Religion News Foundation
Funding Overview
From IRS Form 990 filings · 2020–2025
Total received
$21.0M
Foundation funders
16
Grants recorded
39
Years covered
2020–2025
Who funds Religion News Foundation?
Religion News Foundation is funded by 16 grantmakers, led by Lilly Endowment Inc ($19.6M), John E Fetzer Institute Inc ($260K), Guru Krupa Foundation Inc ($205K). In total, IRS Form 990 filings record $21.0M in grants to Religion News Foundation between 2020–2025.
| Funder | Total given | Grants | Years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lilly Endowment Inc | $19,591,050 | 10 | 2020–2025 |
| John E Fetzer Institute Inc | $260,000 | 3 | 2020–2021 |
| Guru Krupa Foundation Inc | $205,000 | 4 | 2021–2025 |
| The William & Flora Hewlett Foundation | $200,000 | 1 | 2024 |
| Stiefel Freethought Foundation | $200,000 | 2 | 2022–2023 |
| Arthur V Davis Foundation PF #3 | $150,000 | 1 | 2024 |
| Institute for Nonprofit News | $102,310 | 4 | 2021–2024 |
| Interfaith America | $75,000 | 2 | 2023–2024 |
| National Public Radio Inc | $70,743 | 1 | 2025 |
| E Rhodes and Leona B Carpenter Foundation | $50,000 | 3 | 2022–2024 |
| The Miami Foundation Inc | $34,121 | 2 | 2020–2021 |
| Eula Mae and John Baugh Foundation | $25,000 | 1 | 2024 |
| Solutions Journalism Network Inc | $20,000 | 2 | 2020–2023 |
| Pew Research Center | $10,000 | 1 | 2025 |
| The Blackbaud Giving Fund | $10,000 | 1 | 2023 |
| Morgan Stanley Global Impact Funding Trust Inc | $5,000 | 1 | 2024 |
Funding over time
Grant dollars and counts received per year
From 2020 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $1.4M (2021) to $5.2M (2025). In 2025 it made 4 grants totaling $5.2M.
What grants has Religion News Foundation received?
Individual grants from IRS Form 990 filings, newest first
| Year | Funder | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Lilly Endowment Inc | RELIGION NEWS SERVICE PROJECT | $5,000,000 |
| 2025 | Guru Krupa Foundation Inc | TO PAY 60% COST OF FULLTIME REPORTER TO WRITE ARTICLES/COLUMNS ON HINDUISM IN NEWS WEBSITE | $75,000 |
| 2025 | National Public Radio Inc | TO SUPPORT SPECIALIZED NEWSROOM BEAT REPORTING AND MULTIPLATFORM JOURNALISTIC COVERAGE | $70,743 |
| 2025 | Pew Research Center | Sponsorship | $10,000 |
| 2024 | Lilly Endowment Inc | GLOBAL RELIGION JOURNALISM INIT | $2,997,250 |
| 2024 | The William & Flora Hewlett Foundation | FOR GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT | $200,000 |
| 2024 | Arthur V Davis Foundation PF #3 | UNRESTRICTED GENERAL | $150,000 |
| 2024 | Guru Krupa Foundation Inc | FOR HIRING COLUMNIST TO COVER HINDUISM | $65,000 |
| 2024 | Interfaith America | IA/RNS JOURNALISM FELLOWSHIP | $50,000 |
| 2024 | Institute for Nonprofit News | INN SUPPORT - LABS & COLUMBIA COLLA | $41,245 |
| 2024 | Eula Mae and John Baugh Foundation | General Support | $25,000 |
| 2024 | E Rhodes and Leona B Carpenter Foundation | TO HELP WITH THE COST OF PRODUCING STORIES ON RELIGIOUS AND FAITH ISSUES AS DESCRIBED IN ITS GRANT PROPOSAL. | $20,000 |
| 2024 | Morgan Stanley Global Impact Funding Trust Inc | UNRESTRICTED GENERAL SUPPORT | $5,000 |
