Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation
Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation (UMEZ) is a New York, New York-based public charity and community development financing entity. It provides flexible capital to strengthen under-resourced communities in Upper Manhattan and beyond, supporting job creation, business investment, cultural programs, and workforce development.
Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation at a glance
In short: Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation gave $735K across 11 grants in 2025 (avg $67K), mostly in New York. 18% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $735,239
- -11.3% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 11
- -38.9% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $66,840
- +45.1% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $25,000
- Total assets
- $87,217,954
- +5.2% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 18% first-time grantees (2 of 11, 2025; small sample)
- Primary geography
- New York (100% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990, 2025 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990, 2025; updated October 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology).
How to apply to Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation
- Contact
Mailing address: 55 West 125Th Street 11Th Floor, New York, NY 10027
Phone: (212) 410-0030
Website: https://umez.org
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Open Grants
4 open opportunities from Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation
UMEZ Arts Engagement Grant (UMAE)
Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation
Amount
Up to $10,000
Deadline
Deadline not published
UMEZ Cultural Aid Fund
Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation
Amount
Varies
Deadline
Deadline not published
UMEZ Cultural Industry Investment Fund (CIIF) - Capacity Building Grants
Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation
Amount
Varies
Deadline
Deadline not published
Who Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Lower Manhattan Cultural Coumcil ($354K). Together the top 10 received $720K.
Grant Size Distribution
107 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 77 grants of 107 (72%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
UMEZ focuses on Upper Manhattan. Its cultural investment program identifies Central Harlem, West Harlem, East Harlem, Washington Heights, and Inwood. The organization also describes its work as extending beyond Upper Manhattan.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 11 itemized grants.
States
Cities
Is Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation open to new grantees?
18%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 2 of 11 grantees (18%) were first-time recipients. With only 11 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 9 points. First grants averaged $18K; repeat grants $78K. How we count
Medians: $18K first-time, $25K repeat.
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990 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 $735K (2025) to $2.5M (2022). In 2025 it made 11 grants totaling $735K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Lower Manhattan Cultural Coumcil New York, NY | Art Engagement Program | $354,000 |
| Apollo Theatre Foundation Inc New York, NY | To support major capital components for apollo soundstage and the victoria theaters. | $175,000 |
| Community Impact New York, NY | Ercb Grant | $25,000 |
| Community League of the Heights Inc New York, NY | Ercb Grant | $25,000 |
| New York Urban League Inc New York, NY | Ercb Grant | $25,000 |
| Northern Manhattan Arts Alliance New York, NY | Ercb Grant | $25,000 |
| Strive International Inc New York, NY | Ercb Grant | $25,000 |
| Youth Action Programs and Home Inc New York, NY | Capacity Grant | $25,000 |
| Maysles Institute Inc New York, NY | Capacity Grant | $21,239 |
| Public Works Partners LLC New York, NY | Technical Assistance Support Workforce | $20,000 |
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Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
| Filing year | Total Assets | Revenue | Expenses | Grants paid | Grants | Net Investment Income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $87,217,954 | $5,407,935 | $4,985,924 | $735,239 | 11 | $3,628,266 |
| 2024 | $82,891,599 | $4,970,842 | $4,768,358 | $829,342 | 18 | $2,622,790 |
| 2023 | $79,521,172 | $5,950,446 | $5,219,399 | $1,900,705 | 32 | $1,118,913 |
| 2022 | $79,925,047 | $9,613,613 | $6,862,166 | $2,468,548 | 34 | $449,785 |
| 2021 | $90,632,786 | $3,433,188 | $4,677,479 | $1,410,089 | 12 | $510,446 |
| 2020 | $83,528,434 | $6,857,023 | $5,942,449 | $2,305,048 | 28 | $954,001 |
| 2019 | $84,770,725 | $12,666,359 | $4,840,806 | $1,579,732 | 11 | $734,198 |
Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated October 2026.
Mission & Focus Areas
UMEZ’s mission is to sustain the economic revitalization of Upper Manhattan communities through job creation, corporate alliances, strategic investments, and small business assistance.
Its work includes loans for businesses and developers, small-business lending, real estate investment, cultural grants, and workforce development. Its website describes cultural grants as supporting public-facing arts and cultural activities and strengthening organizations’ capacity. Grant categories include capacity, infrastructure, technical assistance, arts engagement, and collaborative cultural projects. UMEZ also invests in training and employment programs that connect Upper Manhattan residents with quality jobs and career pathways.
