooted in Communities of Color
The Wallace Foundation
Amount
Varies
Deadline
Rolling / Open
Giving History
Grant recipients and amounts by year
Among its reported 2024 grants, the largest include Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System ($2,252,202), The Regents of the University of California at Irvine ($820,462), Social Science Research Council ($778,026).
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA | To manage a professional learning community for school leaders participating in Wallace's ECPI. | $277,500 |
| American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education Washington, DC | To serve as a Wallace communications partner. | $75,000 |
| Robin Merger Corporation Inc Arlington, VA | To support the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development's work as a Wallace communications partner. | $62,500 |
| The Laundromat Project Inc Brooklyn, NY | To participate in Wallace's Advancing Well-Being in the Arts initiative. | $22,150 |
| World Arts West San Francisco, CA | To learn more about dance groups rooted in communities of colors and how organizations such as World Arts West could better support such groups. | $125,250 |
| Vanderbilt University Nashville, TN | To study the work of districts participating in Wallace's Principal Pipeline Learning Community. | $165,440 |
| Vanderbilt University Nashville, TN | To support a study of how principals learn on the job. | $6,964 |
| North Carolina State University Raleigh, NC | To develop a tool to help equitably recruit and prepare teachers to enter principal pipelines. | $549,730 |
| RAND Corporation Santa Monica, CA | To review literature on arts and youth well-being. | $190,094 |
| Movement Strategy Center Oakland, CA | To investigate and document the ecosystem of Black artists, creatives, and cultural entrepreneurs in Memphis. | $106,732 |
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
- William I. Miller – President & Director
- Thomas Lenehan – Chief Investment Officer & Assistant Treasurer
- Talia Shaull – Chief Human Resources Officer
- Jennifer Maimone-Medwick – General Counsel & Corporate Secretary (started June 10, 2024)
- Ingrid Rasmussen – Chief Financial Officer & Treasurer (started September 2, 2024)
The foundation has a board of directors and employs approximately 52 staff members.
Compensation Overview
From 2024 IRS filing
No officer/director data available.
Recent News & Activity
Recent developments and announcements
The foundation has announced several recent research grant initiatives focused on arts and culture organizations rooted in communities of color, including:
Wallace Awards 4 Research Grants Rooted in Communities of ColorAwards of research grants to arts and culture organizations and social science researchers
Wallace Awards 4 Research Grants Rooted in Communities of ColorGrants totaling $2.72 million to arts organizations of color for research
Wallace Awards 4 Research Grants Rooted in Communities of ColorNearly $3 million in research grants to arts and culture, community development, and related organizations
Wallace Awards 4 Research Grants Rooted in Communities of ColorAn $8 million grant approval
The Wallace Foundation Approves $8 Million GrantRecent content from the foundation includes research on how arts programs help young people thrive, reports measuring the impact of culture-centered approaches, and lessons in diversity and identity from arts initiatives in Chicago and Omaha.
The Wallace Foundation Awards nearly $3M in Research Grants to ...Subject Areas
Focus areas based on grantmaking activity
Frequently Asked Questions
What does The Wallace Foundation fund?
**Mission:** To help all communities build a more vibrant and just future by fostering advances in the arts, education leadership, and youth development. The foundation carries out most of its grantmaking through initiatives in three core areas of interest: • **Arts:** The foundation believes the arts foster captivation, empathy, and strengthened social bonds. It supports arts organizations in introducing more people and communities to the gifts of the arts. • **Arts Education:** The foundation…
How do I apply for a grant from The Wallace Foundation?
**Grant Activity:** The foundation made 318 grants in its most recent fiscal year, with a median grant size of $26,000 and a range from $34,000 to $3,000,000. **Recent Grants:** Recent grantees include First Peoples Fund and Alternate Roots, each receiving $3,000,000 to participate in Wallace's Advancing Well-Being in the Arts Initiative (2024). **Program Areas:** The foundation's grantmaking includes: • Technical assistance: coordination and facilitation of learning communities and technical a…
What size grants does The Wallace Foundation award?
In 2024, The Wallace Foundation awarded 318 grants totaling $54.6M — an average of about $172K per grant, based on its IRS Form 990 filings.
How much is The Wallace Foundation required to give away each year?
Private foundations must generally distribute about 5% of their assets annually. For 2024, The Wallace Foundation reported a distributable amount of $83.5M on its IRS Form 990-PF — the minimum it must pay out in qualifying distributions.
What is The Wallace Foundation's EIN?
The Wallace Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 13-6183757. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2024.
Explore Open Grants
Browse active grant opportunities in The Wallace Foundation's focus areas in our free grants database
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Data last updated June 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990-PF filings. Research dossier generated April 2026.
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