| 2023 | Lilly Endowment Inc | RELIGION NEWS SERVICE PROJECT | $4,092,800 |
| 2023 | Stiefel Freethought Foundation | General & Unrestricted | $100,000 |
| 2023 | Guru Krupa Foundation Inc | FOR HIRING COLUMNIST TO COVER HINDUISM | $40,000 |
| 2023 | Interfaith America | IA/RNS JOURNALISM FELLOWSHIP | $25,000 |
| 2023 | Institute for Nonprofit News | INN SUPPORT - WALTON COLLAB & INTER | $18,000 |
| 2023 | E Rhodes and Leona B Carpenter Foundation | TO HELP UNDERWRITE A MULTI-FAITH JOURNALISM SERIES ON LGBTQ+ TOPICS. | $15,000 |
| 2023 | The Blackbaud Giving Fund | GENERAL SUPPORT | $10,000 |
| 2023 | Solutions Journalism Network Inc | TO SUPPORT THE TRAINING AND PRODUCTION OF SOLUTIONS JOURNALISM | $10,000 |
| 2022 | Lilly Endowment Inc | GLOBALRELIGION JOURNALISM INITIATIVE | $1,925,000 |
| 2022 | Lilly Endowment Inc | RELIGION NEWS SERVICE PROJECT | $1,445,000 |
| 2022 | Stiefel Freethought Foundation | to fund reporting on the dangers of white Christian nationalism in America | $100,000 |
| 2022 | E Rhodes and Leona B Carpenter Foundation | HELP WITH THE COSTS OF A MULTI-FAITH JOURNALISM SERIES (10 STORIES) ON LGBTQ+ TOPICS ON RELIGION NEWS SERVICE (RELIGIONNEWSSERVICE.COM). | $15,000 |
| 2022 | Institute for Nonprofit News | INN DIRECT SUPPORT - 2022 COLUMBIA INTERNSHIP GRANT | $14,579 |
| 2021 | Lilly Endowment Inc | RELIGION NEWS SERVICE PROJECT | $1,245,000 |
| 2021 | John E Fetzer Institute Inc | SUPPORT JOURNALISTIC COVERAGE OF SPIRITUAL INNOVATION AND ACTIVITIES OF THE RELIGION NEWS | $60,000 |
| 2021 | Institute for Nonprofit News | INN DIRECT SUPPORT - 2021 COLUMBIA INTERN GRANT | $28,486 |
| 2021 | Guru Krupa Foundation Inc | FOR HIRING COLUMNIST TO COVER HINDUISM | $25,000 |
Showing 30 most recent of 39 recorded grants.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who funds Religion News Foundation?
Religion News Foundation is funded by 16 grantmakers, led by Lilly Endowment Inc ($19.6M), John E Fetzer Institute Inc ($260K), Guru Krupa Foundation Inc ($205K). In total, IRS Form 990 filings record $21.0M in grants to Religion News Foundation between 2020–2025.
Who is Religion News Foundation's largest funder?
Lilly Endowment Inc is the largest recorded funder of Religion News Foundation, with $19.6M across 10 grants (2020–2025).
How much grant funding has Religion News Foundation received?
IRS 990 filings record $21.0M in grants to Religion News Foundation across 39 grants from 16 funders between 2020–2025. Filings are published on a delay, so recent grants may not appear yet.
Looking for funders like Religion News Foundation's?
Grantable's AI matches your organization against 200,000+ grantmakers — including every funder on this page — using their real giving history.
You, clicking into all 16 funders
~1.9 hrs
at ~7 min per funder profile
Your agents, the same 16
under a minute
every profile evaluated and scored, with reasoning
Grant data is drawn from IRS Form 990 filings via Grantable's GrantGraph™. Filings are published on a delay; recent grants may not appear yet.
Looking for funders like Religion News Foundation's?