UMEZ’s 2025 grants included organizations with varied missions. For example, Youth Action Programs and Homes describes its work as building a community of young people and adults committed to taking responsibility for their lives and improving the larger community. Northern Manhattan Arts Alliance says it promotes and supports artists and arts organizations in Northern Manhattan. Workforce Professionals Training Institute describes its mission as strengthening the workforce development system by building the capacity of organizations and professionals who connect job seekers to careers.
Grantmaking
In filing year 2025, UMEZ reported 11 grants totaling $735,239. Grant amounts ranged from $15,000 to $354,000, with a median of $25,000. The largest awards were $354,000 to Lower Manhattan Cultural Council for an art engagement program and $175,000 to Apollo Theatre Foundation for major capital components for the Apollo Soundstage and Victoria Theaters.
Other reported awards included $25,000 each to Community Impact, Community League of the Heights, New York Urban League, Northern Manhattan Arts Alliance, and STRIVE International. UMEZ also reported $25,000 to Youth Action Programs and Homes, $21,239 to Maysles Institute, $20,000 to Public Works Partners for technical-assistance support for workforce development, and $15,000 to Workforce Professionals Training Institute for technical-assistance support for workforce development. All reported 2025 grant dollars went to recipients in New York.
UMEZ’s website describes its Cultural Industry Investment Fund capacity-building grants as supporting Upper Manhattan cultural institutions and arts organizations, including museums, performance venues, and cultural heritage organizations. Listed uses include staff expansion, revenue generation, marketing and fundraising capacity, renovation or expansion, and programming expansion. The program description specifies qualified nonprofit corporations and established organizations with demonstrated capacity. The website also lists $5,000 grants through the UMEZ Mertz Gilmore Seed Fund for Dance and arts engagement grants of up to $10,000 administered by Lower Manhattan Cultural Council.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Joseph J. Johnson III as chairperson, Maurine Knighton as vice chair, and Amir Kirkwood as secretary. Directors listed are Brianna McClure, Christopher Brown, Dennis Mitchell, Eleazar Bueno, Harriet Michel, Kevin Chavers, and Michael Smart.
Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation is led by Blair M. Duncan, CEO on every filing since 2019; 7 of 22 officers listed in 2025 are compensated.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Blair M. Duncan
CEO
On filings since 2019
37.5 hrs/week
$239K (2019) → $571K (2025)
Joseph J. Johnson III
Chairperson
On filings since 2019
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Danessy Pico
Director Hr Operations
New on the 2025 filing
37.5 hrs/week
$107K (2025)
Harriet Michel
Director
On filings since 2019
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Kevin Chavers
Director
On filings since 2019
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Michael Smart
Director
On filings since 2019
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Dennis Mitchell
Director
On filings since 2020
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Eleazar Bueno
Director
On filings since 2020
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Georgiette Morgan-Thomas
Director
On filings since 2020
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Sabrina Stratton
Director
On filings since 2020
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Christopher Brown
Director
On filings since 2021
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Xavier Santiago
Director
On filings since 2022
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Reema Fakih
Director
On filings since 2023
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Brianna McClure
Director
New on the 2025 filing
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Yahshaanyah Hill
Senior Vice President & Chief Progam Officer
Senior Vice President & Workforce Opportunity → Senior Vice President & Chief Program Officer, 2024
Senior Vice President & Chief Program Officer → Senior Vice President & Chief Progam Officer, 2025
On filings since 2019
37.5 hrs/week
$110K (2019) → $180K (2025)
Olatunde Oniyide
CFO
On filings since 2022
37.5 hrs/week
$109K (2023) → $169K (2025)
Gina L. Bolden-Rivera
Senior Vice President & Chief Lend. Officer
Senior Vice President & Chief Lending Officer → Senior Vice President & Chief Lend. Officer, 2025
On filings since 2024
37.5 hrs/week
$186K (2024) → $199K (2025)
Dannette Sullivan-Hyatt
Senior Loan Administrator
New on the 2025 filing
37.5 hrs/week
$100K (2025)
Nicole E. Reiner
Senior Program Officer
New on the 2025 filing
37.5 hrs/week
$125K (2025)
Amir Kirkwood
Secretary
Secretary → Director, 2022
Director → Secretary, 2025
On filings since 2019
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Maurine Knighton
Vice Chair
Vice Chair → Director, 2022
Director → Vice Chair, 2023
On filings since 2019
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Teresa Eyring
Treasurer
Director → Treasurer, 2020
On filings since 2019
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Former officers (23)
- Former: Lisa Downing (2019–2024) — Director
- Former: Danielle Fleming (2024) — Senior Commercial Lending Officer
- Former: Marquis Harrison (2024) — Director
- Former: Gaffar Mohamed (2019–2023) — CFO
- Former: Nikisha Alcindor (2019–2023) — Director
- Former: Verdery Roosevelt (2019–2023) — Senior Vice President & Cultural Affairs
- Former: Gina L. Bolden- Rivera (2023) — Senior Vice President & Chief Lending Officer
- Former: William J. King (2023) — Senior Vice President
- Former: Nilsa Orama (2019–2022) — Director
- Former: William Chase (2021–2022) — Senior Underwriter
- Former: Blair Smith (2019–2021) — CIO
- Former: Elizabeth Harris (2019–2021) — General Counsel
- Former: Anthony Q. Fletcher (2019–2020) — Secretary
- Former: Carmen Vasquez (2019–2020) — Treasurer
- Former: Maxine Griffith (2019–2020) — Director
- Former: Rekha Nambiar (2019–2020) — Director
- Former: Cheryl Anhava (2020) — Program Cultural. Inv. Officer
- Former: Richard Lewis (2020) — Director
- Former: Diane Collier (2019) — Director
- Former: Keith Taylor (2019) — Director
- Former: Kenneth Knuckles (2019) — CEO
- Former: Maurice Coleman (2019) — Vice Chair
- Former: Shahabuddeen Ally (2019) — Director
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.
Compensation Overview
From 2025 IRS filing
The highest reported compensation on the 2025 filing was $571K, to Blair M Duncan (CEO). 7 officers or directors reported compensation on that filing.
Frequently asked questions about Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation
How much does Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation give each year?
Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation gave $735K across 11 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990. In 2024 it gave $829K across 18 grants.
What is Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation's typical grant size?
Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation's median grant in 2025 was $25,000, and its average grant was $66,840, across 11 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990. Organizations receiving their first grant from Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation that year got $18K on average.
Where does Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation give grants?
Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation gives mostly in New York: 100% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990 went to recipients there. The most frequent recipient cities were New York, NY (11 grants).
Does Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation give general operating support?
Not in 2025: none of the 11 grants with a stated purpose on Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation's 2025 IRS Form 990 were described as general or operating support. Recurring purposes include "Ercb Grant" (5 grants).
Who are Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation's largest grantees?
Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation's largest 2025 grantees include Lower Manhattan Cultural Coumcil ($354,000), Apollo Theatre Foundation Inc ($175,000) and Community Impact ($25,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990. Together they received 75% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation?
Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation reported $87.2M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990. Its revenue that year was $5.4M.
What does Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation fund?
UMEZ’s mission is to sustain the economic revitalization of Upper Manhattan communities through job creation, corporate alliances, strategic investments, and small business assistance. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation?
Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation has no public application process in the sources Grantable reviewed. Check umez.org for current guidelines, or contact the foundation directly before submitting a request.
What is Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation's EIN?
Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 13-3808669. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2019–2025.
Data last updated October 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990 filings. Research dossier generated October 2026.
Data update history
(8)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS May 10, 2021)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS May 4, 2022)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS May 15, 2023)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS March 21, 2024)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS April 16, 2025)
- Added Form 990 for fiscal year 2019 (received by the IRS July 6, 2020)
- Added Form 990 for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 14, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024
Live grants for the work Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation funds
Community Improvement & Capacity Building Open opportunities, soonest deadline first.
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Browse active grant opportunities in Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation's focus areas in our free grants database
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 21, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/upper-manhattan-empowerment-zone-development-corporation-morg_ba6abf608afa41008548ff597afcb91b
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_133808669_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/upper-manhattan-empowerment-zone-development-corporation-morg_ba6abf608afa41008548ff597afcb91b},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-21. 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 Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation'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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